Evidence
7 evidence entries recorded; each entry has a stable permalink (#ev-1 … #ev-7).
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[1]research packet crew-cm-packet.md (1 sources cited) [nhhc_danfs]
- Finding type
- vessel_history
- Finding
- Identity packet verdict: VERIFIED. Queue name/hull match the DANFS record; reclassification to APA-
- Verification
- verified
- Role
- supporting
- Documentation level
- ship_specific
- Evidence ID
- uss-john-penn-ap51-pkt-crew-cm-packet-md
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[2]Dictionary of American Naval Fighting Ships, 'USS John Penn (AP-51/APA-23)' (Naval History Division transcription; canonical NHHC page not found at history.navy.mil - verbatim transcription via HyperWar/ibiblio mirror) [nhhc_danfs]
- Locator
- DANFS APA/apa23.html full entry (HyperWar/ibiblio transcription); a second mirror exists at hazegray.org/danfs/auxil/ap51.htm but did not load in this session - not relied on
- Finding type
- vessel_history
- Finding
- DANFS entry for John Penn (AP-51/APA-23): formerly Excambion, launched in 1931 by the New York Shipbuilding Co., Camden, N.J., for American Export Lines; acquired by the Navy 8 January 1942; commissioned 6 April 1942, Captain Harry W. Need in command. Loaded Army equipment, cargo, and troops 4-16 October 1942; sortied from Hampton Roads 23 October with Admiral Hewitt's Western Naval Task Force; as a unit of Rear Admiral Monroe Kelly's Northern Attack Group arrived 8 November in the transport area off Mehdia, Western Morocco, and landed troops and cargo under heavy surf and shore-battery fire; repelled an aircraft attack at 1053; shifted to Casablanca 15 November; returned to Norfolk 30 November. Departed Norfolk 17 December 1942; reached New Caledonia via the Canal Zone 18 January 1943; took aboard 1,003 men and 63 officers, survivors of USS Chicago sunk off Guadalcanal 29 January, including Capt. R. C. Davis; then spent six months delivering supplies, equipment, and troops to Guadalcanal from the New Hebrides, Fiji Islands, and New Zealand. Reclassified APA-23 on 1 February 1943. On 13 August 1943, having just unloaded 155-mm ammunition off Lunga Point, Guadalcanal, she was attacked at 2120 by enemy torpedo planes; one plane crashed into her mainmast in flames as a torpedo from another hit the ship; she went down stern first at 2150. One battle star for WWII service.
- Verification
- verified
- Role
- supporting
- Documentation level
- ship_specific
- Accessed
- 2026-10-05
- Study period
- 1930-1943
- Population
- Crew and embarked troops, 1942-1943; American Export Lines crew, 1931-1942; New York Shipbuilding construction trades, 1930-1931
- Limitations
- Establishes identity, construction, acquisition, commissioning, operations, and loss. Contains no asbestos or insulation-material statement; supports no asbestos claim. Printed DANFS dimensions (465'4") conflict with NavSource specifications (475'4") - see gaps. Transcription ends with the typographical slip 'John Paul received one battle star' - read as John Penn. Casualty/survivor counts are not stated in DANFS.
- Atlas source
- true
- Evidence ID
- ev-uss-john-penn-ap51-01
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[3]NavSource Online: Amphibious Photo Archive, Attack Transport APA-23 John Penn (10/03/03023.htm) [other_primary]
- Locator
- navsource.net 10/03/03023.htm header block, campaign table, specifications block, and photo captions (incl. NHHC photo 80-G-56834 caption noting configuration resembled USS Joseph Hewes AP-50, converted in the same yard)
- Finding type
- vessel_history
- Finding
- NavSource Amphibious Photo Archive page for USS John Penn (APA-23) ex (AP-51): filed under 'Harry Lee Class Attack Transport'; laid down 25 October 1930 as SS Excambion for the American Export Line at New York Shipbuilding Co., Camden, N.J.; launched 28 May 1931; delivered 4 August 1931; acquired by the Navy 8 January 1942 and converted to a naval transport; commissioned USS John Penn (AP-51) 6 April 1942, CAPT Harry W. Need in command; Europe-Africa-Middle East campaign (North African occupation, Algeria-Morocco landings, 8-11 November 1942); reclassified attack transport APA-23 1 February 1943; lost to enemy action 13 August 1943 off Lunga Point, Guadalcanal; struck from the Naval Register, date unknown; one battle star. Specifications: displacement 9,989 t (lt) / 14,520 t (lim); length 475'4"; beam 62'9"; draft 26'4" (lim); speed 15 kts; complement 37 officers / 416 enlisted; troop accommodations 42 officers / 917 enlisted; armament one 5"/51 single-purpose mount aft, two 3"/50 dual-purpose mounts aft; cargo 175,000 cu ft; propulsion one NY Shipbuilding Parsons-design steam turbine, four Babcock & Wilcox header-type boilers 350 psi 620 deg F, Falk main reduction gear, single shaft 7,200 shp; 1942 call sign NENB.
- Verification
- verified
- Role
- supporting
- Documentation level
- ship_specific
- Accessed
- 2026-10-05
- Study period
- 1930-1943
- Population
- Crew 37 officers / 416 enlisted; embarked troops 42 officers / 917 enlisted (NavSource figures)
- Limitations
- NavSource is a volunteer secondary compilation, not a primary registry; milestone dates track DANFS. Specifications differ from DANFS printed values (displacement, length, draft, speed, armament) - see gaps. 'Struck from the Naval Register, date unknown' - striking date unverified. Contains no asbestos content.
- Atlas source
- true
- Evidence ID
- ev-uss-john-penn-ap51-02
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[4]NavSource Online: Service Ship Photo Archive, USS APc-25 (09/23/23025.htm); U.S. Navy and Marine Corps Medal citation for LT John D. Cartano, USNR (action date 13 August 1943), via Military Times Hall of Valor [other_primary]
- Locator
- valor.militarytimes.com recipient-33866 award citation text; corroborating narrative at navsource.net 09/23/23025.htm (13 August 1943 paragraph)
- Finding type
- vessel_history
- Finding
- Loss and rescue detail corroborated on the NavSource USS APc-25 archive page: on 13 August 1943 APc-25 was anchored about 750 yards off Lunga Point awaiting convoy when John Penn was hit by an aerial torpedo and exploded; APc-25 arrived alongside in about three minutes and rescued passengers and crew from the oily, flaming water. The U.S. Navy award citation for APc-25 commanding officer LT John D. Cartano, USNR, credits the rescue of 'approximately thirty-five survivors' from the burning transport on 13 August 1943; the NavSource narrative says 'about 100 passengers and crew members' were pulled from the water - the count differs by source.
- Verification
- partial
- Role
- context
- Documentation level
- ship_specific
- Accessed
- 2026-10-05
- Study period
- 1943-08-13
- Population
- John Penn survivors and APc-25 rescuers (1943-08-13)
- Limitations
- Corroborates the loss event and rescue, but survivor counts conflict (~35 per the official award citation vs ~100 per the NavSource narrative, which itself derives from the APc-25 ship action report) - neither figure is carried as established. No asbestos content. The underlying APc-25 ship action report (15 August 1943) is held in Navy Special Collections & Archives - archival lead, not independently retrieved.
- Atlas source
- true
- Evidence ID
- ev-uss-john-penn-ap51-03
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[5]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 in which this 1931 steam-turbine passenger liner was built, acquired by the Navy, and converted to a naval transport (early 1942) - and that wartime demand drove unprecedented asbestos utilization aboard naval and merchant-type hulls.
- Verification
- verified
- Role
- context
- Documentation level
- class_or_era
- Accessed
- 2026-10-05
- Study period
- 1940s era documented; article 1987
- Population
- WWII shipyard workers and ship crews (class context); conversion-yard trades (1942)
- Limitations
- Program/era-level scholarly documentation of asbestos use in WWII shipbuilding generally; does not name this vessel and does not establish that asbestos was aboard this hull, nor quantity, location, condition, exposure, or causation. A 1931 merchant-built hull and its 1942 naval conversion are within the documented era but are not addressed hull-by-hull in this source.
- Atlas source
- true
- Evidence ID
- ev-uss-john-penn-ap51-04
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[6]Batch-2127 search ledger (this record): DANFS (HyperWar mirror); NavSource APA-23 and APc-25 pages; NVR coverage note; MARAD vessel-history site (errored); CourtListener ship-name and hull-number queries [other_primary]
- Locator
- search_ledger rows sl-uss-john-penn-ap51-01 through sl-uss-john-penn-ap51-13 (incl. sub-rows 06b-06d)
- Finding type
- historical_record
- Finding
- No qualifying ship-specific record located: no asbestos survey, abatement contract, insulation-material manifest, hazmat disclosure, or docketed case naming USS John Penn (AP-51/APA-23) or SS Excambion was found in the public sources searched (see search_ledger). The ship was sunk in combat 13 August 1943 and never entered a postwar layup, reserve, or disposal pipeline where such records are typically generated.
- Verification
- verified
- Role
- negative_finding
- Documentation level
- ship_specific
- Accessed
- 2026-10-05
- Study period
- 2026-10-05
- Limitations
- Absence of a located public record does not prove absence of asbestos aboard - a 1931 steam-turbine liner converted for war in 1942 is within the documented era of asbestos shipboard use. Does not establish that asbestos is or was present; does not establish or defeat any claim of exposure or legal eligibility.
- Atlas source
- true
- Evidence ID
- ev-uss-john-penn-ap51-05
-
[7]NARA Guide to Federal Records, RG 24 (Bureau of Naval Personnel - ship deck logs) and RG 19 (Bureau of Ships); USNA Special Collections ship action reports (APc-25, 15 August 1943) as named lead [other_primary]
- Locator
- archives.gov RG 24 / RG 19 guide pages; APc-25 action report referenced on NavSource 09/23/23025.htm and secondary summaries
- Finding type
- historical_record
- Finding
- NARA record-group path for hull-specific records: ship deck logs (RG 24) and BuShips wartime records (RG 19) are the repositories of record for a 1942-43 Navy transport; the USS APc-25 ship action report of 15 August 1943 covering the John Penn sinking is reported held by Navy Special Collections & Archives (Nimitz Library, USNA). None of these were retrieved - the hull's construction, conversion, and loss records are not digitized in public sources searched.
- Verification
- unverified
- Role
- archival_lead
- Documentation level
- context_only
- Accessed
- 2026-10-05
- Study period
- 1942-1943 records
- Limitations
- Repository-level lead only - no hull-specific record was retrieved from these archives; the APc-25 action report's existence is per secondary sources citing the collection. Contains no asbestos information; retrieval would document the loss, not materials.
- Atlas source
- true
- Evidence ID
- ev-uss-john-penn-ap51-06