Evidence
9 evidence entries recorded; each entry has a stable permalink (#ev-1 … #ev-9).
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[1]research packet 752-packet.md [other_primary]
- Finding type
- vessel_history
- Finding
- Identity packet verdict: VERIFIED
- Verification
- verified
- Role
- supporting
- Documentation level
- ship_specific
- Evidence ID
- uss-george-a-johnson-de583-pkt-752-packet-md
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[2]DANFS, USS George A. Johnson (DE-583) (namesake biography, specifications block, build and service narrative, striking; verbatim transcription - live NHHC page serves 404) [nhhc_danfs]
- Locator
- DANFS entry, specifications block + service narrative
- Finding type
- vessel_history
- Finding
- DANFS record for this hull: laid down by Bethlehem-Hingham Shipyard, Hingham, Mass., 24 November 1943; launched 12 January 1944, sponsored by Mrs. Alfred R. Johnson; commissioned 15 April 1944, Lt. Comdr. Alvin Robinson in command. Shakedown off Bermuda; convoy escort New York-Bizerte (dep. 24 June, arr. 14 July 1944) under German air attack; second convoy to Palermo (dep. Norfolk 2 Sept, arr. 23 Sept); return to New York 17 Oct; departed New York 3 Nov via Panama to Hollandia, New Guinea (arr. 24 Dec); Lingayen Gulf convoy attacked by four kamikazes 12 Jan 1945, convoy arrived intact 13 Jan; supported San Antonio, Luzon landings 26 Jan 1945; convoy duty Leyte Gulf-Ulithi-Hollandia-Manus, at Hollandia 27 Apr-Aug; post-surrender Jinsen, Korea, then among the first American ships since 1941 to enter the Yangtze 19 Sep 1945, aiding reoccupation of Shanghai and the Yangtze Patrol; departed 11 Oct for Okinawa, reached San Diego 5 Nov 1945; decommissioned 31 May 1946; 12th Naval District training ship from Aug 1946 (out of commission); in commission, in reserve, 29 Sep 1950; reservist training to late 1957; decommissioned Sept 1957, Pacific Reserve Fleet at Mare Island; struck from the Navy List 1 Nov 1965. Specifications block: Rudderow class; 1,450 t; 306 ft; 24 kt; complement 186.
- Verification
- verified
- Role
- supporting
- Documentation level
- ship_specific
- Accessed
- 2026-09-28
- Study period
- 1943-1965
- Population
- Bethlehem-Hingham construction trades 1943-44; wartime and reserve-training crews (design complement 186)
- Limitations
- DANFS documents service history and specifications, not materials or asbestos content. Mirror transcription cited because the live NHHC page returns 404. Complement (186) conflicts with NavSource's 12 officers/192 enlisted - carried in gaps.
- Atlas source
- true
- Evidence ID
- ev-uss-george-a-johnson-de583-01
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[3]National Metal & Steel Corp. v. Tug Mariner, 341 F. Supp. 249 (N.D. Cal. 1971), No. 45802, 1971 A.M.C. 1913 (Carter, C.J., filed 26 May 1971) [court_record]
- Locator
- Opinion recital (341 F. Supp. at 249-251), No. 45802
- Finding type
- litigation_documented
- Finding
- Published federal district-court opinion names this hull: 'the grounding and stranding of the naval vessel U.S.S. GEORGE A. JOHNSON on October 12, 1966, on a beach near Pacifica, California' while under tow by the tug Mariner from Mare Island toward the plaintiff's dismantling yard at San Pedro; the tow cable parted ~10 miles south of the Golden Gate ~4 hours into the tow, the tug crew failed for ~5 hours to regain the tow, and the ship went onto the beach. National Metal chose to dismantle the GEORGE JOHNSON on the beach rather than re-float her; suit alleged unseaworthiness/negligence over the excess dismantling cost (Shipowners & Merchants Towboat dismissed by stipulation; Interstate Towing, owner of the Mariner, sole defendant). Classified OTHER LITIGATION - maritime negligence, non-asbestos.
- Verification
- verified
- Role
- context
- Documentation level
- ship_specific
- Accessed
- 2026-09-28
- Study period
- 1966-1971
- Population
- Dismantling-yard and tug crews (1966); litigants (1971)
- Limitations
- Disposition is a memorandum for judgment on towing negligence/damages - it does not mention asbestos, does not address crew-era exposure, and establishes nothing about materials aboard. Confirms hull identity, tow route, grounding date, and the on-beach dismantlement decision.
- Atlas source
- true
- Evidence ID
- ev-uss-george-a-johnson-de583-02
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[4]NARA Special List No. 44, 'List of Logbooks of U.S. Navy Ships, Stations, and Miscellaneous Units, 1801-1947,' ship-number index [other_primary]
- Locator
- Special List 44 ship-number index, DE-583 row
- Finding type
- historical_record
- Finding
- NARA Special List 44 indexes a logbook entry for DE-583 (George A. Johnson) covering 8/22/1946-12/31/1946, and the bulk of WWII-era deck logs for the hull are held in NARA's deck-log series - a ship-specific primary-record lead for any future construction/materials or maintenance research.
- Verification
- verified
- Role
- archival_lead
- Documentation level
- ship_specific
- Accessed
- 2026-09-28
- Study period
- 1946 (indexed entry); 1944-1947 series scope
- Population
- Crew of record (1946 logbook period)
- Limitations
- Finding-aid level only: the entry confirms logbook custody for this hull, not content. Deck logs record events, not materials inventories; no retrieval performed this session. Post-1947 logs live in a separate series.
- Atlas source
- true
- Evidence ID
- ev-uss-george-a-johnson-de583-03
-
[5]Destroyer Escort Historical Museum (USS Slater), 'DE Classified' Episode 25 - USS GEORGE A. JOHNSON (podcast + transcript PDF) [museum_official]
- Locator
- DE Classified Episode 25 page + transcript PDF (Shanna Schuster, DEHM/USS Slater)
- Finding type
- historical_record
- Finding
- Museum-researched narrative for this hull: rammed by fuel-oil barge YO-153 entering Brooklyn Navy Yard Aug 1944 (6-inch hole, repaired); USS Hodges (DE-231) hit in the 12 Jan 1945 kamikaze attack without casualties; drydocked at Humboldt Bay for overdue repairs through Aug 1945; Radioman 3/c Eugene E. Rahmer wounded by a shore sniper aboard at Shanghai 30 Sep 1945 - the only person injured aboard per the account; Foster-Wheeler boilers and a 65,000-gallon fueling on 9 Oct 1945; Memorial Day 1952 Golden Gate gun salute and Manzanillo dignitary visit; stricken 1 Nov 1965 and sold to National Metal & Steel Corp.; grounded at Mori Point/Sharp Park Beach, Pacifica - salvage claimants Paul Farley and Larry Rody held the ship ~27.5 hours; ~88,000 gallons of oil aboard; Navy-owned gun mounts returned; 110-ton Bucyrus-Erie truck crane performed the first open-sea truck-crane salvage of a 1,450-ton vessel; beach cleared 26 Apr 1967.
- Verification
- verified
- Role
- context
- Documentation level
- ship_specific
- Accessed
- 2026-09-28
- Study period
- 1944-1967
- Population
- Wartime/reserve crews; National Metal & Steel dismantling crew 1966-67
- Limitations
- Museum secondary research (transcript cites a bibliography); details not independently adjudicated. Boiler make (Foster-Wheeler) conflicts with NavSource's '2 CE boilers' - carried in gaps. Contains no asbestos information.
- Atlas source
- true
- Evidence ID
- ev-uss-george-a-johnson-de583-04
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[6]Coastside News (Half Moon Bay Review), 'The Story of the U.S.S. George A. Johnson at Sharp Park Beach' (2025 retrospective citing Pacifica Tribune contemporaneous coverage) [reputable_press]
- Locator
- Coastside News coastside-guide history piece (2025)
- Finding type
- historical_record
- Finding
- Local-press retrospective documents the grounding and disposition at this hull's final site: tow line snapped the evening of 12 Oct 1966 while bound south for scrapping by National Metal and Salvage Co.; found high and dry on Sharp Park Beach adjacent Mori Point by a Pacifica police officer; hundreds of thousands of visitors; weekly Pacifica Tribune coverage while the Navy, the city, and the salvage company decided disposition; includes a firsthand account by wartime Bethlehem Steel welder Jean Brunger on interior double-hull welding conditions at the builder's yard.
- Verification
- verified
- Role
- context
- Documentation level
- ship_specific
- Accessed
- 2026-09-28
- Study period
- 1943-44 (construction recollection); 1966-67 (grounding/scrapping)
- Population
- Pacifica public/responders 1966-67; Bethlehem-Hingham wartime welders (anecdotal)
- Limitations
- Retrospective journalism; welder account is anecdotal on construction conditions and names no materials. Contains no asbestos information; corroborates the grounding site and public-impact facts only.
- Atlas source
- true
- Evidence ID
- ev-uss-george-a-johnson-de583-05
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[7]NavSource Online Destroyer Escort Photo Archive, USS George A. Johnson (DE 583) - specifications block and building/operational data (secondary compilation consistent with DANFS) [other_primary]
- Locator
- NavSource DE-583 specifications block ('2 CE boilers, G.E. turbines with electric drive, 12000 shp'); spec-suite citation per DE-era litigation exhibit lists
- Finding type
- asbestos_application
- Finding
- Era/design inference: TEV-type destroyer escort built 1943-44 with a two-boiler steam plant driving G.E. turbo-electric machinery, 12,000 shp - peak-era asbestos applications in boiler/machinery insulation, steam-line lagging, gaskets, packing, and fireproofing were standard Navy practice for a hull of this type and date; the period Navy insulation-specification suite (BuShips Manual ch.39 NAVSHIPS 250-000(39) 1945; spec 32F3a 'Felt, Insulating, Asbestos' 1945; BuEng Manual ch.13) is identified in DE-era litigation exhibit lists and remains an archival lead for era materials documentation.
- Verification
- inferred
- Role
- supporting
- Documentation level
- class_or_era
- Accessed
- 2026-09-28
- Study period
- 1943-1967
- Population
- Bethlehem-Hingham construction trades 1943-44; crew 1944-57
- Limitations
- Class/era inference only - no ship-specific finding for this hull. Spec suite identified via exhibit-list references in DE litigation (Jack v. Borg-Warner Morse Tec, W.D. Wash. 2:17-cv-00537, per sibling-class research); documents not retrieved this session. Does not establish asbestos aboard DE-583, quantity, or exposure.
- Atlas source
- true
- Evidence ID
- ev-uss-george-a-johnson-de583-06
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[8]Batch-4395 search ledger (this record): DANFS/NHHC, NARA Special List 44, DEHM transcript, federal opinion 341 F. Supp. 249, local press, NavSource; open-web asbestos queries [other_primary]
- Locator
- search_ledger rows sl-uss-george-a-johnson-de583-01 through -08
- Finding type
- historical_record
- Finding
- No qualifying ship-specific asbestos record located: no asbestos survey, abatement contract, hazmat disclosure, or case naming USS George A. Johnson (DE-583) as an exposure site was found in the authoritative sources searched. Open-web asbestos hits are confined to law-firm/lead-generation listicles (asbestos-ships.com, shepardlawfirm.com, freeasbestostesting.com) - excluded under source rules as non-authoritative marketing pages asserting generic class-era exposure.
- Verification
- verified
- Role
- negative_finding
- Documentation level
- ship_specific
- Accessed
- 2026-09-28
- Study period
- 2026-09-28
- Limitations
- Absence of a located public record does not prove absence of asbestos aboard - the hull was scrapped 1966-67, before OSHA/NESHAP-era documentation requirements, so no modern-era record would be expected. Does not establish or defeat any claim of exposure or legal eligibility.
- Atlas source
- true
- Evidence ID
- ev-uss-george-a-johnson-de583-07
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[9]CourtListener API v4 authenticated sweep, queries "USS George A. Johnson" / "George A. Johnson" / "George A. Johnson" asbestos OR mesothelioma (type=o); "DE-583" and RECAP docket queries blocked [court_record]
- Locator
- search_ledger rows sl-uss-george-a-johnson-de583-06 (completed queries), -07 (blocked queries)
- Finding type
- litigation_documented
- Finding
- PARTIAL SWEEP - opinion level: exact-name "USS George A. Johnson" returned 0 hits; bare-name "George A. Johnson" returned 103 hits and "George A. Johnson" asbestos/mesothelioma-qualified queries returned the same 103-result set - all returned hits are person-name collisions (criminal defendants, attorneys, litigants; e.g., George A. Johnson v. State of Tennessee, Tenn. Crim. App. 2008) with zero ship/navy/vessel/asbestos text in any result snippet; no qualifying asbestos-litigation hit surfaced. Hull-number "DE-583" and RECAP docket (type=r) queries remained blocked by the fleet pace limiter at commit - not completed. Known non-asbestos litigation naming the hull: National Metal & Steel Corp. v. Tug Mariner, 341 F. Supp. 249 (N.D. Cal. 1971) - other litigation (see ev-02).
- Verification
- unverified
- Role
- negative_finding
- Documentation level
- ship_specific
- Accessed
- 2026-09-28
- Study period
- 2026-09-28
- Limitations
- Partial sweep - verified zero hits at exact-name opinion level and zero asbestos context in bare-name results, but hull-number and docket-level coverage is incomplete. 'George A. Johnson' is a common personal name; docket-index hits not yet reviewed may include further collisions. A fully verified negative requires completing the type=r sweep.
- Atlas source
- true
- Evidence ID
- ev-uss-george-a-johnson-de583-08