Evidence
8 evidence entries recorded; each entry has a stable permalink (#ev-1 … #ev-8).
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[1]research packet fu-packet.md (3 sources cited) [other_primary]
- Finding type
- vessel_history
- Finding
- Identity packet verdict: VERIFIED (details mirror-sourced; primary DANFS slug 500)
- Verification
- verified
- Role
- supporting
- Documentation level
- ship_specific
- Limitations
- qualifier: VERIFIED (details mirror-sourced; primary DANFS slug 500)
- Evidence ID
- uss-herndon-dd638-pkt-fu-packet-md
-
[2]DANFS, Herndon II (DD-638) (builder, launch/commissioning dates, specifications, service narrative, reserve-fleet berthing, battle stars; verbatim transcription - live NHHC page serves 404) [nhhc_danfs]
- Locator
- DANFS entry, specifications block + full service narrative (hazegray transcription via Wayback capture 2024-05-25)
- Finding type
- vessel_history
- Finding
- DANFS record for this hull: the second Herndon (DD-638) launched 2 February 1942 by the Norfolk Navy Yard, sponsored by Miss Lucy Herndon Crockett (great-grandniece of Comdr. Herndon); commissioned 20 December 1942, Comdr. Granville A. Moore in command (a parallel DANFS transcription at globalsecurity.org also gives laid down 26 August 1941). Spec block: Gleaves class; dp 1,630; l. 347'9"; b. 36'; dr. 17'5"; s. 37 k.; a. 4 5", 4 20mm., 6 21" tt.; cpl. 261. Service: shakedown off Maine; New York-Casablanca convoy (returned NY 14 May 1943); Algiers 24 June; Sicily assault 10 July 1943 (antisubmarine patrol + fire support for Patton's 7th and Montgomery's 8th Armies); departed Mediterranean 3 August; nine months New York-to-British-ports troopship escort; D-Day 6 June 1944 off Omaha Beach in 'Bald-headed Row' ahead of first assault waves under heavy counter-fire; Normandy fire support/screening/ASW to 19 June; screened Baie de la Seine landings; Belfast 11 July; Operation Anvil carrier screening for southern France invasion 16 August; New York 3 September; two weeks experimental operations in Chesapeake Bay for the Naval Research Laboratory; Mediterranean convoy escort from 14 October; Casco Bay battle exercises; February 1945 escorted President Roosevelt on first leg of Yalta voyage; Pacific via Panama/San Diego/Pearl Harbor (arrived 15 May); Eniwetok-Guam-Saipan convoy escort from 12 July; Dairen 10 September, Tsingtao 16 September 1945 where VAdm. Kanako IJN came aboard to sign and implement surrender of Japanese-controlled combatant and merchant vessels in the Tsingtao area; occupation escort Korea/China coasts; Operation Magic Carpet detached 5 December 1945; San Diego 27 December; New York 15 January 1946; Charleston 28 January; decommissioned there 8 May, Atlantic Reserve Fleet; moved to Philadelphia January 1947; berthed at Orange, Texas (DANFS written while still in reserve). Three battle stars for WWII service.
- Verification
- verified
- Role
- supporting
- Documentation level
- ship_specific
- Accessed
- 2026-09-27
- Study period
- 1941-1965
- Population
- Norfolk Navy Yard construction trades 1941-42; wartime crew (DANFS design complement 261)
- Limitations
- DANFS documents service history and specifications, not materials or asbestos content. Transcription omits the laid-down date (carried from the parallel globalsecurity DANFS transcription and NavSource); DANFS does not record the 1971 striking or 1973 sinking (entry predates them). Mirror transcription cited because the live NHHC page returns 404 (standing link-rot defect since batch-01).
- Atlas source
- true
- Evidence ID
- ev-uss-herndon-dd638-01
-
[3]NavSource Destroyer Photo Index, USS Herndon (DD-638) - class data, operational/building data, machinery line, fate, photo captions, commanding officers (via Wayback capture 2024-05-27; live navsource.org fetch failed) [other_primary]
- Locator
- navsource.org/archives/05/638.htm - class block, operational/building data block, machinery line, photo caption list, CO list (Wayback 2024-05-27)
- Finding type
- historical_record
- Finding
- NavSource index record for this hull: class Gleaves as built; displacement 2,395 t (full); 348'4"oa x 36'1" x 13'2" max; armament 4 x 5"/38AA, 6 x 0.5" MG, 10 x 21" tt (2x5); machinery 50,000 shp, Allis Chalmers turbines, 2 screws; speed 35 kt; range 6,500 nm at 12 kt; crew 208; call sign NUNX. Building data: laid down Norfolk Navy Yard 26 August 1941; launched 5 February 1942 (conflicts with DANFS 2 February - carried in gaps); commissioned 20 December 1942; decommissioned 8 May 1946; stricken 1 June 1971; fate: sunk as target off Florida 24 May 1973. Photo captions: launch at Norfolk Navy Yard; July 1942 with USS Shubrick (DD-639); Norfolk Navy Yard 30 March 1943 (USN photo 5006(43) / NARA 19-N-45762); New York Navy Yard 9-10 October 1943; one of twelve Atlantic Fleet destroyers fitted with three Mousetrap rocket launchers forward; berthed at the Orange, Texas Inactive Ship Maintenance Facility (ISMF). Commanding officers: CDR Granville A. Moore (20 Dec 1942 - 25 Nov 1944); CDR Albert T. Church Jr. (25 Nov 1944 - 30 Dec 1945).
- Verification
- verified
- Role
- supporting
- Documentation level
- ship_specific
- Accessed
- 2026-09-27
- Study period
- 1941-1973
- Population
- Norfolk Navy Yard construction trades 1941-42; crew 1942-46 (208 per class design); ISMF caretakers 1965-71
- Limitations
- NavSource is a volunteer-compiled index of official data and photographs, not an official publication - figures verified against DANFS where they overlap. Documents machinery, dates, and disposal, not materials or asbestos content. Launch date (5 Feb) conflicts with DANFS (2 Feb); machinery line (Allis Chalmers) is ship-specific and preferred over class-generic compilations.
- Atlas source
- true
- Evidence ID
- ev-uss-herndon-dd638-02
-
[4]Destroyer History Foundation (destroyerhistory.org), Benson-Gleaves classes general-information table + class narrative + USS Herndon page (NARA photo 19-N-45762) [other_primary]
- Locator
- index.asp?pid=220 general-information table; /benson-gleavesclass/ class narrative; /benson-gleavesclass/ussherndon/ vessel page
- Finding type
- historical_record
- Finding
- Class-level design record: the Gleaves class (Gibbs & Cox design office; wartime 'Livermore' class; 1941-repeat ships known as the 'Bristol' class) - LOA 348', beam 36', standard displacement 1,630 long tons, draft 17'6" max, designed complement 9 officers + 199 enlisted, designed 50,000 shp and 37 kt, twin three-blade screws, two stacks; machinery arranged in two units (each a fireroom with its own stack plus an engine room) to localize torpedo damage; Gleaves-class ships built at Federal, Bath, Seattle-Tacoma and five navy yards, using Westinghouse, GE, and Allis-Chalmers turbines. DD-638 is within the 1941-repeat Bristol-group builds; repeat ships carried four 5-inch/38 mounts (not five) due to topweight limits - consistent with the DANFS spec block for this hull.
- Verification
- verified
- Role
- supporting
- Documentation level
- class_or_era
- Accessed
- 2026-09-27
- Study period
- 1938-1943
- Population
- n/a (design data)
- Limitations
- Foundation-edited reference drawing on NARA/BuShips material; class-level, not hull-specific. Documents design and fit-out pattern, not installed materials aboard DD-638.
- Atlas source
- true
- Evidence ID
- ev-uss-herndon-dd638-03
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[5]Atlas shipyard dataset (shipyards.json) record 'norfolk-naval-shipyard' (tier 2) - EPA Superfund VA1170024813 (NPL-listed 1999), NAVFAC Norfolk NSY site descriptions documenting asbestos among disposed wastes; yard product list incl. pipe insulation/lagging, boiler and turbine insulation, gaskets, packing, deck coverings, Marinite/Transite-type materials [other_primary]
- Locator
- shipyards.json record 'norfolk-naval-shipyard'; NAVFAC Norfolk NSY Site Descriptions page
- Finding type
- environmental_record
- Finding
- Builder-yard context: Norfolk Naval Shipyard (Portsmouth, VA), which built this hull 1941-42, is a tier-2 Atlas yard with asbestos documented at the yard level - EPA Superfund listing VA1170024813 (1999) with asbestos named among wastes disposed at yard sites per NAVFAC site descriptions, and a documented period product list covering pipe insulation and lagging, boiler and turbine insulation, gaskets, packing materials, deck coverings, and insulating-sheet products used in naval construction and repair.
- Verification
- verified
- Role
- context
- Documentation level
- class_or_era
- Accessed
- 2026-09-27
- Study period
- 1941-1942 (construction); 1999+ (Superfund era)
- Population
- Norfolk Naval Shipyard workforce (WWII peak ~43,000 per yard record)
- Limitations
- Yard-level documentation only - establishes that asbestos products were present and handled at the shipyard that built this hull, not that any specific material aboard DD-638 was asbestos-containing. NPL designation and site descriptions postdate the ship's construction by decades; no hull-level material schedule located.
- Atlas source
- true
- Evidence ID
- ev-uss-herndon-dd638-04
-
[6]Consolidated era inference - Destroyer History Foundation class design data + NavSource ship-specific machinery line + NARA RG19 General Information Books archival lead [other_primary]
- Locator
- destroyerhistory.org Gleaves general-information table + class narrative (two-unit machinery); NavSource DD-638 machinery line; NARA RG19 archival lead
- Finding type
- asbestos_application
- Finding
- Era/design inference: a Gleaves-class destroyer built August 1941-December 1942 at a U.S. Navy yard with a 50,000-shp geared steam-turbine plant arranged in two units (each unit a fireroom with its own stack plus an engine room, per the class design record) would have carried the period-standard insulated fit - boiler and steam-line insulation in two firerooms, turbine lagging in two engine rooms, valve/flange gaskets and packing, fireproofing, bulkhead/compartment insulation, and deck coverings - the insulated-steam-plant configuration documented as asbestos-bearing across the WWII destroyer fleet. NARA RG19 'General Information Books' per-vessel material specifications are the archival lead for hull-level specs.
- Verification
- inferred
- Role
- supporting
- Documentation level
- class_or_era
- Accessed
- 2026-09-27
- Study period
- 1941-1973
- Population
- Norfolk Navy Yard construction trades 1941-42; engineering crew 1942-46
- Limitations
- Class/era and builder-yard inference only - NOT a hull-specific finding; no source documents an asbestos product aboard DD-638. NARA GIB retrieval not performed. Does not quantify material or establish any individual's exposure.
- Atlas source
- true
- Evidence ID
- ev-uss-herndon-dd638-05
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[7]Lemen RA, Landrigan PJ. 'Sailors and the Risk of Asbestos-Related Cancer.' Int J Environ Res Public Health. 2021;18(16):8417. PMID 34444165 [other_primary]
- Locator
- IJERPH 2021;18(16):8417, ship-construction passages
- Finding type
- historical_record
- Finding
- Peer-reviewed review documenting that chrysotile and amphibole asbestos were used extensively in ship construction of the era - insulation, joiner bulkhead systems, pipe coverings, boilers, machinery parts, bulkhead panels - and that sailors both worked and lived at their exposure site. Establishes the era-level background against which a 1941-42 navy-yard steam destroyer must be read.
- Verification
- verified
- Role
- context
- Documentation level
- context_only
- Accessed
- 2026-09-27
- Study period
- 20th-century naval construction era
- Population
- Naval/merchant sailors generally (era context)
- Limitations
- Fleet-era epidemiology review; does not name this hull or class. Cannot be read as evidence of asbestos aboard DD-638 - included as background context only.
- Atlas source
- true
- Evidence ID
- ev-uss-herndon-dd638-06
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[8]CourtListener API v4 authenticated search sweep (opinion index type=o and RECAP docket index type=r) for this vessel's exact name and hull number [court_record]
- Locator
- search_ledger rows sl-uss-herndon-dd638-08 through -11
- Finding type
- litigation_documented
- Finding
- CourtListener sweeps on 2026-09-27 returned zero hits: "USS Herndon" type=o opinions count 0; "DD-638" type=o opinions count 0; "USS Herndon" type=r RECAP dockets count 0 / document_count 0. No qualifying asbestos litigation naming this hull was located. The "DD-638" RECAP docket-index sweep was fleet-pacing blocked at session time - carried as a pending ledger row, not as a located negative.
- Verification
- verified
- Role
- negative_finding
- Documentation level
- ship_specific
- Accessed
- 2026-09-27
- Study period
- 2026-09-27
- Population
- none identified
- Limitations
- Coverage: CourtListener opinion index (type=o) for name and hull number, and RECAP docket index (type=r) for the exact name - all zero. The type=r hull-number sweep could not complete under fleet pacing - a coverage gap, not a negative finding at that index. Non-indexed dockets, un-digitized filings, and state-court records are outside coverage. Absence of located litigation does not mean none exists. 'Herndon' is also a common surname in U.S. caselaw - name-only hits require hull-attribution screening regardless.
- Atlas source
- true
- Evidence ID
- ev-uss-herndon-dd638-07