Evidence
8 evidence entries recorded; each entry has a stable permalink (#ev-1 … #ev-8).
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[1]DANFS vol. III (G-I), Grayling (SS-209) entry - construction, eight war patrols, loss (printed-volume transcription via hazegray.org/Wayback; live NHHC page returned 404) [nhhc_danfs]
- Locator
- DANFS vol. III (G-I), Grayling entry and spec block
- Finding type
- vessel_history
- Finding
- Documented for this hull (DANFS): fourth Grayling, laid down at Navy Yard, Portsmouth, N.H., 15 December 1939; launched 4 September 1940 (sponsor Mrs. Herbert F. Leary); commissioned 1 March 1941, Lt. Comdr. F. Olson. Participated in the search for lost submarine O-9 off Isle of Shoals June 1941 and in the memorial services. Departed for the Pacific 17 November 1941 via Newport, the Panama Canal, and San Diego; reached Pearl Harbor 24 December 1941. On 31 December 1941 Admiral C. W. Nimitz hoisted his flag aboard Grayling as Commander, Pacific Fleet - the change-of-command ceremony was held on this submarine. Eight war patrols: sank Ryujin Maru 13 April 1942 off Japan; Midway reconnaissance fan (TG 7.1); Truk blockade duty (damaged a Japanese submarine tender 13 August 1942); fitted with surface radar at Pearl Harbor; sank a 4,000-ton cargo ship southwest of Truk 10 November 1942; Fremantle-based from December 1942; sank Ushio Maru 26 January 1943 and Shanghai Maru 9 April 1943. Eighth and last patrol: delivered supplies and equipment to guerrillas at Pucio Point, Pandan Bay, Panay on 31 July and 23 August 1943; last kill Meizan Maru 27 August; last contact in the Tablas Strait area after 9 September; officially reported 'lost with all hands' 30 September 1943 - five major kills totaling 20,575 tons. Six battle stars; all but the first patrol designated successful.
- Verification
- verified
- Role
- context
- Documentation level
- ship_specific
- Accessed
- 2026-09-18
- Study period
- 1939-1943
- Population
- PNSY construction trades (1939-41); crew (1941-43)
- Limitations
- Ship-specific history only; no asbestos or material content. Live NHHC DANFS page returned 404 - printed-volume transcription via hazegray.org/Wayback used. Last-contact date varies across official sources (19 Aug, 23 Aug, 9 Sep) - variants in gaps.
- Atlas source
- true
- Evidence ID
- ev-uss-grayling-ss209-01
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[2]NavSource Submarine Photo Index, USS Grayling (SS-209) - milestones, spec block, disposition [other_primary]
- Locator
- NavSource SS-209 page - milestone block, spec block, memorial captions
- Finding type
- vessel_history
- Finding
- Milestones (NavSource): laid down 15 December 1939 at Portsmouth Navy Yard, Portsmouth, NH; launched 4 September 1940; commissioned 1 March 1941; lost to enemy action between 9 and 12 September 1943 either in Lingayen Gulf or along the approaches to Manila; struck from the Naval Register (date unknown). Six battle stars. Memorial at the SW corner of the Colorado State Capitol grounds, Denver. Spec block: surfaced 1,475 t., submerged 2,370 t.; length 307'2"; complement 5 officers, 54 enlisted.
- Verification
- verified
- Role
- context
- Documentation level
- ship_specific
- Accessed
- 2026-09-18
- Population
- Crew
- Limitations
- Secondary compilation - milestone/disposition detail consistent with DANFS. Carries the 9-12 September loss window; official sources variously give 9 September (NHHC/Holmes) or a window through 27 September (WDR-58) - variants logged in gaps.
- Atlas source
- true
- Evidence ID
- ev-uss-grayling-ss209-02
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[3]Submarine War Damage Report No. 58 (Bureau of Ships, 1945) - ship-specific battle damage entry for this hull [other_primary]
- Locator
- WDR-58 Section I summary entry, Grayling (SS209), 11/6/42
- Finding type
- historical_record
- Finding
- One documented damage event (WDR-58 Section I): 6 November 1942, 4th patrol, off Truk (6-44N x 151-25E) - bombed by unidentified Japanese aircraft while at periscope depth (3 bombs). High-pressure air piping developed leaks in the after battery well and after torpedo room; radio antenna trunk flooded and all antennae were knocked down; No. 2 periscope optical system deranged; gaskets on main ballast tank Nos. 5A and 5B spring-loaded vent valves were dislodged; miscellaneous minor damage. Ship remained on patrol.
- Verification
- verified
- Role
- context
- Documentation level
- ship_specific
- Accessed
- 2026-09-18
- Study period
- 1942
- Population
- Crew at damage event; repair trades at subsequent refit
- Limitations
- Official BuShips damage summary - documents damage and repair-driving events only; contains no asbestos content. The vent-valve 'gaskets' are named as components; material composition is not identified.
- Atlas source
- true
- Evidence ID
- ev-uss-grayling-ss209-03
-
[4]War Damage Report No. 58 Appendix II (official Navy loss table) + NHHC chronological submarine-losses publication - official loss assessments for this hull [other_primary]
- Locator
- WDR-58 Appendix II loss entry #18 (SS-209); NHHC 'U.S. Submarine Losses WWII' chronological PDF
- Finding type
- historical_record
- Finding
- Official loss assessment (WDR-58 App. II): Grayling, loss window 9/9/43 to 9/27/43 (listed as 7th patrol), off Manila, P.I., cause unknown - last heard from 23 August 1943; Japanese records indicate no attack which could conceivably have accounted for her loss. NHHC chronological losses list: '9 Sep 43, 76 killed - probably rammed and sunk by Japanese transport Hokuan Maru, South China Sea west of Luzon.' The Hokuan Maru assessment derives from the vessel's own report of running over and 'noting an impact with a submerged object' on 9 September 1943 (secondary compilation citing Holmes, 'The Last Patrol'). The wreck has never been located.
- Verification
- verified
- Role
- context
- Documentation level
- ship_specific
- Accessed
- 2026-09-18
- Population
- Crew (final patrol)
- Limitations
- Loss cause officially unknown - the probable-ramming assessment is the modern NHHC compilation view, not a wartime finding. Last-contact date varies across official sources (WDR-58 23 Aug; SubLosses volume 19 Aug; DANFS narrative implies contact into September). Casualty count 76 (NHHC list) vs 77 (older compilations). All variants logged in gaps; no asbestos content.
- Atlas source
- true
- Evidence ID
- ev-uss-grayling-ss209-04
-
[5]Era inference anchored to DANFS-documented construction and yard periods for this hull; Tambor/Gar-class diesel-electric plant per DANFS and NavSource specification blocks [other_primary]
- Locator
- construction-era inference from DANFS dates, NavSource spec block, documented yard periods
- Finding type
- asbestos_application
- Finding
- Era inference: a diesel-electric fleet submarine built 1939-41 at Portsmouth Navy Yard in the peak asbestos era would era-typically have carried asbestos-containing exhaust lagging, engine gaskets and packing, and thermal/acoustic insulation around machinery and galley/refrigeration equipment. NO boilers or steam plant. Documented yard windows for this hull: Portsmouth Navy Yard construction (1939-41); Pearl Harbor repair period incl. surface-radar fit (mid-1942); Fremantle upkeep between patrols. Lost with all hands September 1943; wreck unlocated - no material-condition record can exist.
- Verification
- inferred
- Role
- supporting
- Documentation level
- class_or_era
- Accessed
- 2026-09-18
- Study period
- 1939-1943
- Population
- Construction and yard trades; crew
- Limitations
- CLASS/ERA INFERENCE ONLY - no ship-specific material schedule, insulation survey, or asbestos abatement record was located for this hull. Names era-standard applications, not confirmed installed materials. Establishes no quantity and no exposure for any individual.
- Atlas source
- true
- Evidence ID
- ev-uss-grayling-ss209-05
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[6]Kase v. Metalclad Insulation Corp., 6 Cal.App.5th 623 (Cal. Ct. App. 2016), No. A143590 - published opinion documenting the Navy specification regime for asbestos insulation [court_record]
- Locator
- Kase v. Metalclad Insulation Corp., 6 Cal.App.5th 623 (2016), discussion of Navy insulation specifications
- Finding type
- litigation_documented
- Finding
- Published appellate opinion (era context): the U.S. Navy's specifications called for asbestos in thermal insulation aboard Navy ships, and the Navy had studied asbestos insulation products (e.g., Unibestos) from the 1930s. Documents the specification regime under which this hull was built at a Navy yard in 1939-41 - it does NOT name USS Grayling or any Tambor-class submarine.
- Verification
- verified
- Role
- context
- Documentation level
- class_or_era
- Accessed
- 2026-09-18
- Study period
- 1930s-1960s
- Population
- Navy shipboard workers (era level)
- Limitations
- Era/spec-regime documentation only; the case involves different vessels and defendants. Cannot be promoted into ship-specific evidence for this hull. Litigation-stage note: published appellate opinion describing the spec regime, not a finding about this vessel.
- Atlas source
- true
- Evidence ID
- ev-uss-grayling-ss209-06
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[7]GAO, Navy Efforts To Protect Workers From Asbestos Exposure, HRD-80-2 (Oct 18, 1979) [gao]
- Locator
- GAO HRD-80-2 product page
- Finding type
- gov_survey
- Finding
- GAO documented that the Navy used asbestos insulation extensively aboard ships and did not begin substituting alternative insulation materials until the early 1970s - covering the construction era and entire service life of this hull (lost 1943).
- Verification
- verified
- Role
- context
- Documentation level
- class_or_era
- Accessed
- 2026-09-18
- Study period
- 1930s-1970s
- Population
- Navy shipyard workers (program level)
- Limitations
- Program-level documentation; supports era context only, not any fact specific to this hull. Full text not retrieved (gao.gov blocks automated fetch, HTTP 403) - carried via product-page description.
- Atlas source
- true
- Evidence ID
- ev-uss-grayling-ss209-07
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[8]Negative finding: no qualifying non-litigation ship-specific asbestos record located across DANFS/NHHC (printed vol. III + hazegray/Wayback transcription), NavSource, War Damage Report No. 58 (Sections I and Appendix II), official USN Submarine Losses WWII volume, NHHC chronological submarine-losses publication, and shipyard dataset searches [other_primary]
- Locator
- research sweep result - see search_ledger for repositories queried
- Finding type
- historical_record
- Finding
- No hull ACM survey, abatement contract, hazmat disclosure, or adjudicated exposure finding naming USS Grayling (SS-209) was located anywhere in the research sweep. The hull lies unlocated in the South China Sea/Manila approaches; no material-condition record can exist for the wreck itself.
- Verification
- verified
- Role
- negative_finding
- Documentation level
- ship_specific
- Accessed
- 2026-09-18
- Limitations
- Absence of a located record is not proof no record exists. Yard-side work records, where they existed, were not retrievable in located sources. Litigation sweep is INCOMPLETE - CourtListener queries for this hull returned HTTP 429/403 (see search_ledger); no litigation negative is claimed.
- Atlas source
- true
- Evidence ID
- ev-uss-grayling-ss209-08