Evidence
8 evidence entries recorded; each entry has a stable permalink (#ev-1 … #ev-8).
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[1]DANFS, Keith (DE-241) (Vol. 3, pp. 612-613: namesake bio, specifications block, service narrative, stricken/sold addendum citing Bauer & Roberts, Register of Ships of the U.S. Navy 1775-1990, p.225; verbatim hazegray transcription - live NHHC page serves 404; HyperWar spec block at ibiblio.org/hyperwar/USN/ships/DE/DE-241_Keith.html; namesake bio mirrored at historycentral.com) [nhhc_danfs]
- Locator
- DANFS entry, namesake paragraph + specifications block + service narrative; sold/struck addendum bracket
- Finding type
- vessel_history
- Finding
- DANFS record for this hull: named for Seaman Second Class Ellis Judson Keith, Jr. (born Houston, Tex., 30 June 1919; enlisted 2 October 1941; radioman/gunner on patrol plane in Aleutians; killed in action over Kiska Harbor 11 June 1942; posthumous Air Medal); laid down as Scott, renamed Keith 8 December 1942; launched 21 December 1942 by Brown Ship Building Co., Houston, Tex.; sponsored by Mrs. Ellis J. Keith, Sr.; commissioned 19 July 1943 at Houston, Lt. D. Cochran in command. Specifications: dp. 1,200 t., l. 306', b. 36'7", dr. 8'7", s. 21 k., cpl. 186, three 3-inch guns, eight 40mm, ten 20mm, three 21-inch torpedo tubes, two depth-charge tracks, eight hedge charge projectors, class Edsall. Service: Bermuda shakedown; three East Coast-Gibraltar convoy voyages from Norfolk 14 September 1943; refresher/ASW training; hunter-killer group with Tripoli (CVE-64) from 15 March 1944; joined Core (CVE-13) group July 1944; two inconclusive hedgehog attacks 30 August 1944; in the 23-24 April 1945 wolfpack action after Frederick C. Davis (DE-136) was torpedoed and sunk, a ~12-hour depth-charge attack forced U-546 to surface, Keith made two direct hits, and rescued four survivors; departed Guantanamo mid-July 1945 for the Pacific - Pearl Harbor at war's end, Saipan mop-up, air-sea rescue station between Iwo Jima and Japan from 31 August; Shanghai, China, from 31 December 1945 until 10 April 1946; arrived Charleston, S.C., 15 May 1946; towed to Green Cove Springs, Fla., and decommissioned in reserve 20 September 1946; berthed Orange, Tex. One battle star. Bracketed addendum: stricken from the Navy Register 1 November 1972, sold 18 January 1974 (per Bauer & Roberts, Register p.225).
- Verification
- verified
- Role
- supporting
- Documentation level
- ship_specific
- Accessed
- 2026-09-28
- Study period
- 1942-1974
- Population
- Brown Ship Building construction trades (Houston, 1942-43); wartime and postwar crew (design complement 186)
- Limitations
- DANFS documents service history and specifications, not materials or asbestos content. DANFS omits the laid-down date (1942-08-04 per NavSource/NavalCoverMuseum). Spec-block complement 186 conflicts with NavSource's 8 officers/201 enlisted and HyperWar's 216 - carried in gaps. The addendum's 'berthed at Orange, Tex.' reflects the 1968 publication date. Mirror transcription cited because the live NHHC page returns 404.
- Atlas source
- true
- Evidence ID
- ev-uss-keith-de241-01
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[2]NHHC H-Gram H-047-1, 'The Last Battle of the Atlantic - Operation Teardrop' (Director's Corner history publication, NHHC) [nhhc_danfs]
- Locator
- H-Gram H-047-1, 'Hunt for U-546' section (depth-measuring run and surface-gunfire paragraphs)
- Finding type
- historical_record
- Finding
- Official NHHC history of Operation Teardrop names this hull in the 24 April 1945 destruction of U-546: after Varian (DE-798) regained contact, 'Varian detected the submarine and guided Keith (DE-241) on a depth-measuring run that determined the submarine had come up to 160 feet'; when U-546 surfaced at 1838, 'Pillsbury, Keith, Neunzer, and Varian all blasted away at the submarine with gunfire' until the 1845 cease-fire. Kapitanleutnant Paul Just and 32 crewmen (33 total) were rescued by the U.S. ships - consistent with DANFS's statement that Keith rescued four of them.
- Verification
- verified
- Role
- supporting
- Documentation level
- ship_specific
- Accessed
- 2026-09-28
- Study period
- 1945-04-24
- Population
- Wartime crew; U-546 survivors rescued (33 total across the group)
- Limitations
- Official NHHC retrospective history; documents the action sequence and this hull's role, not materials or asbestos aboard. Live NHHC page 404s; cited via the 2024-12-06 Wayback capture, read in full.
- Atlas source
- true
- Evidence ID
- ev-uss-keith-de241-02
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[3]NavSource Online, Destroyer Escort Photo Index DE-241 (building/operational data, specifications, commanding officers, awards; secondary compilation of Navy records; hosts scan of the ship's official War History) [other_primary]
- Locator
- navsource.net/archives/06/241.htm - Building and Operational Data block; specifications block; commanding-officer table; photo caption 80-G-269147
- Finding type
- vessel_history
- Finding
- Secondary compilation for this hull: keel laid 4 August 1942 as Scott by Brown Ship Building Co., Houston, Tex.; renamed Keith 8 December 1942; launched and christened 21 December 1942 (sponsor Mrs. Ellis J. Keith, Sr.); commissioned 19 July 1943 at Houston, Lt. D. Cochran in command; decommissioned 20 September 1946 at Green Cove Springs, Fla., after 3 years and 2 months of service; struck from the NVR 1 November 1972; sold for scrapping 18 January 1974. Specifications: FMR type (geared diesel, Fairbanks-Morse reverse-gear drive), 4 FM Mod. 38d8-1/8 diesel engines, 4 diesel-generators, 6,000 shp, 2 screws, 21 kts, range 9,100 nm at 12 kt; complement 8 officers / 201 enlisted. Commanding officers: Lt./Lcdr. Drayton Cochran (Jul 1943-Dec 1943), Lt./Lcdr. Jack Louis Rinn (Dec 1943-Dec 1944), Lt. W. W. Patrick (Dec 1944-Dec 1945), Lcdr. Edward Corbett Hines Jr. (Dec 1945-Sep 1946). Awards: China Service Medal, American Campaign Medal, EAME with one star, WWII Victory Medal. A NARA-sourced photo (80-G-269147) documents Keith recovering a downed VC-13 TBM crew and transferring them to Core (CVE-13) on 25 August 1944.
- Verification
- partial
- Role
- supporting
- Documentation level
- ship_specific
- Accessed
- 2026-09-28
- Study period
- 1942-1974
- Population
- Wartime and postwar crew
- Limitations
- Secondary compilation, not an official source - its laid-down date (1942-08-04) is the best available for that event because DANFS omits it; carried with this provenance caveat. Complement figure (8/201) conflicts with DANFS design 186 and HyperWar 216 - carried in gaps. Decommissioned date conflicts with uboat.net/NavalCoverMuseum (20 July 1946) - the DANFS/NavSource September date is carried.
- Atlas source
- true
- Evidence ID
- ev-uss-keith-de241-03
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[4]NARA Ship Plan Index - KEITH DE-241, RG 19 'Hull series of Ship Engineering Drawings' NAID 153715002 and RG 19 'Microfilm' NAID 175669549; plus NARA guided topic 'Researching Asbestos aboard US Naval Vessel up through 1961' (archives.gov/research/military/navy/guided-topics/asbestos) [other_primary]
- Locator
- NARA Ship Plan Index table, rows 'KEITH | DE-241 | 19 | Hull series of Ship Engineering Drawings | 153715002' and 'KEITH | DE-241 | 19 | Microfilm | 175669549'; asbestos guide, RG 19 correspondence entries
- Finding type
- historical_record
- Finding
- NARA Ship Plan Index lists KEITH DE-241 in two RG 19 (Bureau of Ships) series - Hull series of Ship Engineering Drawings (NAID 153715002) and Microfilm (NAID 175669549): hull plans exist in federal custody. The NARA asbestos research guide (coverage 1941-1961, spanning this ship's entire life) identifies the record path for ship-specific material research: RG 19 BuShips general/confidential correspondence filed by hull designation (DE241) and shipyard files filed under QM + private-yard name (QM/Brown Ship Building for the Houston builder). Neither the plans nor the correspondence were reviewed.
- Verification
- verified
- Role
- archival_lead
- Documentation level
- ship_specific
- Accessed
- 2026-09-28
- Study period
- 1942-1974 (records); 2026-09-28 (index access)
- Population
- Construction trades; wartime crew (research pathway populations)
- Limitations
- Index/holding entries establish that records exist, not their content - nothing in the index or guide documents asbestos aboard this hull. Retrieval of NAIDs 153715002/175669549 and the DE241/QM-Brown correspondence is the open archival lead.
- Atlas source
- true
- Evidence ID
- ev-uss-keith-de241-04
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[5]Navypedia, 'FMR' destroyer escorts (EDSALL) member table and class machinery description; HyperWar 'Ships of the U.S. Navy' Edsall-class spec block (ibiblio.org/hyperwar/USN/ships/DE/DE-241_Keith.html); Atlas class-worktree context (cannon-class.class.json, DET-design DE class notes - no Edsall-class profile exists) [other_primary]
- Locator
- navypedia us_de_det_fmr.htm - member table row DE-241 + machinery notes; ibiblio.org/hyperwar/USN/ships/DE/DE-241_Keith.html spec block; class-c worktree cannon-class.class.json class_notes (DE-era application categories)
- Finding type
- asbestos_application
- Finding
- Class/era context: the navypedia FMR member table confirms this hull (DE-241, ex-Scott, yard no. 12, Brown SB Houston, laid 8.1942, launched 21.12.1942, commissioned 7.1943, stricken 11.1972) within the Edsall-class geared-diesel design - 4 Fairbanks-Morse diesels with reverse-gear drive on 2 shafts, 6,000 shp, ~21 kt, complement ~186-216, no boilers and no steam plant. Era inference: a 1942-43-built wartime escort is consistent with period-standard asbestos applications for diesel-plant escorts (exhaust-system insulation, machinery/flange gaskets, valve packing, electrical insulation, accommodation fireproofing, deck coverings); the steam-ship lagging categories do not apply to this design. Builder Brown Ship Building (Houston) is an asbestos-era private yard - not in the Atlas yard dataset.
- Verification
- inferred
- Role
- supporting
- Documentation level
- class_or_era
- Accessed
- 2026-09-28
- Study period
- 1942-1974
- Population
- Brown Ship Building construction trades 1942-43; wartime and postwar crew
- Limitations
- Secondary compilation plus era inference - NOT a ship-specific finding. No source reviewed documents asbestos aboard this hull; inference from class/era cannot establish presence, quantity, or location of ACM on DE-241, and cannot support exposure or eligibility conclusions.
- Atlas source
- true
- Evidence ID
- ev-uss-keith-de241-05
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[6]U.S. Naval Institute, Naval History magazine (June 2025, Vol. 39 No. 3), 'The Brown Shipbuilding Company's Rise During World War II' (builder-yard history) [other_primary]
- Locator
- usni.org Naval History June 2025 article (shipyard founding, production figures, postwar sale paragraphs)
- Finding type
- historical_record
- Finding
- Builder-yard context: USNI Naval History documents that Brown Shipbuilding Company - this hull's builder - was a Brown & Root subsidiary established in Houston in 1941-42 on Green's Bayou off the Houston Ship Channel; it was the second-largest employer in the Houston area during WWII and built 12 submarine chasers, 32 LCIs, 61 destroyer escorts, and 254 LSMs (roughly 359 Navy hulls, over $500 million in contracts), launching on sideways slips; the yard was sold to Todd Shipyards after the war.
- Verification
- verified
- Role
- context
- Documentation level
- class_or_era
- Accessed
- 2026-09-28
- Study period
- 1941-1945
- Population
- Brown Shipbuilding Houston yard workforce (second-largest Houston-area employer, WWII)
- Limitations
- Professional-historical source documents the wartime construction program's scale and labor context - not asbestos conditions at the yard and nothing aboard this hull. Yard-level asbestos documentation for Brown Shipbuilding Houston was not located; carried in gaps.
- Atlas source
- true
- Evidence ID
- ev-uss-keith-de241-06
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[7]CourtListener API v4 search sweep (authenticated fleet helper), 2026-09-28; document-level verification on sampled opinion (Smart v. City of Miami Beach, S.D. Fla. 2014, opinion id 7227072) [court_record]
- Locator
- search_ledger rows sl-uss-keith-de241-06 through sl-uss-keith-de241-09
- Finding type
- litigation_documented
- Finding
- No qualifying asbestos litigation - and no litigation of any kind - naming this vessel located. Exact-name searches '"USS Keith"' returned zero opinions and zero RECAP dockets. Hull-number searches '"DE-241"' returned 29 opinion hits and 388 docket hits, all CM/ECF '[DE 241]' docket-entry citation noise; document-level verification on a sampled opinion (Smart v. City of Miami Beach, S.D. Fla., opinion id 7227072: 'Motion for Removal of Garnishment [DE 241]') confirmed the pattern. No asbestos case names this hull.
- Verification
- verified
- Role
- negative_finding
- Documentation level
- ship_specific
- Accessed
- 2026-09-28
- Study period
- 2026-09-28
- Population
- n/a - sweep result
- Limitations
- Search-index coverage only - RECAP filing-level full-text review was not performed beyond the sampled opinion; absence of a located docket does not prove no filing ever named the ship; state-court and unpublished matters are outside the index. The 388 'DE-241' docket hits share the same docket-entry-citation pattern and were classified at index level.
- Atlas source
- true
- Evidence ID
- ev-uss-keith-de241-07
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[8]Batch-4161 search ledger (this record): DANFS/NHHC mirrors, NHHC H-Gram H-047-1, NavSource, NARA guides/index, USNI yard history, CourtListener sweep [other_primary]
- Locator
- search_ledger rows sl-uss-keith-de241-01 through sl-uss-keith-de241-11
- Finding type
- historical_record
- Finding
- No qualifying ship-specific asbestos record located: no asbestos survey, material schedule, abatement contract, museum hazmat disclosure, or docketed case naming Keith (DE-241) was found in the public sources searched (see search_ledger). The hull was sold for scrapping on 18 January 1974 after reserve-fleet lay-up at Green Cove Springs, Fla., and Orange, Tex., so no post-service survey, preservation, or abatement record exists in the sources reviewed; no scrapping-yard hazmat documentation was located either.
- Verification
- verified
- Role
- negative_finding
- Documentation level
- ship_specific
- Accessed
- 2026-09-28
- Study period
- 2026-09-28
- Limitations
- Absence of a located public record does not prove absence of asbestos aboard - wartime DE construction is era-consistent with asbestos use, and the scrapped hull's material state was never publicly documented. Does not establish or defeat any claim of exposure or legal eligibility.
- Atlas source
- true
- Evidence ID
- ev-uss-keith-de241-08