USS Graffias (AF-29)

Evidence

11 evidence entries recorded; each entry has a stable permalink (#ev-1 … #ev-11).

1. [1]Utterback v. Hexion Specialty Chemicals, Inc., No. 3:08-cv-00983-JCS (N.D. Cal.), Document 1 (complaint package, captioned Cantlin v. GE, C08-982-JCS) and Document 1-2 (Exhibit A, plaintiff Robert Ross) - RECAP; In re: Asbestos Products Liability Litigation (MDL-875), Transfer Order No. 338 (2009-02-27) [court_record]

   Locator

   RECAP gov.uscourts.cand.200540.1.0.pdf - Document 1-2, Exhibit A (plaintiff Robert Ross), pp. ~22-24 of 106: employer/location-of-exposure table and vessel list naming 'GRAFFIAS (AF-29)'; docket 3:08-cv-00983 entries 7 (MDL tag-along notice), 10 (MDL transfer order 2008-05-20), 12 (Transfer Order No. 338)

   Finding type

   litigation_documented

   Finding

   Docketed asbestos personal-injury action: Document 1 in RECAP docket 3:08-cv-00983-JCS (N.D. Cal., captioned Utterback v. Hexion Specialty Chemicals, Inc., suit nature 'P.I. : Asbestos', filed 2008-02-15) is a multi-plaintiff complaint package (captioned Cantlin v. General Electric et al., No. C08-982-JCS). Document 1-2, Exhibit A for plaintiff Robert Ross, recites that he worked as an insulator at Bay Area worksites (Western Asbestos; Bethlehem Steel Shipbuilding, San Francisco; Triple A Machine Shop Pier 64; Willamette Shipyard Richmond; Pacific Ship Repair Pier 36; Todd Shipyard Oakland; Matson Navigation Pier 30; Naval Air Station Alameda) and aboard/near a ~15-vessel list that expressly includes 'GRAFFIAS (AF-29)', during windows 7/1961-10/1961 and 7/1962-5/1965. The exhibit describes insulation work with asbestos cloth, POWERHOUSE cement, 352 BLUE MUD cement, HENRY'S MASTIC on refrigeration units, and GARLOCK gaskets. The case was tagged into MDL-875 (tag-along notice filed 2008-03-19) and transferred to E.D. Pa. by MDL order 2008-05-20 (N.D. Cal. docket terminated the same day; Transfer Order No. 338 filed 2009-02-27).

   Verification

   verified

   Role

   supporting

   Documentation level

   ship_specific

   Accessed

   2026-09-20

   Study period

   1961-1965 (alleged exposure); 2008-2009 (litigation)

   Population

   Insulator (Robert Ross) at SF Bay Area shipyards and vessels, 1961-1965 alleged window

   Limitations

   Pleading-stage allegation listing this hull among ~15 vessels and multiple shore worksites; the court record exists and is verified, but the alleged exposure aboard this hull is unadjudicated - no discovery, fact-finding, or merits ruling on the allegation was located, and the MDL-875 transfer leaves the claim at pleading stage in the public record. The exposure form gives no dates aboard this hull; the alleged window overlaps the hull's service only partially (forward-deployed at Sasebo until 1964-02-26, then San Francisco homeport and a documented overhaul - an implicit ~1964-65 overlap for a Bay Area insulator). Establishes nothing about materials aboard, individual exposure, causation, or legal eligibility.

   Atlas source

   true

   Evidence ID

   ev-uss-graffias-af29-01

2. [2]Dictionary of American Naval Fighting Ships, 'Graffias (AF-29),' Naval History and Heritage Command [nhhc_danfs]

   Locator

   DANFS 'Graffias' entry; canonical NHHC URL returned 404 on 2026-09-20 (standing NHHC link rot - see search_ledger); public-domain DANFS text verified via the verbatim transcription at losthistory.net/hazegray/danfs/auxil/af29.htm and its reproduction at en.wikipedia.org/wiki/USS_Graffias

   Finding type

   vessel_history

   Finding

   DANFS entry for Graffias (AF-29): ex-Topa Topa, built 1943 by Gulf Shipbuilding Corp., Chickasaw, Ala.; acquired by the Navy 19 February 1944; converted by Bethlehem Steel Co., Baltimore, Md.; commissioned at Baltimore 28 October 1944, Lt. Comdr. B. P. Caraher in command. Sailed for the Pacific 25 November 1944 as a unit of ServRon Ten; reached Ulithi 31 December; two more San Francisco-Ulithi voyages through May 1945; Pearl Harbor-Ulithi run returning 14 July; repairs at Pearl Harbor; Adak 18 August; occupation provisioning at Ominato (9 September), Wakayama, Nagasaki, Sasebo; Seattle 26 October with passengers; Bremerton Navy Yard overhaul. From January 1946, Pacific replenishment circuit to Wake, Eniwetok, Kwajalein, Bikini, Okinawa, the Philippines, Guam, Saipan, Formosa, Shanghai, Hong Kong, Yokosuka (~2.5-month cruises). Korean War: home port Sasebo from June 1950, three years shuttling to at-sea replenishment areas and Korean coast stops. Post-1953: 7th Fleet out of Sasebo - Hong Kong, Formosa, Okinawa, Philippines; Quemoy-Matsu 1955 provisioning U.S. and Chinese Nationalist forces. Departed Sasebo 26 February 1964 for new home port San Francisco; overhaul; sailed for Subic Bay late July 1964; ordered to the Gulf of Tonkin after the 4 August attack on Maddox and Turner Joy, replenished both destroyers a week later and supplied 7th Fleet units, setting a replenishment record of 168.9 short tons/hour; home via Hong Kong, Yokosuka, Pearl Harbor, arriving San Francisco 12 October. Two Far East deployments in 1965; Pacific coast 1966; departed Yokosuka end of December 1966 for underway replenishment off Vietnam in 1967; 'a unit of ServRon 7, she remains today in the Pacific.'

   Verification

   verified

   Role

   supporting

   Documentation level

   ship_specific

   Accessed

   2026-09-20

   Study period

   1943-1969

   Limitations

   Authoritative operational history naming this hull throughout; contains no asbestos, insulation-material, or hazardous-material information whatsoever - supports no asbestos claim. Entry predates decommissioning (no disposal data). Canonical NHHC URL is currently dead; text verified against public-domain DANFS transcription.

   Atlas source

   true

   Evidence ID

   ev-uss-graffias-af29-02

3. [3]U.S. Maritime Administration, ShipHistory database - GRAFFIAS (AF-29), Ship History Detail 1993; status cards 1993_3711AF.jpg (Form MA-383) and 2TJ_01.png (Form MA-199) [marad_nrc]

   Locator

   ShipHistory Detail 1993 (milestones, name history) plus digitized status cards at /cards/1993_3711AF.jpg and /cards/2TJ_01.png - both retrieved and read 2026-09-20

   Finding type

   vessel_history

   Finding

   MARAD ShipHistory database record and status cards for Graffias (AF-29): type C2-S-E1, storeship, built by Gulf Shipbuilding Corp. 1944, MC hull 485, builder's hull no. 17, 6,200 gross tons, 10,875 DWT, vessel no. 0766846. Form MA-199 records the hull delivered incomplete to U.S.M.C. and 'Loaned to U.S. Navy', the Navy Department taking title 1-16-46, delivery to the Reserve Fleet at Suisun Bay 5/20/70 9:30 AM PDT under permanent-custody terms with transfer noted 3/15/74, and disposal: Reserve Fleet to Dongkuk Steel Co. of America Inc. 3/15/74 by purchase, 'Physically Delivered' 5/14/74 11:30 AM PDT. Form MA-383 records entry into Suisun Bay 5-20-70 and reason for withdrawal: 'Sold scrap under PD-X-972, 3-15-74 to Dongkuk Steel Co., of America, Inc. for $803,250.00.' ShipHistory milestone table: entered Suisun Bay as a reimbursable custody asset 5/20/1970 with the U.S. Navy retaining title; MARAD took title 3/15/1974.

   Verification

   verified

   Role

   supporting

   Documentation level

   ship_specific

   Accessed

   2026-09-20

   Study period

   1944-1974

   Limitations

   Authoritative for government custody milestones and disposal; contains no asbestos, materials, or condition-survey information - supports no asbestos claim. The MA-383 card's 'WITHDRAWN 5-14-73' conflicts with the MA-199 'Physically Delivered 5/14/74' at the same time of day - treated as a clerical year error, see ev-11.

   Atlas source

   true

   Evidence ID

   ev-uss-graffias-af29-03

4. [4]Shipscribe, 'USS Hyades (AF-28) Class' - compiled construction/disposition tables, class notes, and ship notes from Navy Ship's Data records [other_primary]

   Locator

   AF-28 class page: construction table (keel/launch/commission), disposition table (decomm/strike/disposal/MA sale), class notes, ship notes (MC 481/485)

   Finding type

   vessel_history

   Finding

   Shipscribe AF-28 (Hyades) class compilation (S.S. Roberts, from Navy Ship's Data / NavData records): GRAFFIAS acquired 19 February 1944; keel 17 June 1943; launched 22 December 1943; commissioned 28 October 1944; decommissioned and stricken 19 December 1969; disposal 15 March 1974 (MA sale same date); ship note 'Ex merc. TOPA TOPA. Delivered incomplete. Ferry commission 19 Feb-2 Mar 44. Converted by Bethlehem Steel, Key Highway, Baltimore, Md. To NDRF 20 May 70, to buyer 14 May 74.' Class data: design MC C2-S-E1 (a privately designed Waterman Steamship variant of the C2, 468.75 ft oa - longer than the standard C2); displacement 6,313 light / 15,300 lim. tons; complement 209 (1944); G.E. turbine, 1 screw, 6,000 HP, 15.5 kts; original armament 1-5in/38, 4-3in/50, 12-20mm. Class notes: thirty C2-S-E1s built at Gulf Shipbuilding, Chickasaw; six served in the Navy (four APA-52 class plus Hyades and Graffias); the Navy acquired the two Gulf hulls (MC 481 Hyades, MC 485 Graffias) as 'Provision Stores Ships (for Fleet Issue)', completed as merchant ships and sent to the Baltimore conversion yard, commissioned for the ferry trip and decommissioned on arrival.

   Verification

   verified

   Role

   supporting

   Documentation level

   ship_specific

   Accessed

   2026-09-20

   Study period

   1943-1974

   Limitations

   Secondary compilation of primary Navy/Maritime Commission records; documents the conversion yard and dates but contains no insulation-material itemization and no asbestos information - supports no asbestos claim.

   Atlas source

   true

   Evidence ID

   ev-uss-graffias-af29-04

5. [5]Bowles, Oliver, 'Asbestos,' U.S. Bureau of Mines Bulletin 403, U.S. Government Printing Office, Washington, 1937 (mirrored scan) [other_primary]

   Locator

   Bulletin 403, heat-insulation history section (pp. ~69-75 of the bulletin scan)

   Finding type

   asbestos_application

   Finding

   U.S. Bureau of Mines Bulletin 403 documents that asbestos heat-insulation products were established decades before this hull's 1943-44 construction: asbestos-cement boiler covering was first tried about 1870; canvas-covered sectional magnesia pipe covering appeared in 1885; asbestos paper was used from about 1878 to protect hair-felt insulation from the heat of steam pipes. Steam-plant insulation products of the WWII era commonly contained asbestos fiber.

   Verification

   inferred

   Role

   supporting

   Documentation level

   class_or_era

   Accessed

   2026-09-20

   Study period

   1870s-1937 (product history); hull 1943-1974

   Population

   WWII-era shipbuilders and engine-room crews (era context)

   Limitations

   Product-history documentation, not a hull record - does not name this vessel and does not describe shipboard installation aboard any specific hull; asbestos presence aboard this hull is era inference, not ship-proven. Does not establish quantity, location, present-day presence, individual exposure, or causation.

   Atlas source

   true

   Evidence ID

   ev-uss-graffias-af29-05

6. [6]Corn, Jacqueline Karnell, and Jennifer Starr, 'Historical perspective on asbestos: Policies and protective measures in World War II shipbuilding,' American Journal of Industrial Medicine 11(3):359-373 (1987) [other_primary]

   Locator

   Abstract and article, AJIM 11(3):359-373

   Finding type

   asbestos_application

   Finding

   Peer-reviewed historical study documents that asbestos was used extensively as a fireproofing and insulating material in U.S. shipbuilding during World War II - the era covering this hull's construction at Gulf Shipbuilding (1943-44), her conversion at Bethlehem Steel's Key Highway yard, Baltimore (1944), and her documented Bremerton Navy Yard overhaul (late 1945).

   Verification

   verified

   Role

   context

   Documentation level

   class_or_era

   Accessed

   2026-09-20

   Study period

   1940s era documented; article 1987

   Population

   WWII shipyard workers and ship crews (class context)

   Limitations

   Program/era-level scholarly documentation of asbestos use in WWII shipbuilding generally; does not name this vessel and does not establish that asbestos was installed or disturbed aboard this hull during construction, conversion, or availabilities, nor quantity, location, exposure, or causation.

   Atlas source

   true

   Evidence ID

   ev-uss-graffias-af29-06

7. [7]U.S. Department of Veterans Affairs / DOD, 'Navy and Coast Guard Ships Associated with Service in Vietnam and Exposure to Herbicide Agents' ship list (Ohio DVS mirror PDF); NavSource Online, USS Graffias (AF-29) index 09/06/0629 - awards/campaign tables, CO roster, milestones, spec sheet [other_primary]

   Locator

   VA ship list, section III ('Ships that docked to shore or pier in Vietnam'), Graffias AF-29 entry; NavSource 09/06/0629 (http://www.navsource.net/archives/09/06/0629.htm) milestone and campaign tables

   Finding type

   vessel_history

   Finding

   VA/DOD Vietnam ship list ('Navy and Coast Guard Ships Associated with Service in Vietnam and Exposure to Herbicide Agents', as republished by the Ohio Department of Veterans Services): USS Graffias (AF-29), Auxiliary Stores Ship, 'docked to pier at Da Nang for resupply on February 20 and November 25, 1967, and conducted other in-port docking replenishments at An Thoi and Vung Tau during 1967.' NavSource award/campaign tables corroborate Vietnam-era service and add detail the DANFS-era entry lacks: 8 Korean War battle stars, 7 Vietnam Service Medal campaign stars, Armed Forces Expeditionary Medal (Taiwan Straits, Quemoy-Matsu, Vietnam), Navy Unit Commendation, and China Service Medal (extended) periods into 1955; commanding-officer roster including CAPT Thomas B. Hayward 1967-1968; decommissioning milestone; NDRF entry; sale to Dongkuk Steel.

   Verification

   verified

   Role

   context

   Documentation level

   ship_specific

   Accessed

   2026-09-20

   Study period

   1965-1969 (Vietnam service); awards table as of NavSource page update 2024-02-16

   Population

   Crew aboard during 1967 Vietnam in-port replenishments (Da Nang, An Thoi, Vung Tau)

   Limitations

   Official herbicide-exposure ship list documenting port calls - a Vietnam-service record, not an asbestos record; the NavSource corroboration carries its milestone values as reported (decommissioning 1969-10-15 and strike May 1974 conflict with shipscribe - see ev-11). Supports no asbestos claim.

   Atlas source

   true

   Evidence ID

   ev-uss-graffias-af29-07

8. [8]Shipscribe, 'USS Hyades (AF-28) Class' class notes - VCNO directive of 3 June 1943 and Auxiliary Vessels Board actions, from Navy Ship's Data records [other_primary]

   Locator

   AF-28 class page, class notes (1943 acquisition history)

   Finding type

   historical_record

   Finding

   Shipscribe class notes document that insulation content was a stated Navy concern during the acquisition deliberations that produced the Hyades class: on 3 June 1943 VCNO directed acquisition of the Moore-built C2 FLYING SCUD (MC hull 188) 'but at the same time he directed the Bureau of Ships to carefully examine how much insulation had been installed in the ship because the Navy was aware that the Moore C2s were being constructed to carry frozen beef in bulk and would not be suitable to carry balanced rations, as required of naval AFs, without considerable conversion of their refrigerated holds.' The Maritime Commission subsequently offered the modified C2-S-E1 Gulf hulls (MC 481 and 485 - Hyades and this ship) instead.

   Verification

   verified

   Role

   context

   Documentation level

   class_or_era

   Accessed

   2026-09-20

   Study period

   1943 (acquisition deliberations)

   Limitations

   Class-level context showing the Navy's documented interest in refrigerated-hold insulation during AF acquisition deliberations - the quoted directive concerns a different candidate hull (FLYING SCUD), not this ship; it names no insulation material, establishes no asbestos content, and says nothing about what was installed aboard this hull.

   Atlas source

   true

   Evidence ID

   ev-uss-graffias-af29-08

9. [9]NARA photo-number captions compiled at NavSource 09/06/0629 and shipscribe AF28-p photo page; NARA record-group guides RG 19 [other_primary]

   Locator

   shipscribe AF-28 class photo page (NARA photo numbers with captions); NavSource 09/06/0629 photo table

   Finding type

   historical_record

   Finding

   Archival leads (existence confirmed at collection/photo-number level, not retrieved - no spend authorized): (a) NARA RG-19-LCM Bureau of Ships photo series documents this hull - 19-N-73555 and 19-N-73556 (Chesapeake Bay off Bethlehem Key Highway shipyard, 30 October 1944, just after conversion), 80-G-1078432 (Pearl Harbor, 11 December 1953), USN 1044037 (late 1940s), KN-8837 (14 September 1963), 80-G-424637 (replenishing USS Missouri, Sea of Japan, 17 December 1950); (b) NARA College Park WWII war diaries and deck logs for AF-29 are expected holdings for a commissioned auxiliary (not yet confirmed at collection level); (c) RG 19 Bureau of Ships records may hold the Bethlehem Key Highway conversion work packages and Booklet of General Plans-type material that would itemize insulation scope.

   Verification

   unverified

   Role

   archival_lead

   Documentation level

   context_only

   Accessed

   2026-09-20

   Study period

   1943-1969 records

   Limitations

   Photo-number and collection-level existence confirmed only; no document-level retrieval performed and no asbestos-specific documents identified - nothing in this row is an asbestos finding. Whether conversion work packages or plans contain insulation-material information is unknown until surveyed.

   Atlas source

   true

   Evidence ID

   ev-uss-graffias-af29-09

10. [10]Batch-527 search ledger (this record): NHHC DANFS canonical URL (404) + hazegray transcription; NavSource; shipscribe; MARAD ShipHistory 1993 + status cards; MARAD Detail 12064 (Topa Topa 1945); CourtListener API v4 opinion and RECAP-docket sweeps + RECAP PDF; VA/DVS ship list; shipbuildinghistory/navalmarinearchive yard tables; LOC/HAER; NVR [other_primary]

    Locator

    search_ledger rows sl-uss-graffias-af29-01 through sl-uss-graffias-af29-17

    Finding type

    historical_record

    Finding

    No qualifying affirmative ship-specific asbestos record located: no asbestos survey, abatement contract, hazmat disclosure, specification itemization, or adjudicated case naming USS Graffias (AF-29) or the 1943 Topa Topa (MC 485) was found in the public sources searched; the hull was scrapped in 1974 so no present-day hull survey exists. The CourtListener pass is complete: opinion sweeps for 'Graffias' (5 hits) and 'AF-29' (5 hits) returned only name/term collisions (surname Graffia; exhibit/form strings); docket sweep for 'Graffias' (4 dockets) returned one qualifying asbestos pleading - the Ross/Utterback document (ev-01) - plus commercial collisions; 'Topa Topa' (14 opinion hits) surfaced Barrios v. Waterman Steamship (290 F.2d 310, 5th Cir. 1961) and Randolph v. Waterman Steamship (166 F. Supp. 732, E.D. Pa. 1958), both involving the 1945 merchant SS Topa Topa (MC hull 1610) - a different vessel; 'USS Graffias' returned zero. Law-firm marketing ship lists that include Graffias are present online but are banned sources and were not relied on.

    Verification

    verified

    Role

    negative_finding

    Documentation level

    ship_specific

    Accessed

    2026-09-20

    Study period

    2026-09-20

    Limitations

    Absence of a located affirmative record does not prove absence of asbestos aboard - a 1943-44 steam hull converted to era practice is era-consistent with asbestos-containing machinery-space materials, and the Ross pleading (ev-01) is itself a ship-specific allegation. This row records that no affirmative documentation was located; it does not establish presence or absence, nor does it establish or defeat any exposure claim or legal eligibility.

    Atlas source

    true

    Evidence ID

    ev-uss-graffias-af29-10

11. [11]MARAD status cards 1993_3711AF.jpg (MA-383) and 2TJ_01.png (MA-199); shipscribe AF-28 ship notes/class data; shipbuildinghistory.com C2 cargo and combat-logistics tables; navalmarinearchive Chickasaw yard table; MARAD Detail 12064 (Topa Topa 1945); NavalCoverMuseum Graffias AF-29 page; NavSource 09/06/0629 [other_primary]

    Locator

    MA-199 operating-history block (loan, title 1-16-46, delivered 5/14/74 11:30 PDT); MA-383 withdrawn block; shipscribe AF28 ship note; shipbuildinghistory.com/merchantships/2c2cargoships.htm and /navalships/ac.htm; navalmarinearchive.com/sbh/shipyards/large/chickasaw.html (yard nos. 17 and 32); vesselhistory.marad.dot.gov/ShipHistory/Detail/12064

    Finding type

    historical_record

    Finding

    Source discrepancies noted and resolved or carried: (a) MC hull number - NavSource, Wikipedia, and downstream copies say 'MC hull 1610,' but the MARAD status cards (MA-383 and MA-199), shipscribe ship notes, shipbuildinghistory's C2 and naval-auxiliary tables, and the navalmarinearchive Chickasaw yard table all give MC 485 (Gulf yard hull 17); MC 1610 is the SECOND SS Topa Topa (yard 32, delivered July 1945 to Waterman) - the circulated figure is a cross-contamination, and the same error likely produces (b) the 'scrapped 1973' fate in Wikipedia and shipbuildinghistory's naval table - the second Topa Topa was scrapped 1973 while this hull's documented disposal is 1974 (sold 3-15-74, delivered 5-14-74, scrapped 1974); (c) launch date - shipscribe gives 22 December 1943, Wikipedia 12 December 1943; shipscribe's Navy-data figure adopted and the variant flagged; (d) decommissioning - shipscribe and NavalCoverMuseum give 19 December 1969, NavSource gives 15 October 1969 at NAS Alameda (a date that coincides with the last CO's relief date in NavSource's own roster); shipscribe's figure adopted, variant flagged; (e) strike date - shipscribe gives 19 December 1969, NavSource and NavalCoverMuseum give May 1974; unresolved, carried in gaps; (f) acquisition form - Wikipedia says 'acquired by purchase 19 February 1944,' but the MA-199 status card documents delivery incomplete to USMC and loan to the Navy, with Navy title taken 1-16-46 - the documented structure is a 1944 loan, not a 1944 purchase; (g) complement - shipscribe 209 (1944), DANFS/Clancey 319, NavSource spec 22 officers + 230 enlisted (252); no single figure verifiable to a primary source - flagged; (h) MARAD milestone table shows 'Withdrawal 5/14/1973' while the MA-199 card records physical delivery 5/14/74 at the same 11:30 PDT - the 1973 year on the MA-383 card and in the milestone table is treated as a clerical error; (i) displacement figures vary across sources (7,700 light/14,900-15,300 loaded vs shipscribe class 6,313 light/15,300 lim.) - the Atlas schema carries no displacement field and no figure is asserted here.

    Verification

    verified

    Role

    correction

    Documentation level

    ship_specific

    Accessed

    2026-09-20

    Study period

    1943-1974

    Limitations

    Resolves or flags publication-level discrepancies across secondary compilations using primary MARAD documents; does not affect identity or custody timeline materially. No asbestos content in any of these sources.

    Atlas source

    true

    Evidence ID

    ev-uss-graffias-af29-11