USS John M. Howard (IX-75)

Evidence

10 evidence entries recorded; each entry has a stable permalink (#ev-1 … #ev-10).

1. [1]research packet 380-packet.md (3 sources cited) [nhhc_danfs]

   Finding type

   vessel_history

   Finding

   Identity packet verdict: VERIFIED (secondary-sourced) — real identity: John M. Howard; hull IX-75; unclassified miscellaneous

   Verification

   verified

   Role

   supporting

   Documentation level

   ship_specific

   Limitations

   qualifier: VERIFIED (secondary-sourced)

   Evidence ID

   uss-john-m-howard-ix75-pkt-380-packet-md

2. [2]Dictionary of American Naval Fighting Ships, 'John M. Howard (IX-75)' (NHHC, published 23 Jul 2015) - live NHHC URL returns 404; text verified verbatim from the Internet Archive capture of the NHHC page and the hazegray DANFS transcription mirror [nhhc_danfs]

   Locator

   Wayback capture 20250224221855 of history.navy.mil/research/histories/ship-histories/danfs/j/john-m-howard-ix-75.html; mirror losthistory.net/hazegray/danfs/ix/ix75.htm; live NHHC 404 re-confirmed 2026-09-29 on all three URL patterns

   Finding type

   vessel_history

   Finding

   DANFS entry for John M. Howard (IX-75), verbatim: namesake Ensign John Martin Howard, USNR - born 20 August 1917 at Chester, Pa.; enlisted Naval Reserve 22 June 1935; appointed Ensign 28 February 1941; served at the Washington Navy Yard and the Bureau of Ordnance; temporary duty at the American Embassy, London; killed 11 June 1942 'as a result of an accidental mine explosion.' Vessel: built at Camden, N.J., in 1934 as Elsie Fenimore; purchased from her owner, E. R. Fenimore Johnson, 2 July 1942; placed in service at Philadelphia 29 July; taken to Washington, D.C., renamed John M. Howard 17 August 1942, and commissioned there 1 September 1942; used during the war for ordnance experiments, operating out of the Naval Ordnance Laboratory, Washington, D.C., to Chesapeake Bay and various Atlantic coast ports; decommissioned 9 May 1945 at the Washington Navy Yard and placed in service until 16 November 1945; returned to the Maritime Commission for disposal 24 January 1946. Stats line: dp. 94; l. 87'; b. 20'; s. 9 k.

   Verification

   verified

   Role

   supporting

   Documentation level

   ship_specific

   Accessed

   2026-09-29

   Study period

   1934-1946

   Population

   Wartime crew (size undocumented); EIL/NOL laboratory and ordnance personnel embarked

   Limitations

   Official tertiary history; establishes identity, namesake, acquisition, wartime employment, and disposal. The entry contains no asbestos, insulation, or material statement and prints no complement/crew figure. Does not establish exposure, material condition, or legal eligibility.

   Atlas source

   true

   Evidence ID

   ev-uss-john-m-howard-ix75-01

3. [3]Shipscribe.com, 'USS Juniata (IX-77)' class page - Small IX: Auxiliary Schooners etc. (3), construction/disposition tables and IX-75 class note [other_primary]

   Locator

   shipscribe.com/usnaux/IX3/IX073.html - construction table row '75 | JOHN M. HOWARD | 2 Jul 42 | Mathis Yacht | -- | 1934 | 1 Sep 42'; disposition row 'decomm 16 Nov 45 | strike 5 Dec 45 | disposal 24 Jan 46 | MC/S'; IX-75 ship note paragraph

   Finding type

   vessel_history

   Finding

   Shipscribe small-IX compilation (built from Ships' Data U.S. Naval Vessels and BuShips/OpNav correspondence): on 13 Jun 1942 VCNO asked WSA to purchase the motor vessel ELSIE FENIMORE and authorized Com-4 to accept her; the ketch was designed by John Trumpy and built at Camden, N.J.; acquired from Elsie R. Fenimore Johnson, wife of Eldridge Reeves Johnson of the Victor Talking Machine Company; the name ELSIE FENIMORE was approved for Navy use 18 Jul 1942 but cancelled and JOHN M. HOWARD substituted 17 Aug 1942 'in honor of a late Navy Ensign, possibly in response to a request from his parents'; the vessel was outfitted as a floating photographic laboratory and assigned to the Washington Navy Yard for duty under the Bureau of Ordnance; placed in service 29 Jul 1942, in full commission 1 Sep 1942; departed Washington in early January 1943 for 100 days of experimental operations in Chesapeake Bay, Charleston S.C., Savannah, Mayport, and Port Everglades; on 13 Apr 1945 permanently assigned to the Washington Navy Yard for use by the Naval Ordnance Laboratory; decommissioned 9 May 1945 and placed in service; disposition table: decomm. 16 Nov 1945, strike 5 Dec 1945, disposal 24 Jan 1946 (MC); resold to Mrs. Johnson in January 1946, resumed service as the yacht ELSIE FENIMORE, figured in a 1954 scientific paper on the Gulf Stream; renamed JOHN M. HOWARD 1959, EARL OF DESMOND 1960, NORTHERN LIGHT 1964, still in service 1972.

   Verification

   verified

   Role

   supporting

   Documentation level

   ship_specific

   Accessed

   2026-09-29

   Study period

   1942-1972

   Population

   Wartime crew and embarked laboratory personnel

   Limitations

   Secondary compilation reconstructed from official Navy vessel data - not itself a government publication; the seller attribution ('Elsie R. Fenimore Johnson, wife of Eldridge Reeves Johnson') conflicts with DANFS ('her owner, E. R. Fenimore Johnson') and the Colton build table ('Eldridge R. F. Johnson') - see correction row ev-06. The 'decomm. 16 Nov 45' table entry corresponds to DANFS's 'in service until 16 November 1945' (out-of-service date, not a second decommissioning). Strike date 5 Dec 1945 rests on this table alone. No asbestos or material content.

   Atlas source

   true

   Evidence ID

   ev-uss-john-m-howard-ix75-02

4. [4]NavSource Online: Service Ship Photo Archive, 'USS John M. Howard (IX-75)' (archives/09/46/46075.htm, last updated 5 Jan 2024) [other_primary]

   Locator

   navsource.net/archives/09/46/46075.htm - chronology block, registry list, spec block

   Finding type

   vessel_history

   Finding

   NavSource Miscellaneous Photo Archive entry for USS John M. Howard (IX-75): international radio call sign NYTC; awards American Campaign Medal and World War II Victory Medal; 'Purchased by the Maritime Commission, 3 July 1942' (one day later than the DANFS/shipscribe 2 July acquisition date); placed in service Philadelphia 29 July 1942; renamed 17 August 1942; commissioned 1 September 1942 at Washington, D.C.; decommissioned 9 May 1945 at Washington Navy Yard; in service until 16 November 1945; out of service 24 January 1946 and returned to the Maritime Commission for disposal. Post-Navy registry chain: registered 1946 Gladwyne, Pa. (homeport Philadelphia); 1959 Philadelphia Council of Boy Scouts of America as yacht John M. Howard; 1960 Geraldines Ltd., Annapolis, Md., as yacht Earl of Desmond; 1963 Bell Aerospace Corp., Annapolis, as Earl of Desmond; 1964 Oceanographic Development Corp., Georgetown, Mass., as Northern Light (homeport Salem, Mass.); 1971 Ridley Watts Jr., Cleveland Heights, Ohio; 1980 Paul Lohmann, Gates Mills, Ohio, as research vessel Northern Light; 2000 Capt. Robert C. Chipman's Caroline Rose Navigation Co. as research vessel Caroline Rose. 'Final Disposition, fate unknown.' Specifications list propulsion, complement, armament, and draft as unknown.

   Verification

   partial

   Role

   supporting

   Documentation level

   ship_specific

   Accessed

   2026-09-29

   Study period

   1942-2024

   Population

   Post-Navy civilian owners/crews (registry-level only)

   Limitations

   Volunteer-compiled archive drawing on official sources and merchant/vessel registries; the 1946-2000 registry chain, call sign, and awards rest on NavSource alone among located sources (the 1959 Boy Scouts registration is also in Williams, 'World War II U.S. Navy Vessels in Private Hands,' p. 147, per secondary citation). The 3 July purchase date conflicts with DANFS (2 July) - see ev-06. No asbestos or material content. No photographs of the hull exist in the archive.

   Atlas source

   true

   Evidence ID

   ev-uss-john-m-howard-ix75-03

5. [5]Windy Venue LLC, 'Historic Trumpy Refit - Elsie Fenimore' (2018), via Internet Archive capture [other_primary]

   Locator

   Wayback capture 20180828035619 of windyvenue.com/elsie/

   Finding type

   vessel_history

   Finding

   Owner announcement (Windy Venue LLC, charter company, New York): 'Historic Trumpy Refit - Elsie Fenimore' (2018) states the company acquired the vessel, formerly named Kick Back, on the U.S. west coast and was undertaking an extensive refit restoring the name Elsie Fenimore. Describes her as the 78-ft (90-ft at deck) auxiliary ketch built 1934, 'the largest motor-sailer ever produced by Trumpy-Mathis at their Camden, NJ shipyards,' of wooden construction - 2-inch solid teak decks, 7-inch solid oak ribs, 3-inch pine-tar hull planking, mahogany pilot-house trim, 18-inch solid keel - and reports 'her original Superior Diesel engine remains in operable condition over 80 years after manufacture'; the vessel 'has been neglected but is fundamentally sound.'

   Verification

   partial

   Role

   supporting

   Documentation level

   ship_specific

   Accessed

   2026-09-29

   Study period

   2018

   Population

   Refit workforce (2017-2018)

   Limitations

   A commercial operator's own announcement - primary for the acquisition/refit event and the reported construction materials, but single-source and promotional in nature; the refit's completion and the vessel's post-2018 status are undocumented. Establishes that the hull was extant in 2018 and that construction is wooden (relevant to bounding the plausible asbestos-material scope) - contains no asbestos statement.

   Atlas source

   true

   Evidence ID

   ev-uss-john-m-howard-ix75-04

6. [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

   Era-level inference only: peer-reviewed scholarship documents that asbestos was used extensively as a fireproofing and insulating material in U.S. shipbuilding during WWII - the era in which the Navy acquired and employed this vessel. Period small-craft marine practice carried asbestos-containing products principally in machinery fittings: diesel exhaust-system insulation, engine gaskets and packing, electrical insulation, and winch/windlass brake linings. Aboard a 94-ton wooden auxiliary ketch - sail with a Superior diesel auxiliary, no boilers and no steam plant, built 1934 as a private yacht and only lightly converted (floating photographic laboratory outfit) - the plausible candidate product set is confined to such fittings and is materially narrower than aboard steam-driven or steel new-construction hulls.

   Verification

   inferred

   Role

   supporting

   Documentation level

   class_or_era

   Accessed

   2026-09-29

   Study period

   1934-1946

   Population

   Mathis yard construction trades (Camden NJ, 1933-1934); 1942 conversion/outfitting workforce; wartime crew (size undocumented)

   Limitations

   Program/era-level scholarship only - does not name this vessel or any small-IX type and does not establish that asbestos was or is aboard this hull, nor quantity, location, condition, individual exposure, or causation. No class- or design-specific material documentation exists (unique vessel; no class); the diesel/wooden-ketch profile limits plausible scope relative to steam-driven vessels, and the machinery-fitting applications named are general era practice, not documented aboard this hull.

   Atlas source

   true

   Evidence ID

   ev-uss-john-m-howard-ix75-05

7. [7]Cross-source reconciliation: DANFS (archived NHHC page) vs shipscribe.com IX-73..79 table and note vs NavSource IX-75 page vs HyperWar ships-ix index vs Windy Venue 2018 vs Tolf/'Trumpy' as reported by the American Philosophical Society-hosted Victor Talking Machine Company article [nhhc_danfs]

   Locator

   DANFS entry text; shipscribe.com/usnaux/IX3/IX073.html; navsource.net/archives/09/46/46075.htm; ibiblio.org/hyperwar/USN/ships/ships-ix.html (IX-75 row: '1942 | 100'); windyvenue.com/elsie/ (Wayback 20180828035619); shipbuildinghistory Mathis/Trumpy table hull 219 (mirrored at shipbuildinghistory.njscuba.net/us-yacht-small/trumpynj/)

   Finding type

   vessel_history

   Finding

   Source discrepancies documented, not reconciled: (a) acquisition date - DANFS and the shipscribe acquisition column print 2 July 1942 (purchase from owner / WSA purchase directive chain); NavSource prints 'Purchased by the Maritime Commission, 3 July 1942' with Navy acquisition 'the same day'; (b) seller identity - DANFS 'her owner, E. R. Fenimore Johnson' and the Colton/Mathis build table 'Eldridge R. F. Johnson' versus shipscribe 'Elsie R. Fenimore Johnson, wife of Eldridge Reeves Johnson' (the two readings differ on whether the seller was the son who used the yacht or his mother); (c) displacement - DANFS stats line 94 tons versus the HyperWar 'Ships of the U.S. Navy 1940-1945' IX index entry 100; (d) length - DANFS 87 ft versus Windy Venue '78 ft (90 ft at deck)' (likely registered length versus deck length); (e) first post-BSA rename year - NavSource registers Earl of Desmond under Geraldines Ltd. in 1960, while the Tolf 'Trumpy' account reported in a Victor Talking Machine Company historical article gives the rename in 1962 (Geraldines 1962, James W. Fitzgerald 1973); (f) strike date 5 December 1945 appears only in the shipscribe disposition table - DANFS is silent on striking.

   Verification

   disputed

   Role

   correction

   Documentation level

   ship_specific

   Accessed

   2026-09-29

   Study period

   1934-2018

   Limitations

   Documents disagreement among located sources; none of the discrepancies is asbestos-relevant. Where a single source was needed for a field, DANFS was preferred as the official history (2 July acquisition, 94 tons, 87 ft); alternatives remain recorded here and in gaps.

   Atlas source

   true

   Evidence ID

   ev-uss-john-m-howard-ix75-06

8. [8]NARA, Special List #44 by ship number (sl-44-ship-number.pdf); NARA 'Logbooks of the US Navy at the National Archives' guidance page [other_primary]

   Locator

   SL-44 ship-number list, IX block - IX-74 and IX-76 present, IX-75 absent; full-file text extraction found no IX-75 and no Howard entry

   Finding type

   historical_record

   Finding

   NARA Special List #44 (List of Logbooks of U.S. Navy Ships, Stations, and Miscellaneous Units, 1801-1947, arranged by ship number) indexes no deck-log runs for IX-75: the IX block lists IX-74 (Metha Nelson) and IX-76 (Ramona) - this hull's neighbors - but no IX-75 entry appears anywhere in the ship-number index (verified by direct text extraction of sl-44-ship-number.pdf; also no 'Howard' entry). Whether deck logs for this hull exist but are unindexed, were never retained for so small a craft, or are filed under another designation is unresolved. Other unsurveyed archival bodies for this hull: RG 19 (Bureau of Ordnance) records of the Explosives Investigation Laboratory / Ordnance Investigation Laboratory at Stump Neck, Md.; RG 248 (War Shipping Administration) acquisition file for the June-July 1942 purchase; Maritime Commission disposal file for the 24 January 1946 transfer; Washington Navy Yard and Potomac River Naval Command records (RG 181).

   Verification

   verified

   Role

   archival_lead

   Documentation level

   ship_specific

   Accessed

   2026-09-29

   Study period

   1942-1946 records

   Limitations

   Verifies the index does not list deck logs for this hull - not that no logs exist; small-craft logs were inconsistently retained and may sit unindexed or under a name rather than a number. The named RG series are leads only - contents unsurveyed, no box-level retrieval performed, no spend authorized. Nothing in this row is an asbestos finding.

   Atlas source

   true

   Evidence ID

   ev-uss-john-m-howard-ix75-07

9. [9]Batch-4868 search ledger (this record): archived NHHC/DANFS page; hazegray mirror; shipscribe small-IX page; NavSource; shipbuildinghistory (Colton) Mathis table; HyperWar IX index; Windy Venue announcement; NARA SL-44; CourtListener API v4; NVR; MARAD ShipHistory [other_primary]

   Locator

   search_ledger rows sl-uss-john-m-howard-ix75-01 through sl-uss-john-m-howard-ix75-15

   Finding type

   historical_record

   Finding

   No qualifying ship-specific asbestos record located: no asbestos survey, abatement contract, hazmat disclosure, museum or owner remediation statement, court finding, or docketed case naming USS John M. Howard, IX-75, Elsie Fenimore, Earl of Desmond, Northern Light, Caroline Rose, or Kick Back was found in the public sources searched (see search_ledger). The DANFS entry, shipscribe note, NavSource page, Colton build table, and the 2018 owner refit announcement contain no asbestos or insulation-material statement.

   Verification

   verified

   Role

   negative_finding

   Documentation level

   ship_specific

   Accessed

   2026-09-29

   Study period

   2026-09-29

   Limitations

   Absence of a located public record does not prove absence of asbestos aboard - a 1934-built vessel is era-consistent with asbestos-containing machinery fittings even accounting for the lighter scope of a wooden diesel ketch, and the hull reportedly remains extant with original machinery. Does not establish presence or absence; does not establish or defeat any exposure claim or legal eligibility.

   Atlas source

   true

   Evidence ID

   ev-uss-john-m-howard-ix75-08

10. [10]CourtListener API v4 authenticated searches (type=o opinions and type=r RECAP dockets), 2026-09-29 [court_record]

    Locator

    search_ledger rows sl-uss-john-m-howard-ix75-09 through sl-uss-john-m-howard-ix75-15

    Finding type

    litigation_documented

    Finding

    No qualifying asbestos litigation naming this hull located. Authenticated CourtListener API v4 searches ran 2026-09-29 (fleet-paced helper): (1) type=o '"John M. Howard" asbestos' - 0 hits; (2) type=o '"John M. Howard" vessel' - 0 hits; (3) type=o '"IX-75"' - 17 hits, ALL NAME COLLISIONS resolved by case inspection: the token matched exhibit/statute fragments and Title IX education litigation (Chris Traylor v. Diana D., Tex. App.; Galda v. Rutgers, D.N.J.; Iron Arrow Honor Society v. Heckler, 5th Cir.; Fox v. Pittsburg State Univ.), criminal/habeas matters (United States v. Walker; Campbell v. Polk; Woodman v. State; Commonwealth v. Hallberg), commercial and securities dockets (Jhaveri v. K1 Investment; LCT Capital v. NGL Energy; Bensel v. Allied Pilots; Teague/Bakker PTL litigation; United States v. First National State Bancorporation; Central Pennsylvania Quarry v. Gleeson; Brown v. Krakowski; Shelean Parks v. Ridge school-funding) - zero maritime, asbestos, or vessel content; (4) type=o '"Elsie Fenimore"' - 0 hits; (5) type=r '"John M. Howard"' - 28 hits (63 documents), ALL PERSON-NAME COLLISIONS: Chapter 13 debtor captions ('Cindy Swindle Howard and John M. Howard', Bankr. N.D. Ala. 12-72368, and family bankruptcy captions), civil-rights defendant 'John M Howard' (Schramm v. North Ridgeville, N.D. Ohio 1:90-cv-02092), bankruptcy adversary defendant (McClelland v. Fortress Financial, W.D. Mo.; McClelland v. North American Specialty Insurance) - zero maritime, asbestos, or vessel content; (6) type=r '"IX-75"' - 241 hits (document_count 381), ALL TOKEN COLLISIONS resolved by hit inspection: the string matched docket document/exhibit numbering fragments (e.g., 'Count IX ... [75-1]' memorandum references in JBA International v. St. Paul Mercury Ins., D. Minn.) and party/address text inside large matrices (e.g., the creditor matrix of the Kaiser Gypsum Company asbestos bankruptcy, Bankr. W.D.N.C.), across insurance, criminal, IP, education, environmental, and bankruptcy dockets - zero maritime, asbestos-claimant, or vessel content in any inspected hit; non-qualifying. The completed searches surface no qualifying asbestos case naming this hull. Later civilian names (Earl of Desmond, Northern Light, Caroline Rose, Kick Back) were not swept - generic multi-vessel strings expected to return only noise; noted as a coverage limitation.

    Verification

    verified

    Role

    negative_finding

    Documentation level

    ship_specific

    Accessed

    2026-09-29

    Study period

    2026-09-29

    Limitations

    Litigation coverage is limited to CourtListener-indexed state/federal opinions and federal dockets; unindexed state trial-court filings and settled MDL-875 claimant records are not covered, and later civilian names were not swept (generic strings). 'John M. Howard' is a high-collision personal name and 'IX-75' a high-collision token - all hits resolved to non-ship references by caption, party, and snippet inspection; no search can prove the absence of all possible litigation.

    Atlas source

    true

    Evidence ID

    ev-uss-john-m-howard-ix75-09