Evidence
14 evidence entries recorded; each entry has a stable permalink (#ev-1 … #ev-14).
-
[1]J.T. Thorpe Settlement Trust, 'Summary of J.T. Thorpe Job Books' (Aug 2023), pp. 329-337 - published summary of the debtor's own job records [court_record]
- Locator
- Summary of J.T. Thorpe Job Books (Aug 2023), Bethlehem Steel Shipyard aka Bethlehem Pacific Coast Steel-San Pedro CA section, jobs 4377 and 5106, Job Books pp. 454/458
- Finding type
- asbestos_application
- Finding
- J.T. Thorpe, Inc. - the insulation contractor whose asbestos liability created the settlement trust - recorded two repair jobs aboard this hull (as 'SS Seatrain Savannah') in its own job books: Job 4377 (Jan-1967), 'SS Seatrain Savannah-Necessary repairs on center and starboard item #78' (Job Books p. 454), and Job 5106 (Apr-1968), 'SS Seatrain Savannah-Repair port and inboard boilers' (Job Books p. 458); both sited at 'Bethlehem Steel Shipyard aka Bethlehem Pacific Coast Steel-San Pedro, CA.' Build-year tag '1932' on the trust ship list matches this hull (Sun hull 147) uniquely - no other Seatrain Savannah or 1932-built Havana exists.
- Verification
- verified
- Role
- supporting
- Documentation level
- ship_specific
- Accessed
- 2026-09-22
- Study period
- 1967-01, 1968-04
- Population
- J.T. Thorpe insulation/repair crews and ship's engineering department during the Jan-1967 and Apr-1968 boiler-repair availabilities
- Limitations
- Company job-book entries as summarized and published by the bankruptcy trust - the original job-book pages (454, 458) were not retrieved and material content is not itemized; 'item #78' scope unstated, though neighboring entries at the same yard in the same months are explicitly boiler repairs. The jobs are merchant-era (1967-68), 20+ years after Navy service - they document insulation-trade work aboard this hull in those windows only, not asbestos content, individual exposure, quantity, Navy-era conditions, or causation.
- Atlas source
- true
- Evidence ID
- ev-uss-hammondsport-akv2-01
-
[2]J.T. Thorpe Settlement Trust - JT Thorpe Ship List (April 2015 posting), rows 'SEATRAIN HAVANA 1932' and 'SEATRAIN SAVANNAH 1932'; 'How the JTTS Site or Ship List can be Changed' (trust procedure document); 2010 archive modification notice (2/18/2010); TDP Fifth Amendment [court_record]
- Locator
- JT Thorpe Ship List (April 2015) Seatrain rows; 2010 Archive 'Modifications Approved 02/24/2010' (SEATRAIN SAVANNAH 1932 rows); https://www.jttstrust.com/how-to-add-a-site-or-ship-to-the-list/ procedure doc
- Finding type
- litigation_documented
- Finding
- The trust's posted ship list carries this hull under both post-Navy merchant names - 'SEATRAIN SAVANNAH 1932' (added to the list 2/18/2010) and 'SEATRAIN HAVANA 1932' - each with identical exposure windows 01/01/1967-01/31/1967 and 04/01/1968-04/30/1968 at 'Standard' exposure rating. Per the trust's published procedure, the ship list comprises 'repaired ships' and entries record 'the dates that J.T. Thorpe, Inc. was working ... onboard the ship'; a claimant's exposure at an accepted listed ship satisfies the trust's exposure requirements.
- Verification
- verified
- Role
- supporting
- Documentation level
- ship_specific
- Accessed
- 2026-09-22
- Study period
- 1967-01, 1968-04 windows; list entries published 2010/2015
- Population
- Crew and contractor workers aboard during the listed 1967-1968 windows (claimant population addressed by the trust)
- Limitations
- Bankruptcy-trust claims-administration record, not an adjudicated finding: listing rests on trust review under its published procedure (with TAC and Futures Representative consent), not trial testimony or judicial finding. Establishes that the trust treats this hull as a J.T. Thorpe exposure site for the stated 1967-1968 windows; does not identify specific products, locations aboard beyond the boiler-repair job descriptions, quantity, individual exposure, or causation. Windows are post-Navy merchant era - no Navy-period listing exists.
- Atlas source
- true
- Evidence ID
- ev-uss-hammondsport-akv2-02
-
[3]DANFS, 'Hammondsport' (AKV-2) entry - live NHHC page (published 2015-07-14), text identical to the 2005-01-11 Wayback capture of history.navy.mil/danfs/h2/hammondsport.htm [nhhc_danfs]
- Locator
- Live NHHC DANFS page, full entry
- Finding type
- vessel_history
- Finding
- Official entry documents: built as Seatrain Havana in 1932 by Sun Shipbuilding & Dry Dock Co., Chester, Pa.; operated for Seatrain Lines, Inc. until 1941; acquired by the Navy through the Maritime Commission on a bareboat basis; commissioned at New York Navy Yard as Hammondsport (APV-2) 11 Dec 1941, Comdr. P. B. Glutting in command; reclassified AKV-2 15 Sep 1943. Service: shakedown Chesapeake Bay Dec 1941; Canal Zone 26 Dec 1941 (five PT boats unloaded); San Francisco 7 Jan 1942; Brisbane 5 Feb 1942 with 120 P-40 aircraft; four California-Pearl Harbor voyages Mar-Aug 1942; Noumea/Espiritu Santo/Efate Sep-Nov 1942; replacement aircraft for 3d/5th Fleets, spare parts to staging bases, damaged aircraft returned; Guam the most frequent 1945 destination; post-surrender return runs (Samar, Philippines, Marianas Sep-Nov 1945); departed Eniwetok 21 Dec 1945 with 44 aircraft and 600 tons cargo; via Panama Canal to Philadelphia, arrived 9 Feb 1946; decommissioned 7 Mar 1946; returned to Maritime Commission; short charter to United Fruit Co.; resold to Seatrain Lines 10 May 1946 as Seatrain Havana. Spec block: dp 4,000(f.), l. 478', b. 63'6", dr. 22'10", s. 16 k., cpl. 255, a. 1 5"/4 3", cl. Kitty Hawk.
- Verification
- verified
- Role
- supporting
- Documentation level
- ship_specific
- Accessed
- 2026-09-22
- Study period
- 1932-1946
- Population
- Crew of ~255 (DANFS spec block) during 1941-46 commission
- Limitations
- Establishes identity, acquisition path, service, and decommissioning - the controlling hull-history source. Contains no asbestos, materials, or insulation information. DANFS prints the first CO as 'P. B. Glutting' (NavSource roster gives Paul Rolland Glutting - initial discrepancy noted in gaps); DANFS gives no strike date.
- Atlas source
- true
- Evidence ID
- ev-uss-hammondsport-akv2-03
-
[4]U.S. Maritime Administration, ShipHistory database - SEATRAIN HAVANA, Ship History Detail 10892, including digitized vessel status card (scan 6JE_01.png) [marad_nrc]
- Locator
- ShipHistory Detail 10892, status card scan 6JE_01.png (read from image)
- Finding type
- vessel_history
- Finding
- MARAD status card records: O.N. 231916; type 'S. Cargo'; D.W.T. 10900, Gross 8061, Net 4927; built by Sun S.B. & D.D. Co. at Chester, Pa., completed Oct. 1932; 'Basis to W.S.A. 7-2-41 8:50AM @ Hoboken, N.J. from Seatrain Lines, Inc. BB'; allocation rows: 'Navy Dept. Renamed HAMMONDSPORT' (BB, Hoboken, 7-2-41); 'United Fruit Co.' (GAA, Chester, Pa., 3-7-46 3:15PM); 'REDEL. Seatrain Lines, Inc.' (from BB, Chester, Pa., 5-10-46 12Mid. EDT) with a struck-through annotation reading 'RENAMED SEATRAIN SAVANNAH'; final row 'Hua Eng Copper & Iron Industrial Co., Ltd. Purch. for scrapping in Taiwan' 3-13-73. Database fields: year built 1932, shipyard Sun Shipbuilding and Drydock, general type RO/RO, fate 'Sold - Scrap.'
- Verification
- verified
- Role
- supporting
- Documentation level
- ship_specific
- Accessed
- 2026-09-22
- Study period
- 1932-1973
- Limitations
- Authoritative custody/disposition record. The struck-through 'RENAMED SEATRAIN SAVANNAH' annotation sits inside the 1946-05-10 redelivery row - whether it records the executed rename, a correction, or a later-event note is ambiguous on the card face; shipbuildinghistory documents Seatrain New Jersey (1946) then Seatrain Savannah (1951) - see ev-05 and gaps. No asbestos, materials, or condition information.
- Atlas source
- true
- Evidence ID
- ev-uss-hammondsport-akv2-04
-
[5]NavSource Online Service Ship Photo Archive, USS Hammondsport (AKV-2) ex-APV-2 page 09/17/1702 - spec block, milestone table, commanding-officer roster, NARA/NHHC photo citations [other_primary]
- Locator
- NavSource page 09/17/1702 - specification block, milestone list, CO table
- Finding type
- historical_record
- Finding
- NavSource archive for this hull: laid down 20 Jan 1932 as SS Seatrain Havana (Sun Shipbuilding, Chester PA), launched 26 Sep 1932; commissioned APV-2 11 Dec 1941 (CDR Paul R. Glutting); redesignated AKV-2 15 Sep 1943; decommissioned 7 Mar 1946 Philadelphia; struck from the Naval Register 12 Apr 1946; transferred to Maritime Commission; returned to Seatrain Lines 10 May 1946; sold for scrapping 13 Mar 1973 to Hua Eng Copper and Iron Industrial Co. Ltd., Taiwan. Spec block: displacement 4,000 t (lt) / 16,480 t (fl); length 478'; beam 63'6"; draft 22'10" (lim); speed 16 kts; complement 17 officers + 238 enlisted; one De Laval steam turbine, three Babcock & Wilcox header-type boilers (420 psi, 680 deg F), double De Laval main reduction gears, single propeller 8,000 shp; three turbo-drive 200 kW + one diesel-drive 90 kW 230 V AC generators; armament 1x5"/38 DP, 4x3"/50 DP, 2x twin 40mm AA. CO roster: Glutting (11 Dec 1941), Ballreich (30 Aug 1942), Ryder (7 Aug 1943), Modin (24 May 1945 - 7 Mar 1946).
- Verification
- verified
- Role
- context
- Documentation level
- ship_specific
- Accessed
- 2026-09-22
- Study period
- 1932-1973
- Population
- Wartime complement 255 (17 officers + 238 enlisted)
- Limitations
- Secondary compilation (volunteer-hosted archive), corroborated against DANFS and the MARAD card where they overlap. Strike date 12 Apr 1946 conflicts with NavalCoverMuseum's 7 Mar 1946 - unresolved; propulsion/electrical figures are not verified against an official source. No asbestos or materials information.
- Atlas source
- true
- Evidence ID
- ev-uss-hammondsport-akv2-05
-
[6]shipbuildinghistory.com, Sun Shipbuilding Chester PA production table, hull 147 row (O.N. 231916, Seatrain Havana) - secondary yard-production compilation [other_primary]
- Locator
- shipbuildinghistory.com Sun Shipbuilding table, hull 147 row
- Finding type
- vessel_history
- Finding
- The Sun yard production table records hull 147 / O.N. 231916 'Seatrain Havana' - keel 20-Jan-32, launch 26-Sep-32, delivery 10-Oct-32, merchant crew 250+14=264 - with disposition 'Later Hammondsport 1941, Seatrain New Jersey 1946, Seatrain Savannah 1951, scrapped 1973.' This corrects NavSource's simplified 'name reverted to SS Seatrain Havana': the hull returned to Seatrain Lines in May 1946 under the name Seatrain New Jersey and was renamed Seatrain Savannah in 1951 - the name she carried during the documented 1967-68 J.T. Thorpe repair windows and through scrapping.
- Verification
- partial
- Role
- correction
- Documentation level
- ship_specific
- Accessed
- 2026-09-22
- Study period
- 1946-1973
- Limitations
- Secondary compilation, not an official record - the New Jersey (1946) rename step rests on this table plus the MARAD card's struck-through 'RENAMED SEATRAIN SAVANNAH' annotation; 'Seatrain Savannah' in service is independently corroborated by Bell v. Seatrain Lines (Cal. App. 1974, Qui Nhon anchorage Jan-1968) and by the trust ship list's 'SEATRAIN SAVANNAH 1932' rows. The 1946 rename would have required the original Seatrain New Jersey (Sun hull 192, 1940) to be renamed first - the chain is plausible but the NJ step is single-source.
- Atlas source
- true
- Evidence ID
- ev-uss-hammondsport-akv2-06
-
[7]Hirsch v. London Steamship Owners' Mutual Life Insurance (In re Seatrain Lines, Inc.), 198 B.R. 45 (S.D.N.Y. 1996) (Sotomayor, J.) [court_record]
- Locator
- Opinion text, Background section (adversary complaint para. 10-11)
- Finding type
- litigation_documented
- Finding
- Seatrain Lines' Chapter 7 bankruptcy (petition filed 17 Nov 1992) generated an adversary proceeding seeking insurance coverage/defense for 'asbestos-related personal injury claims that have been filed in various courts against Seatrain,' with approximately 110 personal-injury claims pending at the petition date; the opinion recites the adversary complaint's allegation that 'many of Seatrain's ships contained asbestos.' Documents that the hull's longtime owner/operator faced fleet-level asbestos personal-injury litigation.
- Verification
- verified
- Role
- context
- Documentation level
- class_or_era
- Accessed
- 2026-09-22
- Study period
- 1992-1996 litigation; underlying claims span Seatrain operating era
- Population
- Seatrain Lines sailors and shipbuilders generally (fleet-level claimant pool)
- Limitations
- PLEADING-STAGE, FLEET-LEVEL material: the asbestos statements are the adversary complaint's allegations as recited by the court in a coverage/jurisdiction dispute (motion to withdraw reference denied) - not a finding about this or any specific hull; no vessel is named. Establishes only the litigation posture of the operator, not asbestos conditions aboard this ship.
- Atlas source
- true
- Evidence ID
- ev-uss-hammondsport-akv2-07
-
[8]CourtListener API v4 authenticated sweep, 2026-09-22; key classified hits: The Seatrain-Havana, 103 F.2d 772 (2d Cir. 1939); Conners Marine Co. v. Manhattan Lighterage Corp., 16 F. Supp. 22 (E.D.N.Y. 1936), aff'd 91 F.2d 1011 (2d Cir. 1937); Seatrain Lines, Inc. v. United States, 99 Ct. Cl. 272 (1943); Bell v. Seatrain Lines, Inc., 40 Cal. App. 3d 16 (1974); In re Marine Sulphur Transport Corp. (S.D.N.Y. 1970) [court_record]
- Locator
- CourtListener API v4 queries: "USS Hammondsport", "Hammondsport" (o+r), "Hammondsport"+asbestos, "AKV-2", "Seatrain Havana" (o+r), "Seatrain Savannah", "Seatrain New Jersey", "In re Seatrain Lines"+asbestos
- Finding type
- litigation_documented
- Finding
- Litigation classification sweep by name and hull number: 'USS Hammondsport' -> 0 opinions; 'Hammondsport' asbestos -> 0; 'AKV-2' -> 0; RECAP 'Seatrain Havana' -> 0 dockets. 'Hammondsport' -> 124 opinions, ALL name collisions with the New York village (school district, Bath & Hammondsport Railroad, planning board, tax/foreclosure matters) - none maritime, none the vessel. 'Seatrain Havana' -> 5 opinions, all non-asbestos: the 1933 molasses-cargo admiralty chain naming this hull (16 F. Supp. 22; 91 F.2d 1011; 103 F.2d 772), Seatrain Lines v. United States (ocean-mail contract), and a 1970 corporate bankruptcy mention. 'Seatrain Savannah' -> 1 opinion, Bell v. Seatrain Lines (40 Cal. App. 3d 16, 1974) - Jones Act/unseaworthiness shore-launch personal injury aboard this hull off Qui Nhon Jan 1968, non-asbestos. 'Seatrain New Jersey' -> Holland v. Pennsylvania R. (E.D. Pa. 1942), a collision predating this hull's NJ rename - name collision.
- Verification
- verified
- Role
- context
- Documentation level
- ship_specific
- Accessed
- 2026-09-22
- Study period
- 1936-1996 opinions; sweep date 2026-09-22
- Limitations
- Sweep classified every hit: qualifying asbestos litigation = none located under any name; other litigation naming the hull = the Seatrain-Havana molasses chain and Bell (both non-asbestos); name collisions = the village of Hammondsport matters. CourtListener coverage is published opinions + RECAP - trial-court filings, state-court asbestos dockets, and unreported settlements are not comprehensively indexed; absence from the index is not proof no claim was ever filed.
- Atlas source
- true
- Evidence ID
- ev-uss-hammondsport-akv2-08
-
[9]National Museum of the Pacific War, oral history interview with John Osborn (2004-05-14), via UNT Portal to Texas History [museum_official]
- Locator
- Interview metadata/abstract, NMPW oral history collection
- Finding type
- historical_record
- Finding
- Museum oral-history record places a crewman in this hull's engineering spaces: Osborn joined the Navy April 1943, completed Fireman and Steam Engine training, and 'served in the engine room aboard USS Hammondsport (AKV-2), transporting aircraft to the Solomon Islands, Guadalcanal, Espiritu Santo and New Caledonia,' before transfer to USS Harris (APA-2).
- Verification
- verified
- Role
- context
- Documentation level
- ship_specific
- Accessed
- 2026-09-22
- Study period
- c. 1943-1944 service period (approximate - interview gives no dates); interview 2004
- Population
- Engine-room/fire-room watchstanders, wartime crew
- Limitations
- Personal recollection recorded 60 years after service; the interview summary contains no materials, insulation, or asbestos statement - it documents only that crew worked this hull's engine room on the documented South Pacific transport runs.
- Atlas source
- true
- Evidence ID
- ev-uss-hammondsport-akv2-09
-
[10]Era documentation: 1932 Sun Shipbuilding steam merchantman (three B&W header-type boilers, De Laval geared turbine, 8,000 shp) acquired and converted for Navy service 1941; asbestos was standard in 1930s-40s marine steam-plant insulation [other_primary]
- Locator
- Propulsion spec per NavSource block; era framing per GAO HRD-80-2 and Corn & Starr (ev-11, ev-12)
- Finding type
- asbestos_application
- Finding
- This hull was built in 1932 with a three-boiler steam plant and taken into Navy service 1941-1946 - squarely inside the era when asbestos was standard marine steam-plant insulation. Era-consistent applications: boiler and fireroom insulation, steam-pipe and turbine lagging, valve and flange gaskets, machinery packing, bulkhead fireproofing, accommodation/galley insulation. The documented 1967-68 J.T. Thorpe boiler-repair jobs (ev-01) are consistent with insulation-trade work in the machinery spaces.
- Verification
- inferred
- Role
- supporting
- Documentation level
- class_or_era
- Accessed
- 2026-09-22
- Study period
- 1932-1946
- Population
- Sun Shipbuilding construction trades (1932); conversion-yard workers (1941); wartime engineering crew
- Limitations
- Era/design inference only - no hull-specific insulation survey, specification, or material record was located for any period. The Thorpe job books document repair events but do not state materials; nothing here is ship-proven for the Navy era. Does not establish quantity, individual exposure, or causation.
- Atlas source
- true
- Evidence ID
- ev-uss-hammondsport-akv2-10
-
[11]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 WWII - the era of this hull's Navy acquisition, conversion, and 1941-46 service (though not her 1932 commercial construction).
- Verification
- verified
- Role
- context
- Documentation level
- class_or_era
- Accessed
- 2026-09-22
- Study period
- 1940s era documented; article 1987
- Population
- WWII shipyard workers and ship crews (class context)
- Limitations
- Program/era-level scholarship; does not name this vessel and does not establish that asbestos was aboard this hull in any period, nor quantity, location, condition, exposure, or causation.
- Atlas source
- true
- Evidence ID
- ev-uss-hammondsport-akv2-11
-
[12]GAO, Navy Efforts To Protect Workers From Asbestos Exposure, HRD-80-2 (Oct 18, 1979) [gao]
- Locator
- GAO product page HRD-80-2 (full text blocked, HTTP 403)
- Finding type
- gov_survey
- Finding
- GAO documented the Navy's asbestos-protection program and that the Navy used asbestos insulation extensively aboard ships, not beginning substitution of alternative insulation materials until the early 1970s - after this hull's entire naval and merchant existence (scrapped 1973).
- Verification
- verified
- Role
- context
- Documentation level
- class_or_era
- Accessed
- 2026-09-22
- Study period
- 1979
- Population
- Navy shipyard workers; asbestos program review
- Limitations
- Program-level documentation postdating this ship's Navy service by three decades; supports era context only - that ships of her era carried asbestos insulation - not any fact specific to this hull. Full text not retrieved (gao.gov blocks automated fetch, HTTP 403); description via product page.
- Atlas source
- true
- Evidence ID
- ev-uss-hammondsport-akv2-12
-
[13]This record's search ledger: live NHHC DANFS entry; MARAD ShipHistory + status card; NavSource archive; CourtListener API v4 (authenticated) name/hull sweeps; NARA catalog; NVR; VA BVA search; J.T. Thorpe trust documents; shipyards.json cross-check [other_primary]
- Locator
- search_ledger rows sl-uss-hammondsport-akv2-01 through sl-uss-hammondsport-akv2-15
- Finding type
- historical_record
- Finding
- No Navy-era ship-specific asbestos record located: no asbestos survey, insulation specification, abatement contract, hazmat disclosure, or docketed asbestos litigation naming APV-2/AKV-2 (1941-1946) was found in the public sources searched. All asbestos-domain documentation located for this hull is post-Navy merchant era (J.T. Thorpe job windows Jan-1967 and Apr-1968; Seatrain fleet-level bankruptcy litigation). The hull was scrapped in Taiwan 1973 - no preservation-era record exists. No 'Hammondsport' opinion hit is maritime - all are the New York village.
- Verification
- verified
- Role
- negative_finding
- Documentation level
- ship_specific
- Accessed
- 2026-09-22
- Study period
- 2026-09-22
- Limitations
- Absence of a located public record does not prove absence of asbestos aboard in the Navy era - era practice makes presence reasonable to presume, but no Navy-period ship-specific source confirms it. CourtListener indexes published opinions/RECAP only - unindexed trial filings and state-court asbestos dockets were not comprehensively searchable. Does not establish or defeat any claim of exposure or legal eligibility.
- Atlas source
- true
- Evidence ID
- ev-uss-hammondsport-akv2-13
-
[14]Archival leads: NARA RG 38 (CNO WWII war diaries - APV-2/AKV-2 series, digitization not confirmed; NavSource hosts none), RG 24 (Navy deck logs), RG 19 (Bureau of Ships records incl. photo file 19-N-77631, San Francisco Bay 2 Oct 1944), RG 178 (Maritime Commission construction/custody files, Sun hull 147), RG 26 (USCG merchant logbooks for Seatrain-era years); J.T. Thorpe original job-book pages 454 and 458 via the trust [other_primary]
- Locator
- https://www.archives.gov/research/guide-fed-records/groups/038.html (RG 38); RG 24/19/178/26 guides; J.T. Thorpe job-book pages 454/458 via jttstrust.com
- Finding type
- historical_record
- Finding
- The likeliest surviving repositories for a hull-specific materials record: RG 38 war diaries and RG 24 deck logs (operational record), RG 19 BuShips files (conversion/engineering correspondence and the cited Bureau photos), RG 178 Maritime Commission construction files for Sun hull 147, and RG 26 merchant logbooks for the Seatrain Havana/New Jersey/Savannah years. The J.T. Thorpe job-book originals behind the published summary (pp. 454, 458) would show actual work scope and materials for jobs 4377/5106.
- Verification
- unverified
- Role
- archival_lead
- Documentation level
- context_only
- Accessed
- 2026-09-22
- Study period
- 1932-1973 records
- Limitations
- Record-group mapping only - no box-level retrieval performed; existence of asbestos-specific documents for this hull is unknown until surveyed. Nothing in this row is an asbestos finding.
- Atlas source
- true
- Evidence ID
- ev-uss-hammondsport-akv2-14