Evidence
11 evidence entries recorded; each entry has a stable permalink (#ev-1 … #ev-11).
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[1]NHHC, DANFS, 'Kenmore I (AP-62)' (updated by Robert J. Cressman, 31 March 2020) [nhhc_danfs]
- Locator
- Canonical NHHC URL returned 404 on 2026-09-25 (NHHC link-rot, standing issue since batch-01); verbatim text verified via Wayback Machine capture 2024-06-15 and the HyperWar/ibiblio DANFS mirror (USS Refuge AH-11 entry, https://www.ibiblio.org/hyperwar/USN/ships/dafs/AH/ah11.html)
- Finding type
- vessel_history
- Finding
- DANFS (Kenmore I, AP-62) documents the hull's identity and service: President Madison completed 6 July 1921 by New York Shipbuilding Corp., Camden N.J.; acquired from American President Lines under general agency agreement 6 September 1941; purchased by the Navy at Baltimore 11 April 1942 for conversion to a troop transport; renamed Kenmore (AP-62) and commissioned at Baltimore 5 August 1942, Cmdr. Myron T. Richardson. South Pacific transport service November 1942-September 1943: Noumea, Guadalcanal off-load east of Togoma Point 3 December 1942 (TF 62), San Francisco overhaul at General Engineering & Dry Dock Co. (arriving 5 January 1943), San Francisco-Hawaii troop/cargo runs Feb-May 1943, Tenaru Beach Guadalcanal 13 July 1943, Panama transit 19 August 1943, Norfolk arrival 2 September; decommissioned Baltimore 16 September 1943 for conversion to hospital ship by Maryland Drydock Co. Renamed Refuge and redesignated AH-11; recommissioned Baltimore 24 February 1944. Atlantic/Mediterranean patient transport (Mers-el-Kebir, British Isles, southern France - one battle star, invasion of Southern France); Seventh Fleet service Leyte/Manila; Korea/Shanghai/Okinawa/Tsingtao evacuation and occupation duty; Magic Carpet returns. Decommissioned Seattle 2 April 1946; stricken 8 May 1946; delivered to WSA 29 June 1946 (reserve fleet, Olympia WA); sold for scrap to Consolidated Builders 2 February 1948.
- Verification
- verified
- Role
- supporting
- Documentation level
- ship_specific
- Accessed
- 2026-09-25
- Study period
- 1921-1948
- Limitations
- Authoritative Navy history covering the full hull life (merchant names, both commissions, disposal). Contains no asbestos, materials, insulation, or health-hazard information whatsoever - supports no asbestos claim. Minor internal conflicts with other sources (name-change dates, complement) are logged in the correction row and gaps.
- Atlas source
- true
- Evidence ID
- ev-uss-kenmore-ap62-01
-
[2]ShipScribe, 'USS Kenmore (AP-62)' class page, compiled by Stephen S. Roberts (2002-2009) from Auxiliary Vessels Board minutes and BuShips records [other_primary]
- Locator
- Class Notes and Ship Notes, AP-62 entry
- Finding type
- vessel_history
- Finding
- ShipScribe AP-62 class page (Stephen S. Roberts compilation from NARA Auxiliary Vessels Board and Bureau of Ships records) documents this hull's conversion scope: the Auxiliary Vessels Board's 11 April 1942 report found President Madison in poor material condition; the Maryland Drydock Co. conversion (11 April-28 August 1942) 'included new boilers, new generators (removed from the battleships NEVADA and OKLAHOMA and built in 1912), and the repair or replacement of nearly every bit of machinery, equipment, piping, etc. on the ship.' Hospital-ship conversion (to Refuge AH-11) at Maryland Drydock ran 13 September 1943-1 March 1944. Construction line: keel 4 March 1920, launched 23 February 1921, EFC contract 2591; after the war she made two Magic Carpet voyages in December 1945 and January 1946 before reporting for disposal; disposal: to buyer 2 February 1948, scrapped by 16 July 1948.
- Verification
- partial
- Role
- supporting
- Documentation level
- ship_specific
- Accessed
- 2026-09-25
- Study period
- 1942-1944
- Population
- Conversion-yard workers, Maryland Drydock Co., Baltimore (1942; 1943-44)
- Limitations
- Secondary compilation of official records (Auxiliary Vessels Board minutes, BuShips files) - the underlying NARA documents are not individually digitized, so this is the best available public rendering of the conversion file. Documents a near-total machinery/piping renewal on this specific hull in 1942 - an asbestos-relevant disturbance/installation event by era - but the source itself contains no asbestos statement; the material significance is era inference only, not ship-proven.
- Atlas source
- true
- Evidence ID
- ev-uss-kenmore-ap62-02
-
[3]U.S. Maritime Administration, ShipHistory database - REFUGE (AH-11), Detail 4086 (registry record, milestones, status-card scans) [marad_nrc]
- Locator
- ShipHistory Detail 4086 - characteristics, name-history table, milestone table, status-card scans
- Finding type
- vessel_history
- Finding
- MARAD ShipHistory Detail 4086 (REFUGE AH-11) records: Official No. 221426; built 1921 by New York Shipbuilding Corporation; length 502 ft, beam 62 ft, 10,501 gross tons; vessel name history Blue Hen State 1921-1923, President Garfield 1923-1940, President Madison 1940-1942, 'Kenore' (AP-62) 1942-1944, Refuge (AH-11) 1944-1948; custody milestones Entry and Acquisition 29 June 1946, Disposition and Withdrawal 2 February 1948 carded 'ex-PRES. MADISON'; fate 'Sold - Scrap'; four status-card scans attached to the record.
- Verification
- verified
- Role
- supporting
- Documentation level
- ship_specific
- Accessed
- 2026-09-25
- Study period
- 1921-1948
- Limitations
- Authoritative for government custody milestones and merchant identity (Official No. 221426); 'Kenore' in the name-history row is a database typo for Kenmore. Status-card scans are handwritten and only partially legible (not individually transcribed). Contains no asbestos, materials, or condition-survey information; supports no asbestos claim.
- Atlas source
- true
- Evidence ID
- ev-uss-kenmore-ap62-03
-
[4]NavSource Online: Service Ship Photo Archive, USS Refuge (AH-11) / ex USS Kenmore (AP-62), archive 09/12/1211 (photo sources credited to NARA RG-19-LCM and RG-32-UB) [other_primary]
- Locator
- Specifications (AH) block, construction/disposal timeline, campaign table; live fetch refused 2026-09-25 - content verified via Wayback Machine capture 2024-12-09
- Finding type
- vessel_history
- Finding
- NavSource Service Ship Photo Archive entry (USS Refuge AH-11 / ex USS Kenmore AP-62) documents: laid down as SS Blue Hen State 4 March 1920 under USSB contract 2591 at New York Shipbuilding, Camden; launched 23 February 1921; delivered 6 July 1921; renamed President Garfield May 1922; sold to Dollar Line September 1923; renamed President Madison 1939; hospital-ship specifications - complement 79 officers + 474 enlisted, patient capacity 626, six Alco Scotch boilers (200 psi) feeding two NY Shipbuilding vertical triple-expansion engines on twin screws (7,000 shp), no armament; campaign record including one battle star (invasion of southern France); final disposition sold for scrapping 2 February 1948 to Consolidated Builders, Seattle.
- Verification
- partial
- Role
- supporting
- Documentation level
- ship_specific
- Accessed
- 2026-09-25
- Study period
- 1920-1948
- Population
- Hospital-ship crew and patients (AH-11, 1944-46)
- Limitations
- Volunteer-compiled archive drawing on NARA/NHHC photography and published records - reliable for specifications and dates but a secondary source; AH-configuration complement (553) conflicts with shipscribe's 343 (discrepancy flagged in gaps). Contains no asbestos or materials information; supports no asbestos claim.
- Atlas source
- true
- Evidence ID
- ev-uss-kenmore-ap62-04
-
[5]U.S. Merchant Marine Academy (USMMA), 'American Merchant Marine Museum Takes Delivery of New Ship Model' (SS President Harrison model), usmma.edu, January 2021; sister-hull detail cross-checked against the New York Shipbuilding historical site (yorkship.org liner roster) [other_primary]
- Locator
- USMMA press release, 502-class description; yorkship.org passenger-liner table (hull nos. 245-250 series)
- Finding type
- vessel_history
- Finding
- The U.S. Merchant Marine Academy's American Merchant Marine Museum documents the design class of this hull: seven '502 class' ships were built at New York Shipbuilding, Camden, with twin oil-burning triple-expansion engines making about 14 knots; the Dollar Steamship Line bought all seven for its round-the-world passenger-cargo service; the federal government took over the line as American President Lines in 1938. The yard's historical roster completes the seven (NYSB contracts 244-250): Old North State - President Van Buren - USAT Fillmore - USAHS Marigold (Army hospital ship); Creole State - President Hayes - President Tyler (USAT; Army hospital-ship conversion to Howard A. McCurdy begun Feb 1945, cancelled Sep 1945); Granite State - President Polk - President Taylor (USAT, stranded Canton Island 14 Feb 1942); Panhandle State - President Monroe (USAT - USAHS Emily H. M. Weder); Wolverine State - President Harrison (seized by Japan Dec 1941, run as Kachidoki Maru, sunk by USS Pampanito Sep 1944 with Allied POWs aboard); Centennial State - President Adams - President Grant (WSA troopship, stranded New Guinea Apr 1944); and this hull. Of the seven sisters, three were converted to hospital ships (Marigold, Weder, Refuge) and a fourth (Tyler-to-McCurdy) was begun - this hull was the class's only Navy unit. A separate contemporaneous 'President Madison' also existed: ex-Bay State, a Design 1029 '535 class' hull (NYSB contract 251), renamed President Madison 1922 and President Quezon 1939 - an alias collision affecting any 'President Madison' record search.
- Verification
- verified
- Role
- context
- Documentation level
- class_or_era
- Accessed
- 2026-09-25
- Study period
- 1920-1941
- Limitations
- Design-class context from a federal academy source plus a secondary yard-history roster - establishes the hull's class membership and sister-ship fates; contains no materials or asbestos information and establishes nothing about this hull's contents.
- Atlas source
- true
- Evidence ID
- ev-uss-kenmore-ap62-05
-
[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 program under which this 1921 hull was twice converted (1942 troop-transport conversion with near-total machinery/piping renewal, and 1943-44 hospital-ship conversion) and repeatedly overhauled at Navy and contract yards.
- Verification
- verified
- Role
- context
- Documentation level
- class_or_era
- Accessed
- 2026-09-25
- Study period
- 1940s era documented; article 1987
- Population
- WWII shipyard conversion/overhaul 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 class and does not establish that asbestos was installed aboard this hull, nor quantity, location, condition, exposure, or causation. The hull's 1921 original construction predates the paper's WWII window - 1921-era materials are weaker inference still.
- Atlas source
- true
- Evidence ID
- ev-uss-kenmore-ap62-06
-
[7]Fleischer, W.E., Viles, F.J. Jr., Gade, R.L., and Drinker, P., 'A health survey of pipe covering operations in constructing naval vessels,' J Ind Hyg Toxicol 28(1):9-16 (Jan 1946), PMID 21016030 [other_primary]
- Locator
- PubMed record PMID 21016030; article pp. 9-16 (pipe covering material section)
- Finding type
- gov_survey
- Finding
- The U.S. Maritime Commission-commissioned industrial-hygiene survey of WWII pipe-covering operations at two Navy yards and two Navy contract yards documented that 'an important ingredient of pipe covering material used on U.S. Navy vessels is amosite' - asbestos insulation was standard material in wartime naval-vessel construction and conversion of exactly this hull's work periods (1942 and 1943-44 conversions; 1943-45 overhauls).
- Verification
- verified
- Role
- context
- Documentation level
- class_or_era
- Accessed
- 2026-09-25
- Study period
- survey ~1944-45; published 1946
- Population
- WWII pipe coverers and insulators at Navy and contract yards (era context)
- Limitations
- Era-level documentation of asbestos use in naval construction generally; does not name this vessel, class, or any yard that touched it (Maryland Drydock, General Engineering & Dry Dock, Norfolk Navy Yard were not identified as survey sites) and establishes nothing about this hull's materials, condition, or any individual exposure. (The study's exculpatory 'not a dangerous occupation' conclusion has since been heavily criticized - DOI 10.1177/10482911261446696.)
- Atlas source
- true
- Evidence ID
- ev-uss-kenmore-ap62-07
-
[8]The George Washington Foundation, Lives & Legacies blog, 'Kenmore Goes to Sea: Ship Naming in the US Navy' (30 April 2025), citing the NHHC Kenmore I ship-naming file [museum_official]
- Locator
- Blog post footnotes 2-3 (NHHC ship-naming file, 13 Apr 1942 memo) and 9-11 (Kenmore II AK-221)
- Finding type
- vessel_history
- Finding
- The George Washington Foundation (operator of Historic Kenmore, the Fredericksburg estate for which the ship was named) documents the naming: the NHHC ship-naming file for Kenmore I (AP-62) contains a 13 April 1942 Bureau of Navigation memo to the Secretary of the Navy recommending President Madison be renamed Kenmore in honor of the home of Betty Washington Lewis; approved 16 April 1942. The Foundation also notes the name was reused in October 1943 for a different hull - the second Kenmore (AK-221, ex-AP-162, ex-James H. McClintock) - confirming the two-hull name collision.
- Verification
- verified
- Role
- context
- Documentation level
- ship_specific
- Accessed
- 2026-09-25
- Study period
- 1942-1943
- Limitations
- Official publication of the namesake-estate museum quoting the NHHC naming file - documents naming provenance and the existence of the NHHC naming-file record (itself an archival lead). No asbestos relevance; the AK-221 disambiguation matters for litigation searching (hits for 'USS Kenmore' could mean either hull).
- Atlas source
- true
- Evidence ID
- ev-uss-kenmore-ap62-08
-
[9]Batch-2135 search ledger (this record): NHHC/DANFS via Wayback + HyperWar mirror; MARAD ShipHistory 4086; NavSource 09/12/1211 via Wayback; ShipScribe AP-62 class page; USMMA museum release; George Washington Foundation blog; CourtListener API v4 name/hull/alias sweeps; NARA record-group guides [other_primary]
- Locator
- search_ledger rows sl-uss-kenmore-ap62-01 through sl-uss-kenmore-ap62-19
- Finding type
- historical_record
- Finding
- No qualifying ship-specific asbestos record located: no asbestos survey, abatement contract, hazmat disclosure, court finding, or docketed asbestos case naming USS Kenmore, AP-62, USS Refuge, AH-11, President Madison, Blue Hen State, or U.S. Official No. 221426 was found in the public sources searched (see search_ledger). CourtListener results: zero opinions and zero dockets for 'USS Kenmore'; zero opinions for 'USS Refuge'; zero opinions for 'Blue Hen State'; zero dockets for 'USS Refuge'/'Refuge AH-11'; the 74 'AP-62' opinion hits are Puerto Rico rule/statute citations (name collisions); the 11 'Kenmore'+asbestos hits are all name collisions (Sears Kenmore-brand appliance litigation, Kenmore Avenue/Square/property cases); the 119 'Refuge'+asbestos hits are ordinary-word collisions (asylum law, wildlife refuges); the 2 'Refuge'+AH-11/'hospital ship' hits are collisions (a wildlife-refuge case and a Court of Claims injury proceeding); the 2 'President Madison'+asbestos hits are duplicate records of Dillingham Shipyard v. Associated Insulation Co., 649 F.2d 1322 (9th Cir. 1981), a shipyard-indemnity case concerning USCGC Mellon (the 'President Madison' term match is inside the opinion body, context unverified) - classified other litigation, not a finding about this hull.
- 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 1921 steam liner twice converted (1942, 1943-44) and repeatedly overhauled during the documented asbestos era is era-consistent with asbestos-containing materials, and her 1946-48 reserve-fleet lay-up and 1948 breaking are undocumented disturbance phases. Does not establish presence or absence; does not establish or defeat any exposure claim or legal eligibility. All systematic name/hull/alias sweeps were completed - exact-name searches returned zero hits and broader sweeps classified as collisions/other litigation. The only deferred item is the full-text fetch of the Dillingham opinion (pacing-blocked at session end), which cannot change its on-its-face classification as a USCGC Mellon indemnity case.
- Atlas source
- true
- Evidence ID
- ev-uss-kenmore-ap62-09
-
[10]NARA Guide to Federal Records: RG 24 (Bureau of Naval Personnel - Navy deck logs), RG 19 (Bureau of Ships), RG 32 (U.S. Shipping Board), RG 178/248 (Maritime Commission / War Shipping Administration), RG 357 (Maritime Administration); NHHC ship-naming files; MARAD Detail 4086 document tabs [other_primary]
- Locator
- https://www.archives.gov/research/guide-fed-records/groups/024.html ; /groups/019.html ; /groups/032.html ; /groups/178.html ; /groups/248.html ; /groups/357.html ; https://vesselhistory.marad.dot.gov/ShipHistory/Detail/4086
- Finding type
- historical_record
- Finding
- Archival leads (not retrieved - requires research-room or reproduction order; no spend authorized): NARA RG 24 deck logs for USS Kenmore (1942-43) and USS Refuge (1944-46); RG 19 Bureau of Ships conversion records and correspondence for both Maryland Drydock conversions, plus photo series RG-19-LCM (19-N-32216, 19-N-33217, 19-N-33268, 80-G-170967); RG 32 USSB/Emergency Fleet Corporation construction records for contract 2591 including original outfitting specifications (NavSource credits RG-32-UB imagery of the 1921 hull); NHHC ship-naming file for Kenmore I (April 1942 Denfeld memo); MARAD ShipHistory Detail 4086 status-card scans (four images, partially transcribed); Maritime Commission/NDRF Olympia custody file and the 1948 Consolidated Builders sale file (RG 357) - the sale file is the most promising disposal-era hazmat lead.
- Verification
- unverified
- Role
- archival_lead
- Documentation level
- context_only
- Accessed
- 2026-09-25
- Study period
- 1920-1948 records
- Limitations
- Record-group mapping only - no box-level retrieval performed; existence of asbestos-specific documents for this hull is unknown until surveyed in person. Nothing in this row is an asbestos finding.
- Atlas source
- true
- Evidence ID
- ev-uss-kenmore-ap62-10
-
[11]Cross-source reconciliation: DANFS Kenmore I entry (NHHC 2020) vs HyperWar DANFS mirror (older text); MARAD ShipHistory 4086 name-history; NavSource timeline and specs; shipscribe construction/disposition tables; yorkship.org liner roster [nhhc_danfs]
- Locator
- Discrepancy table - see finding_value items (a)-(f)
- Finding type
- historical_record
- Finding
- Source discrepancies resolved or logged: (a) DANFS says the vessel was 'acquired by the War Shipping Administration (WSA) from the American President Lines on 6 September 1941' under general agency agreement - but WSA was not established until February 1942; the September 1941 delivery was to the U.S. government under the pre-WSA emergency arrangement, with APL as operating agent (the contemporaneous gloss preserved in secondary sources). (b) Merchant rename dates conflict: President Garfield rename May 1922 (NavSource) vs 1923 (MARAD name-history table); President Madison rename 1939 (NavSource) vs 1940 (MARAD, shipscribe) - carried as ranges, not resolved. (c) Hospital-ship complement: 553 (NavSource 79+474) vs 343 (shipscribe 1944 figure) - unresolved. (d) Speed: 11.5 knots (DANFS spec block) vs ~14 knots (USMMA class design speed) - presumably service vs design figures. (e) Breaking location: Consolidated Builders of Seattle (DANFS, NavSource, MARAD) vs scrapping 'in Vancouver' (New York Shipbuilding historical listing) - buyer location vs breaking site, unresolved. (f) Older DANFS text (HyperWar mirror) says the 18th and 10th Naval Construction Battalions embarked; the current NHHC entry says 18th and 19th - current entry adopted.
- Verification
- verified
- Role
- correction
- Documentation level
- ship_specific
- Accessed
- 2026-09-25
- Study period
- 1920-1948
- Limitations
- Resolves publication-level discrepancies in the paper trail; none affect identity, custody timeline, or the asbestos posture materially. No asbestos content in any cited source.
- Atlas source
- true
- Evidence ID
- ev-uss-kenmore-ap62-11