Evidence
10 evidence entries recorded; each entry has a stable permalink (#ev-1 … #ev-10).
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[1]Naval History and Heritage Command, Dictionary of American Naval Fighting Ships, Holder II (DD-819) - canonical page https://www.history.navy.mil/research/histories/ship-histories/danfs/h/holder-ii.html returns 404; Wayback Machine capture 2025-02-02 cited; verbatim transcription also carried at GlobalSecurity mirror [nhhc_danfs]
- Locator
- DANFS specifications block, namesake paragraph, and service narrative paragraphs (launch/commissioning through 1966 Vietnam deployment)
- Finding type
- vessel_history
- Finding
- NHHC's DANFS entry (Holder II) identifies this hull as Gearing-class DD-819: launched by Consolidated Steel Corp., Orange, Texas, 25 August 1945, sponsored by Mrs. Annette Holder (mother of Lt. (j.g.) Randolph Mitchell Holder, Torpedo Squadron 6, killed at Midway, posthumous Navy Cross); commissioned 18 May 1946 at Orange, Comdr. B. K. Atkins in command. Specifications block: dp. 2,425; l. 390'6"; s. 35; cpl. 367; cl. Gearing. Service narrative: Caribbean shakedown; Mediterranean/6th Fleet deployments; Suez crisis 1956; Beirut landings July 1958; reclassified DDE-819 on 4 March 1950 and DD-819 on 7 August 1962; Cuban Missile Crisis quarantine November 1962 (inspected a Russian ship 8 November); entered Norfolk Naval Shipyard 17 December 1962 for Fleet Rehabilitation and Modernization (FRAM) overhaul adding ASROC, DASH, helicopter hangar and flight deck, emerging October 1963; Gemini II capsule recovery January-February 1965; Dominican Republic patrol April-May 1965; Vietnam deployment 1966 (plane guard for Ranger and Intrepid; naval gunfire support 29 July - 8 August). The DANFS narrative ends in 1966 and does not cover decommissioning, striking, or transfer.
- Verification
- verified
- Role
- supporting
- Documentation level
- ship_specific
- Accessed
- 2026-09-27
- Study period
- 1945-1966
- Population
- Consolidated Steel construction trades 1945-46; U.S. Navy crew (design complement 367); Norfolk Naval Shipyard workers during FRAM 1962-63
- Limitations
- Ship-history source, not a material survey: it does not identify asbestos, any asbestos-containing product, an abatement event, individual exposure, causation, quantity, or present condition. The FRAM yard period is documented as an event; its asbestos scope is inference only. Narrative ends in 1966 - no authoritative decommission/strike/transfer dates in this source.
- Atlas source
- true
- Evidence ID
- ev-uss-holder-dd819-01
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[2]Mullinex v. Air & Liquid Systems Corporation (John Crane Inc.), No. 4:18-cv-00033-RAJ-DEM (E.D. Va.), Joint Proposed Final Amended Pretrial Order, ECF No. 520 (filed May 17, 2022); Memorandum Opinion and Order of Nov. 8, 2022 (12(c) judgment). CourtListener docket 8141312 [court_record]
- Locator
- ECF No. 520 pretrial order: Stipulation of Undisputed Facts items 4-13 (service aboard USS Holder, exposure end date, diagnosis, death); paragraphs 105-135 (engine-room gasket/packing allegations; Kaulback and Rodda corroboration; Feb 1971 Sierra availability; Mar 1-Jun 1, 1971 Philadelphia Naval Shipyard Regular Overhaul); docket https://www.courtlistener.com/docket/8141312/mullinex-v-air-liquid-systems-corporation/
- Finding type
- litigation_documented
- Finding
- Qualifying asbestos litigation naming this hull, with stipulated facts. The Joint Proposed Final Amended Pretrial Order (signed by Magistrate Judge Douglas E. Miller, filed 2022-05-17, ECF No. 520) in Mullinex v. Air & Liquid Systems Corp. / John Crane Inc., E.D. Va. No. 4:18-cv-00033, carries a 'Stipulation of Undisputed Facts' that Herbert H. Mullinex Jr. served onboard U.S.S. Holder from December 7, 1969 to June 28, 1971 as a Machinist's Mate Fireman (MMFN) and Machinist Mate Third Class (MM3), that his exposure to asbestos ended October 23, 1978, that he was diagnosed with mesothelioma July 27, 2016, and that he died of mesothelioma November 11, 2021. During 1969-71 the only commissioned USS Holder was DD-819. Plaintiff-side sections of the same order allege he worked in Holder's forward engine room fabricating and removing asbestos gaskets from 'compressed asbestos sheet gasket 2150' (about 70 percent of engine-room gaskets) and installing/removing asbestos pump and valve packing manufactured by John Crane, Garlock, and Chesterton - with corroboration attributed to supervisor Allan Kaulback and coworker Dave Rodda (who identified John Crane and Garlock products installed on and removed from Holder during the overhaul). The order also recites that Holder underwent a repair availability alongside USS Sierra (AD-18) in February 1971 and a Regular Overhaul at Philadelphia Naval Shipyard from March 1, 1971 to June 1, 1971. Disposition: filed in Virginia state court November 2016; removed to E.D. Va. March 23, 2018; survival-damages claim dismissed May 23, 2022 (ECF 538); after defendant John Crane Inc. failed to answer the Third Amended Complaint, the court granted plaintiff's Motion for Judgment on the Pleadings under Rule 12(c) by order of October 31, 2022 (ECF 597), explained in a November 8, 2022 memorandum opinion.
- Verification
- verified
- Role
- supporting
- Documentation level
- ship_specific
- Accessed
- 2026-09-27
- Study period
- 1969-1971 (service/exposure aboard); 1971 (overhaul); 2016-2022 (litigation)
- Population
- Herbert H. Mullinex Jr. (USN machinist's mate aboard DD-819 1969-1971); engine-room machinist mates and Philadelphia Naval Shipyard workers (1971 overhaul)
- Limitations
- Stage: stipulated facts establish service aboard this hull, an asbestos-exposure window ending 10/23/1978, and mesothelioma diagnosis/death; the exposure-mechanism details (products, quantities, work methods) are plaintiff-side recitals that were never tried before a factfinder, and the final judgment entered on the pleadings after the defendant's procedural default - not a merits adjudication of exposure aboard this hull. Does not establish causation apportioned to Holder versus the two other ships named (Sumner, Edson), does not quantify asbestos aboard, and establishes no legal eligibility for others.
- Atlas source
- true
- Evidence ID
- ev-uss-holder-dd819-02
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[3]Agena v. Cleaver-Brooks, Inc., No. 1:19-cv-00089-DKW-WRP (D. Haw.), Transmittal of Documents from the Circuit Court, State of Hawaii, ECF No. 11-4 (filed Feb. 28, 2019) - complaint, para. 14. CourtListener docket 16612501 [court_record]
- Locator
- ECF No. 11-4, complaint paragraph 14 (Estate of Homer W. Means service history naming USS HOLDER (DD-819), 1956-1959); docket https://www.courtlistener.com/docket/16612501/agena-v-cleaver-brooks-inc/
- Finding type
- litigation_documented
- Finding
- Qualifying asbestos litigation naming this hull by hull number. The multi-plaintiff state-court complaint transmitted onto the federal docket in Agena v. Cleaver-Brooks, Inc., D. Hawaii No. 1:19-cv-00089 (ECF No. 11-4, complaint with demand for jury trial), alleges at paragraph 14 that decedent Homer W. Means 'served in the United States Navy as a steward and was assigned to the USS WALTON (DE-361) from 1953 to 1956, homeported at Pearl Harbor Naval Shipyard, and also temporarily assigned to the USS RENSHAW (DD-499) for about 2 months at Pearl Harbor Naval Shipyard, then the USS HOLDER (DD-819) from 1956 to 1959, then the USS ROBERT L. WILSON (DD-847) from 1959 to 1960, then the USS BAINBRIDGE (DLGN-25) from 1963 to 1965, then the USS LEAHY (DDG-16) from 1965 to 1966, then the USS CHUKAWAN from 1966 to 1968 and then the USS GUADALCANAL (LPH-7) from 1972 to 1974' - an asbestos personal-injury pleading naming DD-819 among the decedent's alleged exposure sites.
- Verification
- verified
- Role
- supporting
- Documentation level
- ship_specific
- Accessed
- 2026-09-27
- Study period
- 1956-1959 (alleged exposure); 2019 (litigation)
- Population
- Homer W. Means (USN steward allegedly aboard DD-819 1956-1959)
- Limitations
- Pleading-stage allegation only: a joinder complaint lists this hull among many alleged exposure sites for one decedent; the allegation was never adjudicated and does not establish causation, product identity, quantity, or current condition. Case outcome beyond the 2019 removal not reviewed.
- Atlas source
- true
- Evidence ID
- ev-uss-holder-dd819-03
-
[4]In re Asbestos Products Liability Litigation (No. VI), MDL No. 875 (JPML), ECF No. 6464-3 - Notice of Potential Tag-Along for Scott v. Rapid American Corp., N.D. Ill. No. 1:10-cv-07760 (filed Dec. 7, 2010). CourtListener docket 1245688 [court_record]
- Locator
- ECF No. 6464-3 attachment, exposure schedule page bearing stamp '10-0622 / David Lee Scott': jobsite block 'U.S. navy / Great Lakes Naval Base (Great Lakes, IL) / USS Holder (DDE-819) / 1949-1953' paired with defendant-product list (Rapid American/Philip Carey); docket https://www.courtlistener.com/docket/1245688/in-re-asbestos-products-liability-litigation-no-vi/
- Finding type
- litigation_documented
- Finding
- Qualifying asbestos litigation naming this hull in an exposure schedule. A General Electric 'Notice of Potential Tag-Along' filed in IN RE: Asbestos Products Liability Litigation (No. VI), MDL No. 875 (ECF No. 6464-3, filed 2010-12-07), attaches materials for underlying case Scott v. Rapid American Corporation et al., N.D. Ill. No. 1:10-cv-07760 (plaintiff David Lee Scott, removed from Cook County Circuit Court No. 10L 12585). The attached exposure schedule lists under plaintiff Scott: jobsite 'U.S. navy - Great Lakes Naval Base (Great Lakes, IL) - USS Holder (DDE-819)' for years 1949-1953, paired with Rapid American Corporation (successor to Philip Carey Manufacturing) asbestos pipe covering, block, cement, paper, felt, board, tile and other asbestos-containing products.
- Verification
- verified
- Role
- supporting
- Documentation level
- ship_specific
- Accessed
- 2026-09-27
- Study period
- 1949-1953 (alleged exposure); 2010 (litigation)
- Population
- David Lee Scott (USN, alleged exposure at Great Lakes Naval Base and USS Holder (DDE-819) 1949-1953)
- Limitations
- Exhibit-stage allegation: a plaintiff exposure schedule in a tag-along notice lists this hull as a jobsite for 1949-1953; it is not an adjudication of exposure and does not establish causation, product identity aboard, quantity, or current condition. The same schedule also lists a shore site (Great Lakes Naval Base) for the same period, so hull-specific exposure within the window is not isolated.
- Atlas source
- true
- Evidence ID
- ev-uss-holder-dd819-04
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[5]Sanderson v. Shell Oil Co., No. 2:09-cv-07336-KDE-KWR (E.D. La.), ECF No. 55 (quoting Lane v. Gasket Holdings, Inc., No. B153966, 2003 WL 21666623 (Cal. App. July 17, 2003) - unpublished). CourtListener docket 12788415 [court_record]
- Locator
- Sanderson ECF No. 55 pp. 2-4 (quotation and discussion of the Lane exclusion ruling); docket https://www.courtlistener.com/docket/12788415/sanderson-v-shell-oil-company/
- Finding type
- litigation_documented
- Finding
- Asbestos litigation citing service aboard 'the Holder.' Sanderson v. Shell Oil Co., E.D. La. No. 2:09-cv-07336, ECF No. 55 (supplemental memorandum filed Sept. 22, 2010) quotes the unpublished California appellate decision Lane v. Gasket Holdings, Inc., No. B153966, 2003 WL 21666623 (Cal. App. July 17, 2003): the Lane court upheld exclusion of expert John Spencer's testimony because 'Spencer's experience was on a different class of destroyer than the one aboard which Lane served; there had been no showing the pipe covering was the same on Spencer's ships as on the Holder; and no showing that any pipe covering had been removed on the Holder,' and 'Spencer had never been on the Holder, and had no experience with Lane's exposure, or with how the Holder was maintained.' Per secondary coverage, Calvin R. Lane was a Navy veteran and boiler worker who worked with Flexitallic gaskets aboard Navy ships and won a jury verdict of approximately $4.2 million at trial; Gasket Holdings (successor to Flexitallic) appealed on evidence-admissibility grounds. Hull attribution: 'the Holder' is a naval destroyer in the decision; DD-819 was the only commissioned USS Holder after 1944, but Lane's service window was not verified in the reviewed sources, so attribution to DD-819 rather than DE-401 (1943-44) is probable but unconfirmed.
- Verification
- partial
- Role
- archival_lead
- Documentation level
- ship_specific
- Accessed
- 2026-09-27
- Study period
- service window unverified; 2003 (appeal); 2010 (Sanderson quotation)
- Population
- Calvin R. Lane (USN boiler worker; ship window unverified)
- Limitations
- The Lane opinion itself is unpublished (Cal. R. Ct. 8.1115 non-citable precedent; cited here as a factual litigation record only) and its full text was not retrieved - the Holder references are verified through the quoting Sanderson brief, not the opinion. Hull attribution to DD-819 is probable but unconfirmed (Lane's service dates not verified; DE-401 is the alternative). The $4.2M verdict covered Lane's cumulative exposure across Navy ships; no exposure share is attributable to this hull. The Sanderson docket hit itself is other litigation - Holder appears only via the quoted Lane decision.
- Atlas source
- true
- Evidence ID
- ev-uss-holder-dd819-10
-
[6]CourtListener API v4 authenticated helper sweep (cl-auth-search.py), 2026-09-27: type=o queries 'USS Holder' (0), 'U.S.S. Holder' (0), 'DD-819' (0); type=r queries 'USS Holder' (8), 'DD-819' (5), 'U.S.S. Holder' (2) [court_record]
- Locator
- Authenticated helper output; qualifying dockets: CL docket 8141312 (Mullinex), 16612501 (Agena), 1245688 (MDL-875 doc 6464-3 re Scott 1:10-cv-07760)
- Finding type
- litigation_documented
- Finding
- CourtListener sweep completed via the authenticated helper (API v4, 2026-09-27). Opinion index: 'USS Holder' returned 0 results; 'U.S.S. Holder' returned 0 results; 'DD-819' returned 0 results. Docket index: 'USS Holder' returned 8 hits - 3 qualifying asbestos matters naming this hull (Mullinex v. Air & Liquid Systems, E.D. Va. 4:18-cv-00033; Agena v. Cleaver-Brooks, D. Haw. 1:19-cv-00089; and the MDL-875 tag-along exposing Scott v. Rapid American, N.D. Ill. 1:10-cv-07760 - see ev-02/03/04) and 5 non-qualifying hits (Peterson v. Islamic Republic of Iran, S.D.N.Y. - terrorism-judgment matter; Commonwealth of Puerto Rico, Tribune Media, Vitro America, and Lehman Brothers bankruptcy dockets - 'holder' in the bondholder/claims sense). 'DD-819' docket search returned 5 hits - 1 qualifying (Agena) and 4 identifier collisions (University of Pittsburgh v. Varian, W.D. Pa. patent; Tribune Media bankruptcy; eHealthline.com v. Pharmaniaga, E.D. Cal. contract; United States v. Anderson, D. Colo. interpleader). 'U.S.S. Holder' docket search returned 2 hits - Mullinex (already counted) and Sanderson v. Shell Oil, E.D. La. 2:09-cv-07336 (other litigation: an asbestos-PI brief quoting Lane v. Gasket Holdings - see ev-10).
- Verification
- verified
- Role
- context
- Documentation level
- ship_specific
- Accessed
- 2026-09-27
- Study period
- CourtListener searches conducted 2026-09-27
- Limitations
- Sweep covers CourtListener's opinion and RECAP docket indexes only; it does not reach state-court systems, PACER originals not in RECAP, or unindexed filings, so absence of additional hits is not proof no other litigation exists (Lane v. Gasket Holdings surfaced only via quotation inside a hit, not via index). Classification of qualifying hits rests on retrieved document text (RECAP PDFs), not index text alone.
- Atlas source
- true
- Evidence ID
- ev-uss-holder-dd819-05
-
[7]National Archives, Ship Plan Index (RG 19 Hull series of Ship Engineering Drawings), HOLDER DD-819 NAID 153714766 and HOLDER DDE-819 NAID 153714869; NARA 'Navy Deck Logs Available in the National Archives Catalog' (no DD-819 entry) [other_primary]
- Locator
- Ship Plan Index, HOLDER DD-819 and HOLDER DDE-819 rows; deck-log index checked 2026-09-27 (no Holder listing)
- Finding type
- historical_record
- Finding
- NARA's Ship Plan Index lists two hull-series engineering-drawing file units for this vessel: HOLDER DD-819, RG 19 'Hull series of Ship Engineering Drawings' (NAID 153714766), and HOLDER DDE-819, same series (NAID 153714869). These records may contain hull-specific machinery, piping, insulation, and lagging specifications. NARA's deck-log availability index contains no digitized Holder (DD-819) deck logs.
- Verification
- verified
- Role
- archival_lead
- Documentation level
- ship_specific
- Accessed
- 2026-09-27
- Study period
- RG 19 drawing series covering the ship's build/refit era
- Limitations
- Archival lead only: the file units are identified in an index but were not retrieved or reviewed; their existence does not establish that asbestos-containing material is documented in them or was aboard this hull.
- Atlas source
- true
- Evidence ID
- ev-uss-holder-dd819-06
-
[8]National Archives, Researching Asbestos aboard US Naval Vessel up through 1961 [other_primary]
- Locator
- Beginning Research; Bureau of Ships General/Confidential/Secret Correspondence (RG 19 entries); General Information Books; Cartographic Branch
- Finding type
- asbestos_application
- Finding
- NARA's authoritative research guide states that use of asbestos in U.S. Navy materiel from 1941 through 1961 is a frequently requested subject and identifies RG 19 records - Bureau of Ships correspondence by hull designation (DD-819) and class (DD710 class), destroyer General Information Books, and hull engineering drawings - as avenues for vessel-specific asbestos research. For ship-specific follow-up: DD819 correspondence files, the Gearing-class (DD710) class correspondence, and the two RG 19 hull-drawing file units identified in the Ship Plan Index.
- Verification
- verified
- Role
- context
- Documentation level
- class_or_era
- Accessed
- 2026-09-27
- Study period
- 1941-1961
- Population
- U.S. Navy materiel and researchers; not DD-819-specific
- Limitations
- Navy-wide era-level research guidance, not evidence that asbestos was installed aboard DD-819. It identifies archival routes only and does not establish product identity, location, quantity, condition, exposure, causation, or legal eligibility for this hull.
- Atlas source
- true
- Evidence ID
- ev-uss-holder-dd819-07
-
[9]Goodrich v. Air & Liquid Systems Corp., E.D. Va. 4:17-cv-00009, Omnibus Opinion and Order, ECF No. 171 (Sept. 28, 2018); GAO HRD-80-2, Navy Efforts To Protect Workers From Asbestos Exposure (Oct. 18, 1979); Gearing-class profile (Consolidated/Orange build) [other_primary]
- Locator
- Goodrich omnibus opinion (class drawing recital and 30.3-ton tally passage); GAO HRD-80-2 product page; class technical data per class profile
- Finding type
- asbestos_application
- Finding
- Class/era context for this Gearing-class destroyer (4 Babcock & Wilcox superheated boilers, GE geared steam turbines, 60,000 shp, built 1945-46): era-standard materials would include boiler casing and fireroom insulation, steam-pipe lagging, turbine lagging, valve/flange gaskets and packing, and accommodation fireproofing. The E.D. Va. omnibus opinion in Goodrich v. Air & Liquid Systems Corp. (No. 4:17-cv-00009, ECF No. 171, Sept. 28, 2018) recites a class engineering drawing specifying amosite felts and asbestos cloths on forced-draft blower turbines for the Sumner destroyer class and quotes an expert report's partial tally of approximately 30.3 tons of asbestos thermal insulation/lagging in fire and engine rooms of Sumner/Gearing-class destroyers - litigation recitals, not adjudicated classwide quantities. GAO HRD-80-2 documents that the Navy's 1975 policy removed asbestos insulation only when damaged or needed for repairs, so original-era insulation typically remained until disturbed by yard periods such as this hull's documented 1962-63 FRAM (Norfolk Naval Shipyard) and 1971 overhaul (Philadelphia Naval Shipyard).
- Verification
- inferred
- Role
- context
- Documentation level
- class_or_era
- Accessed
- 2026-09-27
- Study period
- 1945-1976
- Population
- Construction trades (Consolidated Steel, Orange, 1945-46); crew 1946-1976; Norfolk Naval Shipyard (FRAM 1962-63) and Philadelphia Naval Shipyard (1971 overhaul) workers
- Limitations
- Class/era inference only - no class drawing, tally, or policy document reviewed here names DD-819, and the Goodrich figures are litigation recitals whose underlying exhibits were not retrieved. This row does not establish that asbestos products were aboard this hull, their quantity, or any individual exposure; ship-specific material documentation remains the litigation record in ev-02 through ev-04.
- Atlas source
- true
- Evidence ID
- ev-uss-holder-dd819-08
-
[10]Secondary compilations: NavSource Destroyer Photo Index DD-819; Wikipedia 'USS Holder (DD-819)'; uboat.net ship page; navypedia Ecuador page; worldnavalships.com builder listing; USS Holder Association (ussholder.com) [reputable_press]
- Locator
- NavSource DD-819 'Operational and Building Data' block and fate line; Wikipedia infobox/fate paragraph; ussholder.com Holder-Assoc history page (Charleston delivery 11 May 1980; DD-01; December 1990 boiler casualty; scrapped early 1992)
- Finding type
- vessel_history
- Finding
- Secondary compilations supply the post-1966 disposition that the DANFS narrative does not cover: decommissioned and stricken 1 October 1976 (NavSource, Wikipedia, uboat.net, usnfleet.us, and the USS Holder Association concur); transferred to Ecuador and renamed BAE Presidente Eloy Alfaro (DD-01). The transfer date conflicts: Wikipedia/NavSource/uboat.net/usnfleet.us record 23 February 1977; Navypedia and worldnavalships.com record 1 September 1978; the USS Holder Association records physical delivery to the Ecuadorian Navy at the U.S. Naval Base, Charleston, S.C. on 11 May 1980. Ecuadorian service reportedly ended after a major boiler casualty in December 1990, with the ship stricken and broken up for scrap in 1991-1992.
- Verification
- partial
- Role
- context
- Documentation level
- ship_specific
- Accessed
- 2026-09-27
- Study period
- 1976-1992
- Population
- U.S. Navy crew at decommissioning (1976); Ecuadorian Navy crew (transfer era)
- Limitations
- Secondary compilations, not official sources: used only for the post-1966 disposition DANFS lacks. The transfer-date conflict (1977-02-23 vs 1978-09-01 vs 1980-05-11 physical delivery) is unresolved and carried in gaps. The Naval Vessel Register does not include hulls disposed of before 1987, so no NVR confirmation exists.
- Atlas source
- true
- Evidence ID
- ev-uss-holder-dd819-09