Evidence
11 evidence entries recorded; each entry has a stable permalink (#ev-1 … #ev-11).
-
[1]DANFS, Hamlin (AV-15) entry (NHHC; live page 404 on 2026-09-26 - Wayback capture 2025-12-09) [nhhc_danfs]
- Locator
- DANFS Hamlin entry, AV-15 specification line and service narrative (NHHC page via Wayback 2025-12-09)
- Finding type
- vessel_history
- Finding
- Hamlin (AV-15), Kenneth Whiting class: launched by Todd-Pacific Shipyards, Inc., Tacoma, Wash., 11 January 1944; commissioned 26 June 1944 (CAPT G. A. McLean); Saipan plane-tending from 11 September 1944, Ulithi from 11 October; Iwo Jima floating seaplane base (arrived two days after the 19 February 1945 landings, departed 8 March); Okinawa - Commander, Seaplane Base Group, Kerama Retto 28 March, Chimu Wan 11 July, under near-constant kamikaze attack without damage; occupation duty, Yokosuka 30 August; decommissioned San Diego 15 January 1947; Pacific Reserve Fleet San Diego Group until September 1962 transfer to MARAD (Navy ownership), NDRF Suisun Bay; stricken from the Navy List 1 July 1963; three WWII battle stars. Spec line: dp 8,000; l. 492'; b. 69'6"; dr. 23'9"; s. 19 k.; cpl. 1,077.
- Verification
- verified
- Role
- supporting
- Documentation level
- ship_specific
- Accessed
- 2026-09-26
- Study period
- 1943-1963
- Population
- Crew (class complement ~1,077); construction trades at Todd-Pacific Tacoma (1943-44)
- Limitations
- Official Navy history as transcribed/archived; entry gives no laid-down date (19 July 1943 comes from secondary compilations). Contains no asbestos, material, or overhaul information; establishes hull identity, service, and custody chain only. Live NHHC URL returned 404 on 2026-09-26; Wayback capture of the official page cited.
- Atlas source
- true
- Evidence ID
- ev-uss-hamlin-av15-01
-
[2]MARAD vessel-history record for HAMLIN (AV-15), official no. 0815480, incl. Reserve Fleet - Ship Particulars status card (Form MA-983) image 2070_3846AF.jpg [marad_nrc]
- Locator
- vesselhistory.marad.dot.gov Detail/2070 fields + status-card image transcription
- Finding type
- vessel_history
- Finding
- Official MARAD record: type 'A-C Turbine' seaplane tender, Navy built, builder Todd-Pacific SY Inc., built 1944, MARAD type C3-S-A1; entered Suisun Bay fleet 11 September 1962 (1515 PDST, arrival draft 10'08" fwd / 20'6" aft, light displacement 8,510 tons); temporarily withdrawn by the Navy 1 June-24 July 1966 'for removal of equipment'; MARAD title 1 July 1963 (card cites Navy letter 28 May 1962, MARAD reply 12 June 1962, title-transfer letter 22 July 1963); 'Sold scrap under PD-X-949, 11-7-72 to National Metal & Steel Corp. for $87,500.00'; withdrawn from the fleet 27 November 1972 (1415 PST). Card specifications: LOA 492 ft, breadth 69'6", speed 18.7 knots, complement 113 officers / 964 enlisted.
- Verification
- verified
- Role
- supporting
- Documentation level
- ship_specific
- Accessed
- 2026-09-26
- Study period
- 1962-1972
- Population
- NDRF caretaker crews (1962-72); Navy salvage party (1966); scrapyard workers (1972-73)
- Limitations
- Official custody/disposal record; contains no asbestos or hazmat information. The 1966 temporary withdrawal 'for removal of equipment' is documented but its purpose and the equipment removed are not. 'Sold - Scrap' fate is documented; the scrapping site and process are not detailed in this record. Web record shows an unexplained 'Vietnam War' mission tag inconsistent with the hull's 1944-47 active service - treated as a cataloging artifact, not evidence of Vietnam service.
- Atlas source
- true
- Evidence ID
- ev-uss-hamlin-av15-02
-
[3]MARAD status card (Form MA-983) for HAMLIN (AV-15) vs. Wikipedia/NavalCoverMuseum 'sold for scrapping 8 March 1962' infobox line [marad_nrc]
- Locator
- MARAD card 'WITHDRAWN'/'OTHER DATA' blocks; en.wikipedia.org/wiki/USS_Hamlin_(AV-15) infobox 'Fate' line; navalcovermuseum.org HAMLIN AV 15 page
- Finding type
- vessel_history
- Finding
- Correction to secondary sources: Wikipedia and NavalCoverMuseum carry 'Sold 8 March 1962' for scrap - impossible on the documented chain. The MARAD card shows the hull in Navy reserve custody until Suisun Bay entry 11 September 1962, MARAD title 1 July 1963, sale under contract PD-X-949 on 7 November 1972, and fleet withdrawal 27 November 1972. The 1972 dates are corroborated by NavSource's chronology (sale 7 November 1972, National Metal & Steel Corp., $87,500).
- Verification
- verified
- Role
- correction
- Documentation level
- ship_specific
- Accessed
- 2026-09-26
- Study period
- 1962-1972
- Limitations
- The erroneous '8 March 1962' date's origin is not established (it postdates neither custody nor title transfer and may be a garbled copy of another event). Correction rests on the official MARAD status card, an authoritative primary record. NavSource corroboration is a secondary compilation and itself carries a minor conflict: it reports withdrawal 'the same day' as the 11-7-72 sale while the card records fleet withdrawal 11-27-72. Not an asbestos finding.
- Atlas source
- true
- Evidence ID
- ev-uss-hamlin-av15-03
-
[4]Naval Historical Center, Dictionary of American Naval Aviation Squadrons, Vol. 2 (Roberts, 2000) - Appendix 5 'Seaplane Tender Listings' (pp. 731-733); Fleet Air Wing home-port table (p. 811); VPB-208/VPB-19 histories and deployment tables (NHHC publication; archive.org scan) [nhhc_danfs]
- Locator
- DANAS Vol. 2 pp. 281 (VPB-208), 731-733 (App. 5 table), 755 (NAB Chimu Wan), 811 (FAW-1 home ports) and squadron deployment tables
- Finding type
- vessel_history
- Finding
- Official NHHC aviation-history volume confirms: Kenneth Whiting class = 4 ships (AV-14 to AV-17); Hamlin commissioned 26 June 1944, decommissioned 15 January 1947, stricken 1 July 1963. Operational detail beyond DANFS: Fleet Air Wing 1 relocated aboard Hamlin at Schouten Islands (11 September 1944), Iwo Jima 'during invasion operations' (19 February 1945), and Kerama Rhetto (26 March 1945); VPB-208's 21 officers and 67 enlisted boarded Hamlin at Guam for transport to Kerama Rhetto (March-June 1945 operations from the seadrome); VPB-19 received Hamlin tender support at Iwo Jima (February-March 1945); VPB squadron deployment tables list Hamlin at Saipan, Ulithi, Kerama Rhetto, and Chimu Wan; NAB Chimu Wan was supported by Hamlin and St. George (AV-16).
- Verification
- verified
- Role
- supporting
- Documentation level
- ship_specific
- Accessed
- 2026-09-26
- Study period
- 1944-1947
- Population
- FAW-1 staff embarked aboard (1944-45); VPB-208 detachment personnel (Mar-Jun 1945); VPB-19 supported crews (Feb-Mar 1945)
- Limitations
- Squadron-lineage volume, not a ship history - documents which units operated from/with the hull, with no asbestos, material, or crew-exposure content. Decommission date corroborates DANFS (15 January 1947) against NavSource's divergent 18 January. Live NHHC PDF of Appendix 5 returned 404 on 2026-09-26; the archive.org scan of the published volume (Digitized by afhso.af.mil) is cited.
- Atlas source
- true
- Evidence ID
- ev-uss-hamlin-av15-04
-
[5]HyperWar 'Ships of the U.S. Navy 1940-1945 - AV Seaplane Tenders' (Whiting class block: modified Maritime Commission C3 type, built at Todd-Pacific, turbine engines 8,500 h.p.) + NavSource AV-15 page specification block (one Allis Chalmers steam turbine; two Foster Wheeler D-type boilers, 465 psi / 765 F; double Falk main reduction gears; three 500-kW turbo-drive ship's service generators; one propeller, 8,500 shp) [other_primary]
- Locator
- HyperWar ships-av.html 'Whiting Class' specification block; navsource.org/archives/09/41/4115.htm specifications block and chronology (laid down 19 July 1943) (via Wayback capture 2024-12-17)
- Finding type
- asbestos_application
- Finding
- This hull was built with a single-screw steam plant: two Foster Wheeler D-type boilers (465 psi, 765 deg F superheat) feeding an Allis-Chalmers geared steam turbine rated 8,500 shp, on a modified Maritime Commission C3 hull. WWII-era Navy steam plants of this rating era-typically carried asbestos-containing boiler and turbine insulation, steam-pipe lagging, valve/flange gaskets, and machinery packing; accommodation spaces era-typically carried asbestos-containing bulkhead and overhead insulation products.
- Verification
- inferred
- Role
- supporting
- Documentation level
- class_or_era
- Accessed
- 2026-09-26
- Study period
- 1943-1947
- Population
- Construction trades at Todd-Pacific Tacoma (1943-44); ship's engineering and repair force (1944-47)
- Limitations
- Class/era inference only - the propulsion specification is documented (NavSource spec block; MARAD card corroborates 'A-C Turbine' and 18.7 kts), but no ship-specific material list, insulation schedule, or survey exists in the sources found. The listed products are era-typical, not ship-proven; establishes no quantity, location, or individual exposure aboard this hull.
- Atlas source
- true
- Evidence ID
- ev-uss-hamlin-av15-05
-
[6]Johns-Manville Corp. v. United States, 13 Cl. Ct. 72 (Cl. Ct. Aug. 6, 1987) (No. 465-83C), vacated on jurisdictional grounds, 855 F.2d 1571 (Fed. Cir. 1988) [court_record]
- Locator
- 13 Cl. Ct. 72 (1987), findings section on WWII Navy asbestos use
- Finding type
- litigation_documented
- Finding
- In the Johns-Manville indemnity trial (asbestos manufacturers seeking government contribution for WWII shipyard-worker claims), the Claims Court found: 'all Navy ships used asbestos products in the boiler and engine rooms. These vessels included battleships, aircraft carriers, heavy cruisers, destroyers, destroyer escorts, minelayers, and seaplane tenders. Submarines were the only Navy vessels that did not use asbestos insulation.' The opinion further documents Johns-Manville's wartime supply to the Navy and Maritime Commission of high-temperature insulation (85% magnesia / ~15% amosite-chrysotile pipe covering), asbestos cements, asbestos textiles, asbestos paper and tapes, asbestos felt insulation, and marine bulkhead panels, describing JM as 'one of the principal suppliers of asbestos products used for ship construction, conversion, and repair.'
- Verification
- verified
- Role
- supporting
- Documentation level
- class_or_era
- Accessed
- 2026-09-26
- Study period
- WWII construction era; opinion 1987; vacatur 1988
- Population
- WWII shipyard construction/repair workers (record universe); Navy crews of steam vessels (type-level)
- Limitations
- Vessel-type finding, not hull-specific - 'seaplane tenders' are named as a category; this hull is not named. Trial-court finding: the opinion was vacated on jurisdictional grounds (855 F.2d 1571, Fed. Cir. 1988), which does not disturb it as a factual record of the WWII-era trial record, but it is not an appellate-affirmed holding. The findings concerned shipyard-worker exposures during WWII construction/repair, most relevant to the hull's 1943-44 construction period and yard visits, not to any individual aboard. Blocklisted aggregator mirrors (hallapproved.com) not cited; reporter citation verified 2026-09-26 via secondary indexes (CourtListener URL pending - fleet rate limiter).
- Atlas source
- true
- Evidence ID
- ev-uss-hamlin-av15-06
-
[7]Robertson v. Carrier Corp. et al. (re Todd Shipyards), MDL-875, E.D. Pa. Civ. No. 2:09-cv-64068-ER, Doc. 139 (ORDER, Nov. 7, 2012, filed Nov. 8, 2012, Robreno, J.), transferred from N.D. Cal. No. 08-04490 [court_record]
- Locator
- Doc. 139 at 1-2 (alleged exposure aboard USS Salisbury Sound AV-13) and Conclusion at 24-25 (granted in part / denied in part)
- Finding type
- litigation_documented
- Finding
- Federal asbestos personal-injury litigation naming a Todd-built seaplane tender: plaintiff alleged decedent John Robertson was exposed to asbestos during Navy service 1962-65 aboard USS Salisbury Sound (AV-13), built by Todd Shipyards (Los Angeles Shipbuilding), and developed lung cancer. On Todd's summary-judgment motion the court held a Navy ship is not a 'product' for strict liability (granted in part) but denied judgment on negligence claims - rejecting Todd's FTCA 'employee of the government' theory under Executive Order 9400, finding a triable dispute on the government-contractor defense, and rejecting the sophisticated-user defense.
- Verification
- verified
- Role
- context
- Documentation level
- context_only
- Accessed
- 2026-09-26
- Study period
- alleged exposure 1962-65; order 2012
- Population
- Navy boiler/engine-room personnel on Todd-built tenders (alleged, unadjudicated)
- Limitations
- Names a different hull (AV-13, Currituck class, Todd's Los Angeles yard) - included only as ship-type/builder litigation-posture context for Todd-built seaplane tenders; nothing in the order concerns AV-15 or the Tacoma yard. Pleading-to-summary-judgment stage: the exposure allegation was never adjudicated on the merits; the order's partial denial means claims could proceed, not that exposure occurred.
- Atlas source
- true
- Evidence ID
- ev-uss-hamlin-av15-07
-
[8]HistoryLink.org File 8734, 'Port of Tacoma sees launch of Todd Shipyards freighter Cape Alava on August 3, 1940' (Washington State history encyclopedia) [other_primary]
- Locator
- HistoryLink File 8734 narrative; corroborating yard chronology at shipbuildinghistory.com/shipyards/large/toddtacoma.htm
- Finding type
- historical_record
- Finding
- Builder-yard context: Todd's Commencement Bay yard at Tacoma was rebuilt and reopened in 1940 as Seattle-Tacoma Shipbuilding Corporation (Todd-Kaiser partnership), renamed Todd-Pacific Shipyards Inc. after Todd bought out Kaiser in 1942, employed roughly 33,000 workers over the war years, and ended operations in 1946 when the yard was traded to the U.S. Navy - the yard that built this hull in 1943-44.
- Verification
- verified
- Role
- context
- Documentation level
- context_only
- Accessed
- 2026-09-26
- Study period
- 1940-1946
- Population
- Todd Tacoma yard workforce (~33,000 over 1940-46)
- Limitations
- Yard-level history only - no asbestos, material, or exposure content; does not establish conditions aboard this hull or at the yard's shops during construction. Todd-Pacific Tacoma is not an Atlas shipyards.json yard_id (checked 2026-09-26, 37 yards); the dataset's todd-shipyards entries are the Seattle/Alameda/Houston operations, not this yard.
- Atlas source
- true
- Evidence ID
- ev-uss-hamlin-av15-08
-
[9]Batch-3037 search ledger (this record): NHHC DANFS (Wayback), MARAD vessel-history record and status card, DANAS Vol. 2, NavSource, HyperWar, CourtListener, general web sweep [other_primary]
- Locator
- search_ledger rows sl-uss-hamlin-av15-01 through sl-uss-hamlin-av15-12
- Finding type
- historical_record
- Finding
- No qualifying ship-specific asbestos record located: no asbestos survey, abatement contract, material list, museum/donation hazmat disclosure, or docketed case naming Hamlin (AV-15) was found in the public sources searched (see search_ledger). No law-firm 'Navy ships' page enumerating AV-15 was located - the 'USS Hamlin' entries on asbestos ship lists (asbestos-ships.com, mesotheliomaveterans.org) enumerate CVE-15, the Bogue-class escort carrier, a name collision.
- 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 - the hull carried a documented WWII steam plant and a vessel-type court finding covers seaplane tenders (ev-05, ev-06). The hull was scrapped in 1972-73, before modern ACM disclosure practices; sale-contract and yard records may exist at NARA/MARAD. Does not establish or defeat any individual exposure or eligibility claim.
- Atlas source
- true
- Evidence ID
- ev-uss-hamlin-av15-09
-
[10]CourtListener API v4 opinion and RECAP docket searches via authenticated fleet helper (cl-auth-search.py) [court_record]
- Locator
- search_ledger rows sl-uss-hamlin-av15-05 through sl-uss-hamlin-av15-09
- Finding type
- litigation_documented
- Finding
- CourtListener sweep returned no qualifying asbestos litigation naming this hull. Opinions: '"USS Hamlin"' 0 hits; '"AV-15"' 13 hits, all token-level collisions (the string resolves as 'Av.'+numerals in docket/page references - e.g., Flushing AV Laundromat, US v. Raymond DDC, 1880s admiralty cases); '"Hamlin" asbestos' 75 hits, all surname collisions (parties, judges, counsel) with no vessel naming. RECAP dockets: '"USS Hamlin"' 0 hits; '"AV-15"' 133 hits, all token collisions, none vessel- or asbestos-related. '"U.S.S. Hamlin"' opinion query was throttled by the fleet limiter and not completed - logged as blocked.
- Verification
- verified
- Role
- negative_finding
- Documentation level
- ship_specific
- Accessed
- 2026-09-26
- Study period
- 2026-09-26
- Limitations
- Name/hull-number match cannot prove no filing exists - pleadings omitting the hull name or indexing only party names would not surface; RECAP coverage is incomplete for older federal dockets and state courts. 'Hamlin' is a live surname, so future hits will keep colliding; the CVE-15 escort carrier adds a same-name hull collision for unqualified 'USS Hamlin' matches - classify any new hit against this vessel (AV-15), not the string.
- Atlas source
- true
- Evidence ID
- ev-uss-hamlin-av15-10
-
[11]Archival leads: NARA still-picture identifiers credited on NavSource - BuShips photos 19-NN-AV-15-347/-348 (NARA 7577344/7577345, launch series at Todd-Pacific), 80-G-306648 (Tanapag Harbor, 13 Feb 1945), 80-G-K-2587 (Ulithi); MARAD contract file for PD-X-949 and the correspondence the status card cites (Navy letter 28 May 1962, MARAD reply 12 June 1962, title-transfer letter 22 July 1963); WWII deck logs and BuShips hull records at NARA [other_primary]
- Locator
- catalog.archives.gov/id/7577344-7577345; NavSource photo caption credits (Wayback 2024-12-17); MARAD card 'OTHER DATA' correspondence cites
- Finding type
- historical_record
- Finding
- Unretrieved primary records that could bear on this hull's material condition: (1) NARA holds the credited BuShips/RG-80 photographs of this hull (identifiers 7577344/7577345, 80-G-306648, 80-G-K-2587 per NavSource photo captions); (2) the MARAD disposition file for sale contract PD-X-949 and the 1962-63 Navy/MARAD custody correspondence cited on the status card; (3) deck logs, war diaries, and BuShips construction/histories files for AV-15 at NARA College Park; (4) the unexplained 1 June-24 July 1966 Navy temporary withdrawal 'for removal of equipment' would be documented in NDRF custody files.
- Verification
- unverified
- Role
- archival_lead
- Documentation level
- ship_specific
- Accessed
- 2026-09-26
- Study period
- 1943-1972
- Limitations
- Unverified leads only - NARA catalog pages are JS-rendered and were not retrievable in-session; photo identifiers are transcribed from NavSource captions, a secondary compilation. No asbestos content is asserted to exist in any of these records.
- Atlas source
- true
- Evidence ID
- ev-uss-hamlin-av15-11