Evidence
9 evidence entries recorded; each entry has a stable permalink (#ev-1 … #ev-9).
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[1]DANFS, Hyperion (AK-107) - verbatim transcription (live NHHC page https://www.history.navy.mil/research/histories/ship-histories/danfs/h/hyperion.html returns 404; hazegray mirror cited per batch-01 link-rot precedent) [nhhc_danfs]
- Locator
- DANFS Hyperion entry (hazegray auxil/ak107.htm transcription)
- Finding type
- vessel_history
- Finding
- Hyperion (AK-107), formerly Liberty ship SS Christopher C. Andrews, launched 24 June 1943 by Permanente Metals Corp., Richmond, Calif., sponsored by Mrs. Percy Lindt; acquired by the Navy from WSA 10 July 1943; commissioned 25 August 1943 at San Diego, Lt. Comdr. C. C. Newman in command. Service narrative: departed 18 September 1943 towing gasoline barge YOG-85 on a 42-day passage to Espiritu Santo (arrived 30 October 1943; tow lost twice, lightning struck the mainmast, one crewman lost in high seas); shuttled cargo among the Solomon Islands through early 1944; Emirau Island cargo discharge 10 April 1944; joined TG 78.8 reinforcement group for Leyte, entering Leyte Gulf in a 33-ship convoy 29 October 1944 - 87 general-quarters calls, 37 Japanese air attacks fought off, 2 enemy planes splashed; discharged 6,500 tons of Army engineering equipment at Okinawa over 18 days from 8 May 1945, anchored less than 500 yards from USS New Mexico when two kamikazes damaged the battleship 12 May; sailed for San Francisco 4 August 1945. DANFS totals: 75,225 nautical miles steamed, ~150,000 tons of cargo, 1,000+ passengers, 62 voyages to 29 islands and 37 ports; three battle stars for WWII service. Decommissioned Norfolk 16 November 1945, returned to WSA the next day, berthed in the James River NDRF until sold 1961.
- Verification
- verified
- Role
- supporting
- Documentation level
- ship_specific
- Accessed
- 2026-09-20
- Study period
- 1943-1945 service; entry compiled post-war
- Population
- Ship's complement (~206) during WWII Pacific service; passengers carried (~1,000+)
- Limitations
- DANFS is the authoritative Navy service history but contains no asbestos, insulation, or materials information - this row documents identity, operations, and dates only. 'Berthed in the James River until she was scrapped in 1961' is a simplification: MARAD status cards document a 28 April - 13 June 1947 withdrawal for Waterman SS Corp (see correction row) and scrapping completed April 1963. Specifications block: l. 441'6", b. 56'11", dr. 28'4", s. 12.5 k., cpl. 206, a. 1x5", 1x3", cl. Crater.
- Atlas source
- true
- Evidence ID
- ev-uss-hyperion-ak107-01
-
[2]U.S. Maritime Administration, ShipHistory database - CHRISTOPHER C. ANDREWS, Detail 959, with digitized vessel status cards (959_1742AF/AB, 959_1742BF, 959_AF sales record) and custody document CHRISTOPHER C. ANDREWS.pdf; companion stub HYPERION (AK-107), Detail 12809 [marad_nrc]
- Locator
- ShipHistory Detail 959 milestone table; status cards 959_1742AF (reserve-fleet vessel data), 959_1742BF (withdrawal/sale card), 959_AF (Form MA-20 Record of Ship Sales), custody PDF /documents/29c5521b-5d10-423f-93f7-857d5497a1a4.pdf
- Finding type
- vessel_history
- Finding
- MARAD record documents: hull MCE/yard 1563, type EC2-S-C1, U.S. Official No. 243828, built by Permanente Metals Corp. at Richmond, Calif., completed 10 July 1943 ('Basis to WSA 7-10-43 3:00pm PWT @ Richmond'); delivered same hour to Navy Department under bareboat agreement ('BB'), named HYPERION AK-107 by the Navy; delivered to WSA Reserve Fleet, Lee Hall, Va., 17 November 1945 4:00PM EST; withdrawn 28 April 1947 9:40AM EST allocated to Waterman SS Corp under General Agency Agreement (WSA-184, 'pending delivery to charterer'); re-entered Reserve Fleet, Lee Hall, 13 June 1947 12 noon EST; advertised under PD-X-604 (June 1961), bids opened 21 July 1961, awarded 31 July 1961 to Bethlehem Steel Co. ($280,000 total for four ships; fleet card carries approx. $70,000 per-hull figure); withdrawn and delivered to purchaser 11 August 1961 1445 hrs EST, James River. Card data: 7,176 gross / 4,380 net tons, DWT 10,500-10,859, 2,500 IHP, 2 water-tube boilers, speed 11-12.5 knots, estimated repair cost at fleet entry $15,000, termination port of last voyage Norfolk.
- Verification
- verified
- Role
- supporting
- Documentation level
- ship_specific
- Accessed
- 2026-09-20
- Study period
- 1943-1963
- Population
- NDRF custodial crews (Lee Hall, James River, 1945-1961); Waterman SS Corp personnel during April-June 1947 withdrawal; Bethlehem Steel Baltimore scrapping workers 1961-1963
- Limitations
- Authoritative for government custody milestones and scrapping-sale chain; status cards are handwritten and partially legible (OCR-aided reading; individual figures such as per-hull sale price are approximate on the card itself). Contains no asbestos, materials, or condition-survey information; supports no asbestos claim.
- Atlas source
- true
- Evidence ID
- ev-uss-hyperion-ak107-02
-
[3]NavSource Online Service Ship Photo Archive, USS Hyperion (AK-107) page (compiled by Gary P. Priolo, last updated 2014-06-13) [other_primary]
- Locator
- navsource.net/archives/09/13/130107.htm - full page incl. specifications block, campaign table, commanding-officer list
- Finding type
- vessel_history
- Finding
- NavSource compiles: laid down 17 April 1943 as SS Christopher C. Andrews (MCE hull 1563), Permanente Metals Corp. Yard No. 1, Richmond; launched 30 June 1943; acquired 10 July 1943; commissioned 25 August 1943, LCDR Charles C. Newman; campaign table credits Consolidation of Northern Solomon Islands (14 November 1943 - 5 April 1944), Leyte landings (29 October - 12 November 1944), and Assault and Occupation of Okinawa Gunto (8 - 27 May 1945) - three battle stars; decommissioned Norfolk 16 November 1945; delivered to Maritime Commission 17 November 1945 for layup NDRF James River, Lee Hall, name reverted to SS Christopher C. Andrews; struck from the Naval Register 28 November 1945; sold for scrapping and removed 11 August 1961 to Bethlehem Steel, Baltimore; scrapping completed 24 April 1963. Specifications: displacement 4,023 t light / 14,550 t full; 441'6" x 56'11" x 28'4"; one Joshua-Hendy vertical triple-expansion reciprocating steam engine, two Babcock & Wilcox header-type boilers (220 psi, 450 deg F), single propeller 2,500 shp; complement 16 officers + 190 enlisted; armament 1x5"/38 DP, 1x3"/50 DP, 2x40mm, 6x20mm; call sign NTCO; commanding officers LCDR Charles Calvin Newman (1943-08-25 to 1945-06-16) and CDR Clarke Withers (1945-06-16 to 1945-11-16).
- Verification
- verified
- Role
- supporting
- Documentation level
- ship_specific
- Accessed
- 2026-09-20
- Study period
- 1943-1963
- Limitations
- NavSource is a private reference compilation, not a government publication - but its commissioned/decommissioned/stricken dates and campaign credits agree with DANFS and MARAD records. Its laid-down (17 April) and launched (30 June) dates conflict with the Kaiser Yard No. 1 production table (28 May / 24 June) and DANFS (24 June) - see correction row and gaps. No asbestos content.
- Atlas source
- true
- Evidence ID
- ev-uss-hyperion-ak107-03
-
[4]Source reconciliation: MARAD status cards (custody chain incl. 1947 Waterman withdrawal) vs. DANFS narrative; Kaiser Permanente Yard No. 1 production table (shipbuildinghistory.com compilation); NavSource dates [other_primary]
- Locator
- MARAD card 959_1742BF ('PREVIOUSLY WITHDRAWN FOR OPERATION - 4-28-47', re-entered 6-13-47); card 3aecf2ba (custody table rows); shipbuildinghistory.com/shipyards/emergencylarge/kperm1.htm hull-1563 row
- Finding type
- historical_record
- Finding
- Three reconciliations: (a) DANFS states the ship was 'berthed in the James River until she was scrapped in 1961' - MARAD status cards document a 46-day break in reserve-fleet custody: withdrawn 28 April 1947, allocated to Waterman Steamship Corp. under WSA General Agency Agreement WSA-184 'pending delivery to charterer,' re-entered Lee Hall 13 June 1947. Whether the ship actually traded under Waterman is not documented on the card. (b) Build dates conflict: NavSource gives laid down 17 April 1943 and launched 30 June 1943; the Kaiser Yard No. 1 production table gives keel 28 May 1943, launch 24 June 1943, delivery 10 July 1943 (27 days on ways, 16 fitting out) - the latter agrees with DANFS's 24 June launch and is adopted; NavSource dates logged in gaps. (c) Scrapping: DANFS 'scrapped in 1961' describes the sale/removal year; NavSource records scrapping completed 24 April 1963 at Bethlehem Steel Baltimore - both carried.
- Verification
- verified
- Role
- correction
- Documentation level
- ship_specific
- Accessed
- 2026-09-20
- Study period
- 1943-1963
- Limitations
- Reconciles publication-level discrepancies between secondary compilations and primary custody records; does not affect identity or service record. Whether the vessel operated commercially under the Waterman allocation is unknown - 'pending delivery to charterer' may never have consummated. No asbestos content in any source.
- Atlas source
- true
- Evidence ID
- ev-uss-hyperion-ak107-04
-
[5]U.S. Maritime Commission, Instruction Manual for Operating and Maintaining 2500 H.P. Triple Expansion Marine Steam Engines, EC2-S-C1 Cargo Vessels (mirrored excerpt) [other_primary]
- Locator
- Mirrored excerpt, engine-cylinder insulation section
- Finding type
- asbestos_application
- Finding
- The USMC operating manual for the EC2-S-C1 plant - this hull's documented MARAD type - describes cylinder insulation of magnesia under sheet-iron lagging; insulation products of this era were commonly manufactured with asbestos fiber, and period steam-system gaskets, packing, and insulation felts commonly contained asbestos. Liberty-type hulls were built to emergency USMC specifications during the period when the federal government had reserved asbestos supply for shipbuilding. Typical applications for the type: boiler and steam-drum insulation; steam-line lagging between boiler room and engine room; valve and flange gaskets; machinery packing; insulation in accommodation spaces and around the galley; brake linings on winches and windlass.
- Verification
- inferred
- Role
- supporting
- Documentation level
- class_or_era
- Accessed
- 2026-09-20
- Study period
- 1943
- Population
- Construction trades (Permanente Metals Yard No. 1, Richmond, 1943); Navy engine-room crew (1943-45); merchant crews under Waterman allocation (1947); NDRF custodial and scrapping workers
- Limitations
- Class/design documentation, not a hull record - the manual names the type, not this vessel, and does not itself state 'asbestos' content (magnesia lagging of the era was typically asbestos-fiber-reinforced, but the manual text is silent on fiber). Asbestos presence aboard this hull is era/design inference, not ship-proven. Does not establish quantity, present-day presence (hull scrapped 1961-63), individual exposure, or causation.
- Atlas source
- true
- Evidence ID
- ev-uss-hyperion-ak107-05
-
[6]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 and emergency program under which this EC2-S-C1 hull was mass-produced at a Kaiser yard - and that wartime demand drove unprecedented asbestos utilization aboard merchant-type hulls.
- Verification
- verified
- Role
- context
- Documentation level
- class_or_era
- Accessed
- 2026-09-20
- Study period
- 1940s era documented; article 1987
- Population
- WWII shipyard workers and ship crews (class context)
- Limitations
- Program/era-level scholarly documentation of asbestos use in WWII shipbuilding generally; does not name this vessel or the EC2-S-C1 type and does not establish that asbestos was aboard this hull, nor quantity, location, condition, exposure, or causation.
- Atlas source
- true
- Evidence ID
- ev-uss-hyperion-ak107-06
-
[7]In re Joint Eastern and Southern Districts Asbestos Litigation (Robinson v. United States), 891 F.2d 31 (2d Cir. 1989) [court_record]
- Locator
- Opinion, 891 F.2d 31 (No. 1547, docket 89-6109)
- Finding type
- litigation_documented
- Finding
- Second Circuit ruling addressing mesothelioma claims by a mariner aboard War Shipping Administration vessels; the court considered jurisdiction over a personal-injury claim against the United States for asbestos exposure aboard the WWII government merchant fleet - the same owning agency (WSA) that held title to this hull throughout its Navy and reserve-fleet career (MARAD card: 'OWNERSHIP: WSA'; Navy custody by bareboat charter). Claims against the government were barred on discretionary-function grounds - the characteristic litigation posture for WSA-fleet exposure claims.
- Verification
- verified
- Role
- context
- Documentation level
- class_or_era
- Accessed
- 2026-09-20
- Study period
- 1989 (opinion); wartime exposure period
- Population
- WWII merchant mariners and naval crews of WSA-owned hulls (class context)
- Limitations
- Fleet-level jurisdictional ruling; does not name this hull, does not find asbestos conditions aboard any specific vessel, and establishes only the litigation posture for WWII WSA-fleet claims. Reporter citation confirmed by prior batch verification: 891 F.2d 31.
- Atlas source
- true
- Evidence ID
- ev-uss-hyperion-ak107-07
-
[8]Batch-795 search ledger (this record): DANFS via hazegray mirror; MARAD ShipHistory 959 + status cards + custody PDF; NavSource AK-107 page; Kaiser Permanente #1 production table (shipbuildinghistory.com); usmm.org Liberty roster; HyperWar AK-107 data sheet; CourtListener API + web UI (both blocked); web-search litigation fallback; VA BVA full-text search [other_primary]
- Locator
- search_ledger rows sl-uss-hyperion-ak107-01 through -11
- Finding type
- historical_record
- Finding
- No qualifying ship-specific asbestos record located: no asbestos survey, abatement contract, hazmat disclosure, or docketed case naming USS Hyperion or SS Christopher C. Andrews was found in the public sources searched (see search_ledger). Litigation sweep incomplete - CourtListener API returned HTTP 429 (125/day cap exhausted by earlier work) and the web UI returned 403; a web-search fallback over CourtListener-indexed material surfaced only name collisions (Hyperion Entertainment software-IP litigation, W.D. Wash./9th Cir.) and law-firm marketing listicles, which are excluded sources. VA BVA full-text search surfaced a hull-number collision only (USS Passumpsic AO-107, unrelated tanker).
- Verification
- verified
- Role
- negative_finding
- Documentation level
- ship_specific
- Accessed
- 2026-09-20
- Study period
- 2026-09-20
- Limitations
- Absence of a located public record does not prove absence of asbestos aboard - a 1943 EC2-S-C1 hull is era-consistent with asbestos-containing materials, and this hull was scrapped without any surviving-fabric survey. Does not establish presence or absence; does not establish or defeat any exposure claim or legal eligibility. The CourtListener gap means docket-level litigation naming the hull cannot be ruled out this pass.
- Atlas source
- true
- Evidence ID
- ev-uss-hyperion-ak107-08
-
[9]NARA Guide to Federal Records: RG 24 (Navy deck logs), RG 178 (U.S. Maritime Commission), RG 248 (War Shipping Administration) [other_primary]
- Locator
- archives.gov/research/guide-fed-records/groups/178.html and /248.html; NARA deck-log guidance (RG 24)
- Finding type
- historical_record
- Finding
- Archival leads (not retrieved - require research-room or reproduction orders; no spend authorized): NARA RG 24 holds WWII Navy deck logs for AK-107 (1943-45) - the richest prospective source for hull-specific work/repair detail; RG 178 Construction Division records and West Coast construction-director files (San Francisco) may hold Permanente Yard No. 1 contract MA-2797 / MCE hull 1563 construction and outfitting specifications; RG 248 holds WSA vessel acquisition, bareboat-charter, and GAA files including the WSA-184 Waterman allocation (April-June 1947); MARAD NDRF Lee Hall berthing/mothballing records may document preservation materials.
- Verification
- unverified
- Role
- archival_lead
- Documentation level
- context_only
- Accessed
- 2026-09-20
- Study period
- 1943-1963 records
- Limitations
- Record-group mapping only - no box-level retrieval performed; existence of asbestos-specific documents for hull 1563 is unknown until surveyed in person. Nothing in this row is an asbestos finding.
- Atlas source
- true
- Evidence ID
- ev-uss-hyperion-ak107-09