Evidence
9 evidence entries recorded; each entry has a stable permalink (#ev-1 … #ev-9).
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[1]DANFS, Hopewell I (DD-181) (live NHHC page 404s; Wayback capture 2013-12-12 of the NHHC entry cited; verbatim text independently verified against the hazegray transcription at losthistory.net) [nhhc_danfs]
- Locator
- DANFS entry 'Hopewell I' spec line + full service narrative
- Finding type
- vessel_history
- Finding
- DANFS record for this hull: spec line (DD-181: dp. 1,060; l. 314'5"; b. 31'8"; dr. 9'4"; s. 35 k.; cpl. 101; a. 4 4", 2 3", 4 21" tt.; cl. Wickes). Launched 8 June 1918 by Newport News Shipbuilding and Dry Dock Co., Newport News, Va.; sponsored by Mrs. Grote Hutcheson (hazegray transcription reads 'Orote'); commissioned 22 March 1919 at Portsmouth, Va., Lt. Comdr. R. E. Rodgers in command. Sailed from Norfolk 19 April 1919 to join the 3d Destroyer Squadron in New England waters; in May was on observation station off the Azores during the NC-4 trans-Atlantic flight; returned to New York 8 June to complete fitting out; firing tests with her squadron from August. Winter of 1920 spent on intensive training and target practice in Caribbean waters; returned to New England early May, then Charleston 22 September operating out of that port; New York May 1921 for reserve training; sailed from Newport 10 October and was placed in reserve at Charleston until 10 April (1922), then Philadelphia. Decommissioned there 17 July 1922. Recommissioned 17 June 1940; Neutrality Patrol off New England; arrived Halifax 18 September; decommissioned 23 September 1940 and transferred to Great Britain under the destroyers-bases exchange; renamed Bath, manned by the Norwegian Navy, sunk August 1941.
- Verification
- verified
- Role
- supporting
- Documentation level
- ship_specific
- Accessed
- 2026-09-27
- Study period
- 1918-1941
- Population
- Newport News construction trades 1918; crew 1919-1922 and 1940 (DANFS cpl. 101)
- Limitations
- DANFS documents service history and the spec line, not materials or asbestos content; it gives no laid-down date and no stricken date. The entry's 'Shannon 1 June 1913' is a typo in the source (the Chesapeake-Shannon action was 1813). Live NHHC page returns 404 - the Wayback capture of the NHHC URL is cited.
- Atlas source
- true
- Evidence ID
- ev-uss-hopewell-dd181-01
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[2]NHHC Online Library of Selected Images, 'USN Ships -- USS Hopewell (Destroyer # 181, later DD-181), 1919-1940' overview (Naval Historical Center text mirrored at ibiblio.org HyperWar) [nhhc_danfs]
- Locator
- Online Library ship page, overview paragraph + photo captions NH 61889, NH 78133, NH 76074
- Finding type
- vessel_history
- Finding
- NHHC overview independently corroborates the DANFS history and adds framing detail: a 1,090-ton Lamberton-class destroyer built at Newport News, Virginia, under the World War I emergency shipbuilding program; commissioned mid-March 1919; supported the NC-4 trans-Atlantic flight in May; western Atlantic and Caribbean operations including Naval-reservist training 1920-1921; generally inactive after October 1921; decommissioned at the Philadelphia Navy Yard July 1922 and laid up there for nearly eighteen years; returned to commissioned service mid-June 1940; neutrality patrols off New England; sent to Halifax, Nova Scotia, in September, decommissioned and transferred to Great Britain under the 'Destroyers for Bases' agreement; renamed HMS Bath, served in the Royal Navy until April 1941, then became part of the Royal Norwegian Navy as KNM Bath; operated in the 'Liverpool Escort Force' from early June; sunk by a German submarine 19 August 1941 while escorting a convoy bound for Gibraltar. Page also holds photo captions NH 61889 (at anchor 15 November 1919), NH 78133 (circa 1919-1920), NH 76074 (with USS Bagley, Destroyer No. 185).
- Verification
- verified
- Role
- supporting
- Documentation level
- ship_specific
- Accessed
- 2026-09-27
- Study period
- 1918-1941
- Population
- Crew 1919-1922 and 1940; reservist trainees aboard 1920-1921
- Limitations
- NHHC overview-level summary; documents service history including the 18-year Philadelphia layup and the Norwegian-manned Liverpool Escort Force phase, not materials or asbestos content. 'Mid-March 1919' commissioning is consistent with DANFS's exact 22 March 1919.
- Atlas source
- true
- Evidence ID
- ev-uss-hopewell-dd181-02
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[3]NavSource Online Destroyer Photo Archive, USS Hopewell (DD-181) page, incl. contributed HMS Bath service history (R. Hurst) (Wayback capture 2024-05-27; live navsource.org unreachable this session) [other_primary]
- Locator
- NavSource DD-181 page operational/building data block + 'On British Service' Hurst narrative + commanding-officer list
- Finding type
- vessel_history
- Finding
- NavSource operating/building data for this hull: class note 'WICKES (LAMBERTON) - Built to Bath plans, built by Newport News, these Wickes versions were slightly heavier but had a good cruising radius'; displacement 1,213 t; 314'5" x 31'8" x 9'10" max; armament 4 x 4"/50, 2 x 3"/23AA, 12 x 21" tt (as triple mounts); machinery 24,900 SHP, direct-drive turbines with geared cruising turbines, 2 screws; 35 kt; crew 101. Laid down by Newport News Shipbuilding 19 January 1918; launched 8 June 1918; commissioned 22 March 1919; decommissioned 17 July 1922; recommissioned 17 June 1940; decommissioned 23 September 1940; to Britain 23 September 1940, renamed HMS Bath (I17); stricken 8 January 1941; sunk by U-204 19 August 1941. British service narrative (R. Hurst): commissioned into the RN at Halifax, N.S., 23 September 1940; sailed 29 September for Devonport via St John's and Belfast, arriving 10 October 1940 for a brief refit; joined 1st Minelaying Squadron at Port ZA (HMS Trelawney), Kyle of Lochalsh; escorted four minelaying sorties and gave local A/S escort to troop convoys WS4B, WS5B, TC8; refit at Chatham 25 January-12 April 1941 receiving the standard 'Stage 1' alterations; manned by Royal Norwegian Navy personnel with transfer 9 April 1941; collision on trials 16 April delayed return - repaired on the Tyne until 19 May; work-up at Tobermory to 18 June; joined 5th Escort Group at Liverpool escorting OG/HG convoys to and from Gibraltar; torpedoed by U-204 on 19 August 1941 while escorting her sixth convoy, OG-71, in position 48.30N 17.45W, and sank rapidly. CO list: LCDR R. E. Rodgers (22 Mar 1919-12 Dec 1919), LCDR W. F. Lafrenz, LT G. D. Custer, ENS M. E. Crist; recommissioned LCDR G. L. Purmont (17 Jun-23 Sep 1940).
- Verification
- verified
- Role
- context
- Documentation level
- ship_specific
- Accessed
- 2026-09-27
- Study period
- 1918-1941
- Population
- Newport News construction trades 1918; USN crew 1919-1922, 1940; RN and RNoN crews 1940-1941; RN dockyard workforces (Devonport, Chatham, Tyne) 1940-1941
- Limitations
- Volunteer-edited secondary archive, not an official record - the laid-down date, stricken date (8 Jan 1941), machinery figures, and the Hurst RN-service narrative rest on NavSource rather than digitized official documents. RN refit events (Devonport, Chatham 'Stage 1', Tyne repair) are documented as events only; no materials or asbestos content is documented for any of them.
- Atlas source
- true
- Evidence ID
- ev-uss-hopewell-dd181-03
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[4]uboat.net, HNoMS Bath (I 17) warship and 'ships hit by U-boats' entries (ex-USS Hopewell, DD-181; U-204 attack record, convoy OG-71) [other_primary]
- Locator
- uboat.net warship entry ship/4304 + 'ships hit' entry ship/1060 (attack narrative, complement breakdown); convoy OG-71 page
- Finding type
- historical_record
- Finding
- Specialist U-boat-war record for this hull's loss: HNoMS Bath (Lt.Cdr. C. F. T. Melsom, RNoN) of the 5th Escort Group, detached from/astern of convoy OG-71 (Liverpool-Gibraltar, sailed 13 August 1941) about 400 miles southwest of Ireland, was hit amidships by one G7e torpedo from U-204 (Kptlt. Walter Kell) at 02.05 on 19 August 1941; a stern-tube coup de grace passed under the ship, which capsized to port and sank within six minutes at 49-00'N, 17-00'W (grid BE 2647). Her depth charges exploded as she sank, killing swimmers. Complement 124 officers and men: the commander, two Norwegian officers, 68 Norwegian ratings, two British officers and ten British ratings were lost (83 dead); 39 survivors were picked up by HMS Hydrangea and four by HMS Wanderer; two of the rescued died of wounds en route to Gibraltar (41 survivors). The warship entry confirms former names USS Hopewell (DD-181) / HMS Bath (I 17), builder Newport News Shipbuilding and Dry Dock Co., laid down 19 January 1918, launched 8 June 1918.
- Verification
- verified
- Role
- context
- Documentation level
- ship_specific
- Accessed
- 2026-09-27
- Study period
- 1940-1941 (RN/RNoN service); 19 August 1941 (loss)
- Population
- RNoN and RN crew at loss (124); rescuing crews HMS Hydrangea and HMS Wanderer
- Limitations
- Specialist secondary database, not an official record. Loss detail is internally consistent (124 complement = 83 dead + 41 survivors); Wikipedia-derived summaries read 84 dead/42 rescued - conflict carried in gaps. Loss position differs from the NavSource/Hurst figure (48.30N 17.45W) - carried in gaps. uboat.net's 'Commissioned 9 Jan 1941' field for Bath conflicts with NavSource's RN commissioning at Halifax 23 September 1940 - carried in gaps. No materials or asbestos content.
- Atlas source
- true
- Evidence ID
- ev-uss-hopewell-dd181-04
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[5]NavSource DD-181 machinery block (24,900 shp, direct-drive turbines with geared cruising turbines, 2 screws) + DANFS spec line (cl. Wickes) + Atlas shipyard dataset record 'newport-news-shipbuilding' (documented asbestos products: Kaylo insulation, Unibestos, Johns-Manville products, raw asbestos mud; Tidewater VA shipyard-mesothelioma cohort studies) + class compilation for boiler fit (DD-181-185 Newport News group: four Thornycroft boilers, two GE Curtis geared turbines - secondary) [other_primary]
- Locator
- NavSource DD-181 machinery block; shipyards.json yard_id 'newport-news-shipbuilding'; naval-encyclopedia Wickes-class machinery table (secondary)
- Finding type
- asbestos_application
- Finding
- Era/plant inference: a WWI-era Wickes-class destroyer built 1918 at Newport News Shipbuilding - four water-tube boilers (DD-181-185 group listed as Thornycroft in secondary class compilations) feeding geared steam turbines at 24,900 shp - would have carried era-standard asbestos applications: boiler and steam-drum insulation, steam-line lagging, flange and valve gaskets, machinery packing, and fireproofing. The June 1940 recommissioning followed ~18 years laid up at the Philadelphia Navy Yard, and the documented October 1940 Devonport refit, January-April 1941 Chatham refit ('Stage 1' alterations), and April-May 1941 Tyne collision repair are yard periods where insulation disturbance and replacement would have been routine. Builder yard is in the Atlas dataset with yard-level asbestos documentation (newport-news-shipbuilding: Kaylo, Unibestos, Johns-Manville products, raw asbestos mud; Tidewater cohort studies). NARA RG 19 'General Information Books'/BuShips material schedules and the Mariners' Museum Newport News Shipbuilding & Dry Dock Co. archive are archival leads for hull-level specifications.
- Verification
- inferred
- Role
- supporting
- Documentation level
- class_or_era
- Accessed
- 2026-09-27
- Study period
- 1918-1941
- Population
- Newport News construction trades 1918; USN crew 1919-1922, 1940; RN/RNoN crews 1940-1941; RN dockyard refit workforces 1940-1941
- Limitations
- Class/era and yard-level inference only - NOT a hull-specific finding. No materials schedule, survey, or hull-specific document was located; the ship sank in 1941 so no postwar documentation chain exists. The Newport News yard dataset record's litigation and cohort evidence postdates this hull's 1918 construction by decades; the Thornycroft boiler fit is a secondary class-compilation datum, unverified at hull level.
- Atlas source
- true
- Evidence ID
- ev-uss-hopewell-dd181-05
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[6]The Mariners' Museum and Park Library & Archives (Newport News, Va.) - holder of the Newport News Shipbuilding and Dry Dock Company collections incl. record-prints/plans series; catalogs.marinersmuseum.org object records for NNS&DD Co. plans [museum_official]
- Locator
- marinersmuseum.org Library & Archives page + catalogs.marinersmuseum.org NNS&DD Co. object records (e.g., ARS577 record-prints atlas)
- Finding type
- historical_record
- Finding
- Archival leads for this hull: (1) The Mariners' Museum Library & Archives, Newport News, holds the Newport News Shipbuilding and Dry Dock Company archival collections (record prints, plans, yard records) - the builder-side source most likely to hold hull-level construction and materials documentation for DD-181 (builder's records exist for other hulls; a DD-181-specific holdings check was not performed). (2) NARA RG 19/BuShips material specifications and RG 24 deck logs for DD-181 are expected holdings - not queried against the NARA catalog this session (catalog API returned the SPA shell, no record-level result). (3) UK-side documentation of the Chatham 'Stage 1' refit and Tyne repair (The National Archives, ADM series; Royal Navy dockyard records) is an unqueried lead for the 1940-41 yard periods.
- Verification
- unverified
- Role
- archival_lead
- Documentation level
- ship_specific
- Accessed
- 2026-09-27
- Study period
- 1918 (construction documentation); present-day (archival holdings)
- Limitations
- Existence of the repository collections is verified; DD-181-specific holdings within them are not asserted and were not retrieved. No asbestos content is established or implied by the existence of these archives.
- Atlas source
- true
- Evidence ID
- ev-uss-hopewell-dd181-06
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[7]CourtListener API v4 sweeps (authenticated, 2026-09-27): "USS Hopewell" type=o; "USS Hopewell" type=r; "DD-181" type=o/r; "HMS Bath" type=o; "Hopewell" asbestos type=o [court_record]
- Locator
- cl-auth-search.py/cl-patient-search.py authenticated v4 search results, this session's queries
- Finding type
- litigation_documented
- Finding
- No qualifying asbestos litigation naming THIS hull (DD-181) located in CourtListener opinion/docket indexes. Exact-name "USS Hopewell" opinion search returned zero hits; "HMS Bath" opinion search returned zero hits. The docket (RECAP) index returned one hit for "USS Hopewell" - resolved on full-text review to King v. A.O. Smith Corp. (N.D. Cal. 3:10-cv-04921; orig. SF Superior CGC 09-275285; JPML MDL-875 tag-along notice doc 6501), in which the decedent's 1952-1968 Navy service aboard 'USS Hopewell (DD)' can only mean the Fletcher-class DD-681 (see ev-uss-hopewell-dd181-09). "DD-181" opinion/docket sweeps and the combined 'Hopewell asbestos' opinion sweep are logged in the search ledger.
- Verification
- verified
- Role
- negative_finding
- Documentation level
- ship_specific
- Accessed
- 2026-09-27
- Study period
- 2026-09-27 (search date)
- Limitations
- CourtListener opinion index does not cover unindexed complaints or state-court records; absence of hits does not prove no one ever sued - it establishes that no qualifying published/docketed opinion naming this hull was located. The single docket hit was resolved to a complaint naming the other hull. 'Hopewell' is a high-collision token (City of Hopewell, Va., and Hopewell-place litigation); 'HMS Bath' and hull-number queries mitigate.
- Atlas source
- true
- Evidence ID
- ev-uss-hopewell-dd181-07
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[8]Batch-3185 search ledger (this record): NHHC DANFS (live + Wayback); NHHC Online Library; hazegray/losthistory DANFS transcription; NavSource DD-181 page (Wayback); uboat.net warship + ships-hit entries; Atlas shipyard dataset; Mariners' Museum archive lead; CourtListener API v4 sweeps [other_primary]
- Locator
- search_ledger rows sl-uss-hopewell-dd181-01 through sl-uss-hopewell-dd181-13
- Finding type
- historical_record
- Finding
- No qualifying ship-specific asbestos record located for DD-181: no hull ACM survey, no abatement or hazmat record, no museum disclosure, and no qualifying litigation naming the vessel. The hull was sunk in combat on 19 August 1941, so the postwar documentation channels that produce ship-specific asbestos records for surviving hulls (museum drydock reports, disposal-condition hazmat disclosures, postwar veteran litigation) do not exist here.
- Verification
- verified
- Role
- negative_finding
- Documentation level
- ship_specific
- Accessed
- 2026-09-27
- Study period
- 2026-09-27
- Limitations
- Absence of a located public record does not prove absence of asbestos aboard - era materials plausibly present are inferred only at class/era level (ev-05); the record does not establish or defeat any claim of exposure or legal eligibility.
- Atlas source
- true
- Evidence ID
- ev-uss-hopewell-dd181-08
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[9]King v. A.O. Smith Corp., No. 3:10-cv-04921-JSW (N.D. Cal., filed 2010-10-29; orig. San Francisco Superior CGC 09-275285), complaint/removal package as transmitted in JPML MDL-875 tag-along doc 6501-2 (62 pp., RECAP full text); VA Board of Veterans' Appeals decision No. 1806321 (2018-01-31, docket 14-16 384) [court_record]
- Locator
- King v. A.O. Smith Corp. 3:10-cv-04921 removal notice paras. 4-8 + Preliminary Fact Sheet employment table (JPML doc 6501-2); va.gov/vetapp18/Files1/1806321.txt findings section
- Finding type
- litigation_documented
- Finding
- Name collision, documented: asbestos-claim records naming 'USS Hopewell' attach to the OTHER hull, DD-681, not this ship. (a) King v. A.O. Smith Corp. complaint/removal package alleges decedent Kenneth Kay King, a Chief Hospital Corpsman, was exposed to asbestos 'while serving aboard the USS Floyd Bay, USS Boxer (CVA-21), USS Torcan MS, USS Hopewell (DD), and USS Wiltsie (DD)' during US Navy service 1952-1968, plus shore duty at Hunters Point, Pearl Harbor, and San Diego Naval Shipyards - a service window in which DD-181 had been sunk for a decade and the only commissioned USS Hopewell was the Fletcher-class DD-681. (b) BVA decision 1806321 records a veteran (surface sonar technician, active duty September 1960-September 1968) claiming asbestos exposure 'while aboard the USS Hopewell' - likewise DD-681 (in commission to January 1970). Asbestos-marketing pages naming 'USS Hopewell' (law-firm and aggregator sites, not cited) uniformly specify DD-681.
- Verification
- verified
- Role
- correction
- Documentation level
- context_only
- Accessed
- 2026-09-27
- Study period
- 1952-1968 (alleged exposure windows); 2010/2018 (filings)
- Population
- Kenneth Kay King (USN Chief Hospital Corpsman 1952-1968, lung cancer); BVA veteran (USN sonar technician 1960-1968) - both alleged aboard DD-681
- Limitations
- Both records are pleading/claim-stage allegations about the OTHER hull, carried as a collision correction so that 'USS Hopewell' asbestos claims are not misattributed to DD-181. Neither allegation was adjudicated on the merits and neither establishes anything about DD-181. King complaint located via MDL-875 docket index; its allegations are recited, not found.
- Atlas source
- true
- Evidence ID
- ev-uss-hopewell-dd181-09