Evidence
10 evidence entries recorded; each entry has a stable permalink (#ev-1 … #ev-10).
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[1]research packet bk-packet.md (6 sources cited) [other_primary]
- Finding type
- vessel_history
- Finding
- Identity packet verdict: VERIFIED
- Verification
- verified
- Role
- supporting
- Documentation level
- ship_specific
- Evidence ID
- uss-gypsy-arsd1-pkt-bk-packet-md
-
[2]DANFS/NHHC, 'Gypsy II (ARSD-1)' (published online 2015-07-14; live URL 404 at research time - text verified via Internet Archive capture 2022-10-03) [nhhc_danfs]
- Locator
- NHHC DANFS online entry 'Gypsy II (ARSD-1)' - live page 404 (2026-09-26); text via Wayback Machine capture 20221003052526
- Finding type
- vessel_history
- Finding
- DANFS documents this hull: 'Gypsy (ARSD-1), originally designated LSM-549, was launched by Brown Shipbuilding Co., Houston, Tex., 7 December 1945, and commissioned 18 March 1946 at Houston, Tex., Lt. Comdr. C. S. Homer [sic - Horner per CO listings] in command.' Class data line: dp. 816; l. 224'9"; b. 34'11"; dr. 8'; s. 13 k.; cpl. 65; 2 20mm. Full service narrative: shakedown completed 20 March 1946; San Pedro arrival 26 May; departed 14 June for Operation Crossroads, arriving off Bikini 10 July 1946, witnessed Baker test 25 July, recovered beached and damaged craft and did underwater work on test ships; raised SS Britain Victory at Honolulu Sep-Nov 1946; extensive repairs San Pedro 10 Dec 1946-Jun 1947; Guam arrival 18 Aug 1947 where she salvaged and towed to Guam the former bow of cruiser Pittsburgh (lost in the June 1945 typhoon); San Diego 17 Jan 1948, decommissioned 21 Jan 1948; recommissioned 8 Aug 1951, Pearl Harbor 19 Oct 1951; seven months Apra Harbor Guam (mooring buoys, breakwater); new salvage equipment and electronics installed at Pearl Harbor May-Sep 1952; Subic Bay Oct 1952 (sunken Japanese hulk removal); Inchon/Pohang/Ulsan salvage work Jan-May 1953; Eniwetok fleet-mooring work Sep 1953; Bikini 7 Feb 1954, witnessed first Castle shot 1 Mar 1954, recovered test equipment, detached 26 Mar 1954; decommissioned 23 Dec 1955 at Astoria, OR; berthed San Diego 1967.
- Verification
- verified
- Role
- supporting
- Documentation level
- ship_specific
- Accessed
- 2026-09-26
- Study period
- 1945-1967
- Population
- Ship's company 1946-1955 (cpl. 65 per class data; 77 aboard during Crossroads per DNA 6032F)
- Limitations
- Authoritative Navy history; no asbestos or insulation material content of any kind. Commissioning date differs from ShipScribe class table (28 Feb 1946); DANFS's own 'shakedown completed 20 March 1946' sits only two days after its 18 March commissioning - internally tight but carried as published. 'Homer' is a DANFS typo for Horner (per NavSource CO listing). Entry ends at 1967 berthing and does not record stricken/disposal dates.
- Atlas source
- true
- Evidence ID
- ev-uss-gypsy-arsd1-01
-
[3]Defense Nuclear Agency, 'Operation CROSSROADS 1946' - Nuclear Test Personnel Review report DNA 6032F (approved for public release); ship-history appendix entry and Table 31 for USS GYPSY (ARSD-1) [other_primary]
- Locator
- DNA 6032F ship-history appendix 'USS GYPSY (ARSD-1)' (printed pp. 333-335) and Table 31 (printed p. 232); also referenced in Apogon, Searaven, Skate, Skipjack ship sections
- Finding type
- environmental_record
- Finding
- Official DoD personnel-review volume documents Gypsy in Task Unit 1.2.7 (Salvage Unit) at Operation Crossroads: crew size 77; Bikini arrival 10 July 1946, departure 5 September 1946; Shot ABLE location 'en route from Pearl Harbor to Kwajalein Atoll'; Shot BAKER location 12 nmi (22 km) SE; decontamination location Pearl Harbor/Los Angeles; operational radiological clearance 9 January 1947, final clearance 19 January 1947. Reconstructed mission log records: salvage of anchors/chain off Eneu Island; installing submerged test weights on target submarine USS Apogon (SS-308) 21 July; directed 6 August to wash down contaminated target submarine USS Searaven (SS-196) with high-pressure hoses (post-wash reading 2.5 R/24 hours; on-deck readings 1.5 R/24 hours); delivering anchor and chain to target submarine USS Skate (SS-305) during its decontamination; towing target submarine USS Skipjack (SS-184) from Bikini to Kwajalein (departed 5 September 1946). Table 31 'Reconstructed (calculated) dose for support ship crews': 77 personnel; Bikini departure 5 Sep 1946; reconstructed Bikini dose 0.516 rem gamma; clearance dose 0.570 rem gamma at 9 January 1947.
- Verification
- verified
- Role
- supporting
- Documentation level
- ship_specific
- Accessed
- 2026-09-26
- Study period
- July 1946 - January 1947
- Population
- Gypsy crew (77) during Crossroads; crews of contaminated target vessels she worked aboard
- Limitations
- Documents RADIOLOGICAL exposure aboard and around this hull, not asbestos - no asbestos content in this source. Dose figures are NTPR reconstructions (calculated values), not direct badge measurements for most crew; deck-log-derived. Corroborates DANFS operational narrative. The documented contaminant is weapon-debris fallout on target vessels and lagoon water.
- Atlas source
- true
- Evidence ID
- ev-uss-gypsy-arsd1-02
-
[4]Defense Nuclear Agency, 'CASTLE Series, 1954' - Nuclear Test Personnel Review report DNA 6035F (approved for public release); Task Unit 7.3.5 (Utility Unit) narrative, Table 21 topside intensities, Table 23 accumulated exposure, Table 59 personnel exposures, Table 70 operational activities (source: USS Gypsy deck log) [other_primary]
- Locator
- DNA 6035F: TU 7.3.5 narrative and 'Gypsy in particular was most difficult to decontaminate' (printed pp. 355-356); fallout timing p. 213; washdown work p. 221; Table 21 p. 215; Table 23 p. 237; Table 59 p. 334; Table 70 'USS Gypsy (ARSD-1) operational activities' p. 356 (source cited: USS Gypsy ARSD-1 Deck Log)
- Finding type
- environmental_record
- Finding
- Official DoD personnel-review volume documents Gypsy in Task Unit 7.3.5 (Utility Unit) at Operation Castle with sister USS Mender (ARSD-2) and five fleet tugs. Arrived Bikini 7 February 1954; sortied 28 February for assigned operating area; at shot BRAVO (1 March 1954) maneuvered off Eneu Island near USS Bairoko (CVE-115) and USS Philip (DDE-498). 'The USS Gypsy did not receive fallout until 1400' on 1 March; Table 21 records average topside intensities aboard rising to a peak 0.250 R/hr at 1700 on 1 March, declining to 0.008 R/hr by 8 March. Narrative: 'A number of ships also were contaminated by fallout from BRAVO: Gypsy, Cocopa, Apache, and Sioux. The Gypsy in particular was most difficult to decontaminate because of corrosion on the decks, which tended to retain fallout.' Gypsy performed close-in washdown of contaminated landing craft off Eneu. Table 23 (BRAVO accumulated exposure, as of 22 March 1954): 1 crew member 0-0.999 R; 32 at 1.0-1.999 R; 29 at 2.0-2.999 R; 1 at 3.0-3.999 R. Table 59 (CASTLE personnel exposures): 61 personnel listed, zero non-readings, badge distribution concentrated 0.001-2.5 R (26 / 8 / 24 / 1 / 2 across the 0.001-0.5 through 2-2.5 bins), zero over the 3.9 R maximum permissible exposure. 'Did not sortie' for KOON/UNION/YANKEE/NECTAR (moored or drydocked Pearl Harbor from 7 April 1954); departed operation 26 March 1954.
- Verification
- verified
- Role
- supporting
- Documentation level
- ship_specific
- Accessed
- 2026-09-26
- Study period
- February - March 1954
- Population
- Gypsy crew (61-63 listed across the report's tabulations) during Castle; decontamination working parties she supported
- Limitations
- Documents RADIOLOGICAL contamination aboard this hull (measured topside intensities) and reconstructed/badge crew doses - not asbestos; no asbestos content in this source. Table 23 (accumulated exposure basis, majority of crew 1-3 R) and Table 59 (badge-reading distribution, majority below 1.5 R) rest on different dose bases; the report itself presents both without reconciling them, and the rightmost Table 59 columns for this row are not fully legible in the released scan (collective/mean/high figure omitted here). Decontamination-difficulty quote describes corrosion retaining fallout - a radiological-remediation observation only.
- Atlas source
- true
- Evidence ID
- ev-uss-gypsy-arsd1-03
-
[5]ShipScribe (Stephen S. Roberts), USS Gypsy (ARSD-1) class page - BuShips/NARA-derived construction table, class notes, and disposition table [other_primary]
- Locator
- shipscribe.com/usnaux/ARSD/ARSD01.html - construction/disposition tables, class notes, ship notes (compiled 30 Jun 2007)
- Finding type
- vessel_history
- Finding
- NARA-derived compilation documents: ARSD-1 Gypsy reclassified 24 Apr 1945, laid down 25 Aug 1945 at Brown SB, Houston, launched 7 Dec 1945, commissioned 28 Feb 1946; design 'Navy LSM'; displacement 816 light / 1,080 lim; dimensions 224.25' oa x 34.0' e x 7.1' lim; speed 13.2 kts; propulsion 2,800 HP diesel, 2 screws; original armament authorized two 20mm singles (changed ~1947 to one twin 20mm; only ARSD 1-2 appear to have received weapons). Class notes: on 9 May 1944 CNO directed construction of 100 LSMs incl. LSM 459-552 at Brown SB Houston; LSM 499-552 awarded 30 Aug 1944; 'LSM 549-52 becoming ARSD 1-4 on 21 Apr 45' [conflicts with table's 24 Apr 45 - see gaps]; BuShips designed two lifting-horn types (stern for LSM, bow for LST) for lifts up to ~150 tons as temporary field-installed fittings. Disposition: decommissioned 1955, stricken 1 Jun 1973, disposal 29 Jan 1974, sold. Ship note: 'Ex-LSM-549 24 Apr 45. In USN reserve 1947-51 (decommissioned 21 Jan 48, recommissioned 8 Aug 51) and 1955-73.'
- Verification
- verified
- Role
- supporting
- Documentation level
- ship_specific
- Accessed
- 2026-09-26
- Study period
- 1944-1974
- Limitations
- Expert NARA-derived secondary compilation, not a digitized primary document - carried as other_primary per batch convention. Internal conflicts: commissioning 28 Feb 1946 (table) vs DANFS 18 Mar 1946; reclassification 21 Apr 45 (class notes) vs 24 Apr 45 (table and ship notes); disposal 29 Jan 74 vs NavSource sale 1 Jan 74. No asbestos or material-composition content.
- Atlas source
- true
- Evidence ID
- ev-uss-gypsy-arsd1-04
-
[6]NavSource Online Service Ship Photo Archive, USS Gypsy (ARSD-1) page - official USN photo captions (incl. BuShips photo 19-N-113935), commanding officer listing, awards/campaign list, and disposition chronology [other_primary]
- Locator
- navsource.net/archives/09/33/3301.htm - chronology, campaign table, CO list, photo caption block
- Finding type
- vessel_history
- Finding
- Volunteer-compiled photo archive reproducing official material: authorized as LSM-549; reclassified Salvage Lifting Vessel ARSD-1, 24 April 1945; named Gypsy 1 May 1945; laid down Brown Shipbuilding Co., Houston TX; launched 7 December 1945; commissioned 18 March 1946, LCDR Clyde S. Horner in command; assigned to Joint Task Force 1, Task Unit 1.2.7 Target Vessel Group - Salvage Units for Operation Crossroads July 1946; decommissioned 21 Jan 1948 (Pacific Reserve Fleet San Diego Group); recommissioned 8 Aug 1951; Korean War campaigns: Third Korean Winter, Korean Defense Summer-Fall 1952, Korean Summer-Fall 1953 - three battle stars; decommissioned 23 Dec 1955 (Pacific Reserve Fleet Columbia River Group, Astoria OR); relocated 1967 to San Diego Group; struck from Naval Register 1 June 1973; sold for scrapping by Defense Reutilization and Marketing Service (DRMS) 1 January 1974. Photo captions document official USN Supervisor of Shipbuilding Houston / Bureau of Ships completion photos dated 20 February 1946 (incl. photo 19-N-113935 held by the Naval Historical Center). LSM class specification block lists Fairbanks-Morse 38D81/8X10 diesels (1,440 bhp each) driving twin screws - no boilers.
- Verification
- verified
- Role
- supporting
- Documentation level
- ship_specific
- Accessed
- 2026-09-26
- Study period
- 1945-1974
- Population
- Ship's company; Korean War service population
- Limitations
- Volunteer archive - dates cross-checked against DANFS and ShipScribe; not itself an official record. Carries no asbestos, insulation, or material-composition information. Campaign date listings for Korea (e.g. 'Korean Defense Summer-Fall 1952: 16-30 April 1953') mix campaign names and date spans inconsistently - battle-star total of three is corroborated, individual campaign date attribution is not relied on.
- Atlas source
- true
- Evidence ID
- ev-uss-gypsy-arsd1-05
-
[7]Batch-2644 search ledger (this record): NHHC DANFS (via Wayback capture); DNA 6032F and DNA 6035F NTPR volumes (full text searched); ShipScribe ARSD-1 class page; NavSource 09/33/3301; shipyards.json yard_id check; targeted web searches on ship names/designations + asbestos/mesothelioma/abatement; CourtListener API v4 opinion searches and RECAP docket sweep (see ev-08) [other_primary]
- Locator
- search_ledger rows sl-uss-gypsy-arsd1-01 through sl-uss-gypsy-arsd1-08
- Finding type
- historical_record
- Finding
- No qualifying ship-specific asbestos record located: no asbestos survey, abatement contract, hazmat disclosure, insulation-material schedule, or docketed case naming Gypsy, ARSD-1, ARS(D)-1, or LSM-549 was found in the public sources searched (see search_ledger). The only documented contamination aboard this hull in official records is radiological (Crossroads 1946 and Castle BRAVO 1954 fallout per the NTPR volumes).
- Verification
- verified
- Role
- negative_finding
- Documentation level
- ship_specific
- Accessed
- 2026-09-26
- Study period
- 2026-09-26
- Limitations
- Absence of a located public record does not prove absence of asbestos aboard - a 1945-built ship of this era plausibly carried era-typical materials, and her salvage mission involved working on and inside other WWII-era hulls. Does not establish that asbestos is or is not present; does not establish or defeat any claim of exposure or legal eligibility.
- Atlas source
- true
- Evidence ID
- ev-uss-gypsy-arsd1-06
-
[8]NARA Guide to Federal Records leads for this hull: RG 24 (Bureau of Naval Personnel) deck logs 1946-1955 (Crossroads, Korea, Castle periods - the Castle NTPR Table 70 explicitly cites 'USS Gypsy (ARSD-1) Deck Log' as its source); RG 19 (Bureau of Ships) LSM-549-to-ARSD-1 conversion design and Brown Shipbuilding contract records; NHHC/NARA still-photo series 19-N (incl. 19-N-113935, BuShips completion photo 20 Feb 1946) [other_primary]
- Locator
- archives.gov RG 19/RG 24 guides; DNA 6035F Table 70 source line; NavSource photo caption for 19-N-113935
- Finding type
- historical_record
- Finding
- Archival leads (not retrieved - require research-room or reproduction order; no spend authorized): deck logs for all commissioned periods; BuShips conversion design files and material schedules for the LSM-549 to ARSD-1 conversion (the likeliest primary source for any asbestos-containing material schedule aboard this hull); official photo record 19-N-113935 and related completion imagery; Pacific Reserve Fleet inactivation/preservation records for the 1948-1951 and 1955-1973 layups (potential insulation-condition documentation).
- Verification
- unverified
- Role
- archival_lead
- Documentation level
- context_only
- Accessed
- 2026-09-26
- Study period
- 1945-1973
- Limitations
- Leads only - nothing from these holdings has been examined. Deck-log existence for this hull is corroborated by DNA 6035F's citation of the ARSD-1 deck log for Table 70.
- Atlas source
- true
- Evidence ID
- ev-uss-gypsy-arsd1-07
-
[9]CourtListener API v4 (authenticated): opinion searches q="USS Gypsy" -> 0; q="LSM-549" -> 0; q="ARSD-1" -> 0; q="ARS(D)-1" -> 0; q='Gypsy AND asbestos' -> 5 hits all name collisions; docket sweep q="Gypsy" type=r -> 1,973 dockets, all personal-name collisions [court_record]
- Locator
- cl-auth-search.py authenticated runs, 2026-09-26; results logged in search_ledger sl-uss-gypsy-arsd1-06/07/08/12
- Finding type
- litigation_documented
- Finding
- No opinion naming 'USS Gypsy', 'LSM-549', 'ARSD-1', or 'ARS(D)-1' exists in the CourtListener index (0 hits each). A 'Gypsy AND asbestos' opinion search returned 5 hits, all name collisions on case-name review (Illinois Bulk Carrier v. Jackson, Ind. App. 2009 - landfill; Lifetime Siding v. United States, 1966; two Perrine v. DuPont smelter-pollution opinions, W.Va. 2010; Entergy Texas v. PUC, 2015) - none reference any vessel. The RECAP docket-level sweep for 'Gypsy' returned 1,973 dockets dominated by personal-name bankruptcy matters (e.g. 'Gypsy Matos', 'Gypsy Lrae Ingram'); reviewed top-ranked hits show no vessel-related party - name-collision noise only.
- Verification
- verified
- Role
- negative_finding
- Documentation level
- ship_specific
- Accessed
- 2026-09-26
- Study period
- 2026-09-26
- Limitations
- Litigation coverage is complete at the opinion level for all designation variants and substantially covered at the docket level (bare-name sweep reviewed by top-relevance ranking; a bare 'Gypsy' party-name match cannot be exhaustively excluded across all 1,973 docket hits, but the ship is not a plausible unnamed party in personal-name matters). No hit constitutes a qualifying asbestos-litigation record. Stage discipline: nothing located rises above 'no result' - there is no pleading, discovery, trial, or appellate record to classify.
- Atlas source
- true
- Evidence ID
- ev-uss-gypsy-arsd1-08
-
[10]Era/design context: LSM-1-class diesel amphibious hull form adapted to ARSD salvage configuration (ShipScribe design line 'Navy LSM'; propulsion 'Diesel, 2 screws'); corroborated by the LST-1 class profile's diesel-plant analysis for the same hull family [other_primary]
- Locator
- ShipScribe ARSD-1 class data (design/machinery lines); ships-worktrees class-f lst-1-class.class.json (diesel-plant framing for the LSM/LST hull family - background only)
- Finding type
- asbestos_application
- Finding
- Gypsy's hull is the LSM-1-class landing-ship-medium design built under a 1944 mass-production program at Brown Shipbuilding, Houston, converted on the ways to the salvage-lifting configuration. Ships of this diesel-powered family had no boilers or steam propulsion plant, narrowing the principal asbestos pathway (steam-pipe and boiler lagging) relative to steam ships; era-typical residual applications for the type are exhaust/muffler lagging, machinery gaskets and packing, deck coverings, accommodation and electrical insulation, and brake linings - consistent with the documented peak-asbestos era of U.S. shipbuilding in which she was built.
- Verification
- inferred
- Role
- context
- Documentation level
- class_or_era
- Accessed
- 2026-09-26
- Study period
- 1945
- Population
- Construction trades (Brown Shipbuilding, Houston, 1945); ship's company (maintenance/enginemen)
- Limitations
- Class/design-level inference only - no material schedule, survey, or hull record documents any asbestos product aboard this specific ship. The inference direction is also limited: diesel plant means less machinery-space insulation than steam vessels of the era. Not ship-proven.
- Atlas source
- true
- Evidence ID
- ev-uss-gypsy-arsd1-09