Evidence
11 evidence entries recorded; each entry has a stable permalink (#ev-1 … #ev-11).
-
[1]research packet r1-packet.md [other_primary]
- Finding type
- vessel_history
- Finding
- Identity packet verdict: USS Kanawha (AO-1) — real identity: USS Kanawha
- Verification
- partial
- Role
- context
- Documentation level
- ship_specific
- Evidence ID
- uss-kanawha-ao1-pkt-r1-packet-md
-
[2]Dictionary of American Naval Fighting Ships, 'Kanawha III (AO-1),' Naval History and Heritage Command (canonical URL https://www.history.navy.mil/research/histories/ship-histories/danfs/k/kanawha-ao-1-iii.html returned 404 on 2026-09-25; text verified via Wayback Machine capture 2025-12-09) [nhhc_danfs]
- Locator
- DANFS entry text, Kanawha III (AO-1) section, Wayback capture 20251209093032
- Finding type
- vessel_history
- Finding
- DANFS 'Kanawha III (AO-1)': laid down 8 December 1913 by Mare Island Navy Yard; launched 11 July 1914, sponsored by Miss Dorothy Bennett; commissioned 5 June 1915 with Lt. Comdr. Richard Werner, USNRF, in command. Atlantic Fleet fueling service from June 1915; WWI escort for the first A.E.F. convoy (departed New York 17 June 1917, arrived St. Nazaire 2 July); joined NOTS 8 January 1918 carrying fuel oil Halifax to UK/French ports; Pacific operations 1919-1929 including 1925 Australia/New Zealand goodwill cruise; decommissioned Puget Sound Navy Yard 18 December 1929; recommissioned 5 June 1934; West Coast/Canal Zone/Caribbean/Hawaii fueling, extended 1941 to Midway, Wake, Alaska; undergoing overhaul at Mare Island during the Pearl Harbor attack; South Pacific fueling ops 1942-43; attacked by Japanese 'Val' dive bombers at Tulagi 7 April 1943 at 1502; hit in an oil tank under the bridge, abandoned on order of Lt. Comdr. Bock, beached by tug Rail, slid off and sank before daybreak 8 April; 19 crew lost; one battle star.
- Verification
- verified
- Role
- supporting
- Documentation level
- ship_specific
- Accessed
- 2026-09-25
- Study period
- 1913-1943
- Limitations
- Authoritative for identity and service history. Contains no asbestos, materials, or insulation information; supports no asbestos claim. DANFS says built by Mare Island Navy Yard 'San Francisco' - the yard is at Vallejo; note logged. NHHC live URL currently 404s - link rot consistent with prior batch findings.
- Atlas source
- true
- Evidence ID
- ev-uss-kanawha-ao1-01
-
[3]Report of Action - U.S.S. Kanawha, LCDR Brainard N. Bock to Commander South Pacific Force (per Navy Regulations 1920 arts. 712, 841(5)) + Enclosure One, report by LT William F. Cannarr, 12 April 1943; scanned official document hosted by NavSource [other_primary]
- Locator
- NavSource scan 19001a.pdf (5 pp., typed wartime document; OCR-assisted reading)
- Finding type
- historical_record
- Finding
- Official Report of Action by commanding officer LCDR Brainard N. Bock to Commander South Pacific Force, with enclosure report by executive officer LT William F. Cannarr (12 April 1943): ship had fueled fleet units at Tulagi the preceding 7 days; at ~1500-1526 on 7 April 1943, standing out of Tulagi harbor at ~12.7 knots, she was attacked by dive bombers - five planes released bombs scoring three near misses and two direct hits, one into cargo fuel-oil tank A-113 under the bridge and one through the superstructure deck into the engine room; engine room destroyed, all power lost, decks covered in burning fuel oil; ship abandoned; USS Rail and other craft attempted salvage until the after magazine ignited; she sank at 0400 on 8 April 1943 in 28 fathoms off the east bank of Sylvia Reef, bearing 121 true from beacon 'O', 750 yards; position at time of attack reported as approximately 9 07.46'S, 160 10.3'E; at ~1600 on 8 April two men trapped in the bunker pump-room bilges were rescued alive after an LCT crew heard rapping.
- Verification
- verified
- Role
- supporting
- Documentation level
- ship_specific
- Accessed
- 2026-09-25
- Study period
- 1943-04-07 to 1943-04-08
- Population
- USS Kanawha crew - approximately 19 killed, survivors including two post-sinking rescues
- Limitations
- Primary wartime record of the loss, scanned (OCR degraded in places). Documents damage and sinking mechanics only - no asbestos or insulation-material content. Time of attack varies slightly between the CO's report (~1526), the XO's enclosure (~1500), and DANFS (1502).
- Atlas source
- true
- Evidence ID
- ev-uss-kanawha-ao1-02
-
[4]Chief of Naval Operations, 'United States Naval Vessels Lost or Damaged During World War II' (postwar compilation), loss table entry for Kanawha [other_primary]
- Locator
- CNO reports table_c.txt, auxiliaries section, line 'KANAWHA#9 10 S, 160 12 E#7 April 1943'
- Finding type
- vessel_history
- Finding
- The CNO official World War II losses table records KANAWHA at 9 10'S, 160 12'E, dated 7 April 1943 - the official loss record for this hull.
- Verification
- verified
- Role
- supporting
- Documentation level
- ship_specific
- Accessed
- 2026-09-25
- Study period
- 1943
- Limitations
- Official loss table records the attack date (7 April); the hull actually sank ~0400 on 8 April per the action report. Position differs slightly from the action-report sinking position (9 07.46'S 160 10.3'E) - expected for approximated wartime loss coordinates. No materials information.
- Atlas source
- true
- Evidence ID
- ev-uss-kanawha-ao1-03
-
[5]Wildenberg, Gray Steel and Black Oil (Naval Institute Press, 1996), ch. 1 and note 5 (HyperWar transcription); contra DANFS Kanawha III entry and Vallejo Naval & Historical Museum photo files NH 70555 / AO 1 70555-7-14 / 1675-02 (via NavSource captions) [other_primary]
- Locator
- GSBO ch.1 text and ch.1 note 5 (GSBO-Notes.html); NavSource AO-1 photo captions and commanding-officer roster
- Finding type
- vessel_history
- Finding
- Source discrepancy resolved: Wildenberg's scholarly history (Gray Steel and Black Oil, Naval Institute Press 1996, ch. 1, citing an NHC Ships Histories Branch 'Historical Summary Sheet') states Kanawha was 'launched on 7 November 1914' and 'commissioned on 15 June' under Master W.E. Kennedy. DANFS, the Vallejo Naval & Historical Museum photographic record (launching photographs dated 11 July 1914, sponsor Miss Dorothy Bennett), and the NavSource command roster instead document launch 11 July 1914 and commissioning 5 June 1915 under Lt. Comdr. Richard Werner - DANFS and the museum photographic record are adopted as controlling. The 7/11 vs 11/7 pattern suggests a day-month transposition in the secondary source; Kennedy appears in the NavSource roster as the second master (1916-17).
- Verification
- verified
- Role
- correction
- Documentation level
- ship_specific
- Accessed
- 2026-09-25
- Study period
- 1914-1915
- Limitations
- Resolves a publication-level discrepancy in a reputable scholarly secondary source; the underlying NHC summary sheet itself was not retrieved, so the variant is traced but not fully adjudicated at source level. No asbestos content in any source involved.
- Atlas source
- true
- Evidence ID
- ev-uss-kanawha-ao1-04
-
[6]'Heat Conservation,' Journal of the Society of Chemical Industry abstract (1922), DOI 10.1002/j.2050-0416.1922.tb02507.x; Sterling, F.W., 'Boiler Furnace Insulation,' Journal of the American Society of Naval Engineers 33(2):268-284 (May 1921), DOI 10.1111/j.1559-3584.1921.tb05387.x [other_primary]
- Locator
- 1922 abstract text (magnesia/asbestos composition); JASNE 33(2) article record
- Finding type
- asbestos_application
- Finding
- Period technical literature documents that standard steam-plant insulation of this ship's construction era routinely contained asbestos: magnesia sectional lagging was 'usually obtained mixed with 15 per cent of long fibre asbestos for binding purposes' and asbestos fiber itself was supplied as plastic composition, moulded sections, rope, or loose packing for lagging under sheet steel (1922 technical survey); the Journal of the American Society of Naval Engineers published 'Boiler Furnace Insulation' (Sterling, JASNE 33(2):268-284, May 1921) treating naval boiler insulation practice contemporaneous with this hull's 1913-1915 construction and WWI service.
- Verification
- inferred
- Role
- context
- Documentation level
- class_or_era
- Accessed
- 2026-09-25
- Study period
- 1910s-1920s materials practice
- Population
- Construction trades and engine-room crews of steam-powered naval auxiliaries (era context)
- Limitations
- Era technical literature, not a hull record - neither source names this vessel or the Kanawha class. Establishes that steam-plant insulating materials of the era commonly contained asbestos; does not establish asbestos was or was not installed aboard this hull, nor quantity, location, exposure, or causation.
- Atlas source
- true
- Evidence ID
- ev-uss-kanawha-ao1-05
-
[7]Rushworth, 'The Navy and Asbestos Thermal Insulation,' Naval Engineers Journal 117(2) (2005), American Society of Naval Engineers [other_primary]
- Locator
- NEJ 117(2) article record and abstract
- Finding type
- asbestos_application
- Finding
- A peer-reviewed Navy engineering journal history documents that asbestos was once used in U.S. Navy shipboard pipe and machinery thermal insulation and many other shipboard products, describing the evolution of thermal insulation systems in WWII and post-WWII ships - the fleet-wide practice context for a steam-plant auxiliary still in service through 1943.
- Verification
- verified
- Role
- context
- Documentation level
- class_or_era
- Accessed
- 2026-09-25
- Study period
- WWII era and after (article scope)
- Population
- Navy shipboard personnel and shipyard trades (fleet context)
- Limitations
- Navy-wide practice history centered on WWII and post-WWII ships; does not name this vessel, does not cover its 1913-15 construction specifically, and establishes no ship-specific asbestos condition, quantity, exposure, or causation.
- Atlas source
- true
- Evidence ID
- ev-uss-kanawha-ao1-06
-
[8]Batch-1836 search ledger (this record): DANFS/NHHC; NavSource index + action report; HyperWar GSBO and ships pages; CNO loss table; CourtListener API v4 opinion and RECAP docket searches (authenticated helper, 2026-09-25); period insulation literature [other_primary]
- Locator
- search_ledger rows sl-uss-kanawha-ao1-01 through sl-uss-kanawha-ao1-10
- Finding type
- historical_record
- Finding
- No qualifying ship-specific asbestos record located: no insulation survey, abatement contract, hazmat disclosure, or docketed asbestos case naming this hull was found in the public sources searched. CourtListener exact-phrase 'USS Kanawha' returned 0 opinions; 'Kanawha oiler asbestos' returned 0; generic 'Kanawha asbestos' returned ~98 opinions and ~507 dockets that are all name collisions - Kanawha County/Charleston, West Virginia is a major asbestos-litigation venue (S.D.W.Va., WV Supreme Court) and several companies bear the name. The ~12 'Kanawha asbestos ship' opinion hits are likewise WV or other vessel-unrelated matters.
- Verification
- verified
- Role
- negative_finding
- Documentation level
- ship_specific
- Accessed
- 2026-09-25
- Study period
- 2026-09-25
- Limitations
- Absence of a located public record does not prove absence of asbestos aboard - a 1915 steam plant is era-consistent with asbestos insulation, and the hull sank in 1943 so no abatement-era records would be expected. Does not establish presence or absence; does not establish or defeat any exposure claim or legal eligibility.
- Atlas source
- true
- Evidence ID
- ev-uss-kanawha-ao1-07
-
[9]NavSource Naval History, Fleet Oiler (AO) photo index, USS Kanawha (AO-1) page 19001 - compiled chronology, CO roster, and NARA/NHHC/Vallejo-museum photo captions [other_primary]
- Locator
- NavSource AO-1 page: chronology block, specifications, CO roster, photo captions
- Finding type
- vessel_history
- Finding
- NavSource Service Ship Photo Archive entry for USS Kanawha (AO-1): designated AO-1 17 July 1920; struck from the Naval Register 19 May 1943; commanding-officer roster (Werner 5 June 1915 as first master; CDR Clyde G. West assuming command at 6 June 1934 recommissioning; LCDR Brainard N. Bock final CO, 5 January - 7 April 1943); and Vallejo Naval & Historical Museum photographic documentation of construction and the 11 July 1914 launching.
- Verification
- partial
- Role
- supporting
- Documentation level
- ship_specific
- Accessed
- 2026-09-25
- Study period
- 1913-1943
- Limitations
- NavSource is a secondary compilation, not a primary registry - the 19 May 1943 strike date and 6 June 1934 recommissioning come from its compiled chronology (recommissioning conflicts with DANFS 5 June; gap logged). Photo captions cite NARA/NHHC/Vallejo museum catalog numbers and are the strong element. No asbestos content.
- Atlas source
- true
- Evidence ID
- ev-uss-kanawha-ao1-08
-
[10]32 CFR part 767 subpart A (Sunken Military Craft Act implementing regulations; definitions of sunken military craft and U.S. sunken military craft) [federal_register]
- Locator
- 32 CFR 767 definitions sections
- Finding type
- regulatory
- Finding
- The wreck is a U.S. sunken military craft: the Sunken Military Craft Act (10 U.S.C. 113 note; Public Law 108-375 title XIV, 2004) and implementing Navy regulations at 32 CFR part 767 preserve U.S. title to sunken warships and naval auxiliaries and regulate disturbance - applicable to this hull as a sunken naval auxiliary lost on military service in Solomon Islands waters.
- Verification
- inferred
- Role
- context
- Documentation level
- context_only
- Accessed
- 2026-09-25
- Study period
- 2004-present (statute); 1943 loss
- Limitations
- Statutory application by category, not a vessel-specific listing - no SMCA/NHHC inventory entry for this hull was located. Establishes legal status of the wreck only; no asbestos, materials-condition, or survey content.
- Atlas source
- true
- Evidence ID
- ev-uss-kanawha-ao1-09
-
[11]NARA record-group structure (RG 19 Bureau of Ships/BuC&R; RG 24 deck logs) and Vallejo Naval & Historical Museum file references appearing in NavSource photo captions [other_primary]
- Locator
- NARA Guide to Federal Records RG 19/RG 24; NavSource AO-1 photo captions citing Vallejo museum files and HAER photo numbers
- Finding type
- historical_record
- Finding
- Archival leads (not retrieved - research-room or reproduction required; no spend authorized): NARA RG 19 (Bureau of Construction and Repair / Bureau of Ships records) may hold Mare Island construction and 1941-42 overhaul records for this hull; NARA RG 24 holds the ship's deck logs (navigational/operational record, including the final Tulagi period); the Vallejo Naval & Historical Museum holds a USS Kanawha (AO-1) photo/document file cited in NavSource captions; Mare Island Navy Yard records are also covered by HAER documentation (yard photos HAER CR-3 series appear in the NavSource captions).
- Verification
- unverified
- Role
- archival_lead
- Documentation level
- context_only
- Accessed
- 2026-09-25
- Study period
- 1913-1943 records
- Limitations
- Record-group mapping only - no box-level retrieval performed; whether construction specs or overhaul records for this hull document insulation materials is unknown until surveyed. Nothing in this row is an asbestos finding.
- Atlas source
- true
- Evidence ID
- ev-uss-kanawha-ao1-10