Evidence
9 evidence entries recorded; each entry has a stable permalink (#ev-1 … #ev-9).
-
[1]Oxford v. Foster Wheeler LLC, 177 Cal.App.4th 700, 99 Cal.Rptr.3d 418 (Cal. App. 1st Dist., No. A121577, filed 2009-09-09); San Francisco Superior Ct. No. 440328 [court_record]
- Locator
- Opinion text, Factual Background and Procedural History sections I-III and Disposition; 177 Cal.App.4th 700
- Finding type
- litigation_documented
- Finding
- Published appellate opinion naming this hull: the first amended complaint (filed 2006-03-22) alleged Calvin Oxford was exposed to asbestos between 1963 and 1967 while assigned to the boiler repair shop of USS Klondike - 'a United States Navy vessel that functioned as a repair ship for other Navy warships' - and while working at various shipyards including Long Beach Naval Shipyard. Oxford was diagnosed with mesothelioma in 2005 and died the same year. At trial (verdict 2008-01-04) the jury found against plaintiffs on products-liability claims (design defect and failure to warn), found for plaintiffs on negligence, and found defendant had proved all three elements of the Boyle government-contractor defense. The Court of Appeal held the special verdict irreconcilably inconsistent, reversed, and remanded for a new trial (2009).
- Verification
- verified
- Role
- supporting
- Documentation level
- ship_specific
- Accessed
- 2026-09-19
- Study period
- 1963-1967 (alleged exposure); 2006-2009 (litigation)
- Population
- Navy boiler tender / repair-ship crew member (decedent Calvin Oxford, 1963-1967 assignment)
- Limitations
- Litigation-stage discipline: the exposure allegation reached a full jury trial but produced a vacated verdict - reversed and remanded on inconsistent-verdict grounds (not an exposure finding), so the record stands as tried allegations plus trial testimony without an affirmed judgment; outcome on remand not located. The opinion states the boiler on USS Klondike itself was not manufactured by Foster Wheeler - the asbestos products at issue were in other warships' boilers serviced by Klondike's repair shop. Does not establish asbestos content of Klondike's own plant, individual causation, or legal eligibility. CourtListener copy of the opinion not confirmed - API throttled (125/day) at research date; verified against full opinion text via Justia (Wayback capture).
- Atlas source
- true
- Evidence ID
- ev-uss-klondike-ad22-01
-
[2]Oxford v. Foster Wheeler LLC, 177 Cal.App.4th 700 (Cal. App. 1st Dist. 2009) - trial evidence recited in the opinion [court_record]
- Locator
- Opinion text, section II 'Evidence Presented at Trial'
- Finding type
- litigation_product_id
- Finding
- Products identified in the Oxford trial record: Foster Wheeler D-type marine boilers built to Navy performance/mechanical specifications that 'required that asbestos be used in certain parts of the boilers' - asbestos materials in the insulation, hand holes, manholes, and flanges connecting valves and steam outlets, in the economizer, and one-inch asbestos-containing high-temperature insulating block inside the furnace walls, tube banks, and roof of the steel enclosure. The opinion records that Oxford's repair-shop work 'requir[ed] him to remove, install, disturb, and handle asbestos-containing products' on other warships' boilers, some manufactured by defendant, and expert testimony that 1960s workers repairing and maintaining defendant's boilers without respiratory protection 'would have been exposed to hazardous levels of asbestos.'
- Verification
- verified
- Role
- supporting
- Documentation level
- ship_specific
- Accessed
- 2026-09-19
- Study period
- 1960s repair era litigated
- Population
- Repair-ship boiler shop personnel handling serviced vessels' boiler components
- Limitations
- Product identification for the serviced ships' boilers handled during the Klondike assignment - not documentation of Klondike's own installed plant (the opinion expressly notes Klondike's boiler was not a Foster Wheeler unit). Trial-testimony recitation in an appellate opinion is evidence of what was litigated, not an appellate finding that specific exposures occurred. Vacated-verdict posture: no affirmed judgment resulted.
- Atlas source
- true
- Evidence ID
- ev-uss-klondike-ad22-02
-
[3]Dictionary of American Naval Fighting Ships (NHHC), 'Klondike' (AD-22) entry - ship characteristics, construction, and service narrative through mid-1967 [nhhc_danfs]
- Locator
- DANFS entry 'Klondike' (history.navy.mil, published 2015-07-28; Wayback capture 2023-11-20)
- Finding type
- vessel_history
- Finding
- DANFS: Klondike (AD-22), Klondike class; dp. 8,165; l. 492'; b. 69'8"; dr. 27'3"; s. 18.4 k.; cpl. 826; a. 1 5", 4 3", 4 40mm., 20 20mm. Launched 1944-08-12 by 'Todd Shipbuilding Corp., San Pedro, Calif.'; sponsored by Mrs. Dorothy J. Diirck; commissioned San Pedro 1945-07-30, Comdr. M. B. Hatch in command. Post-shakedown Pearl Harbor run (Oct-Nov 1945); flagship Commander San Diego Group, 19th Fleet from 1945-11-21; in commission in reserve 1946-11-30, in service late summer 1948, flagship until 1955-05-11; recommissioned Long Beach 1959-07-15 (Comdr. F. F. Mullins, Jr.); ServRon 1; reclassified AR-22 1960-02-20; repaired vessels San Diego/Long Beach/San Francisco to 1961-07-15; ServRon 3 Far East (Yokosuka, Sasebo, Iwakuni, Subic Bay) 1961-08 to 1962-02; WestPac deployment 1963-07 to 1963-12 incl. assistance to Greek freighter Cryssism during a typhoon 1963-08-06 to 09; Far East deployment 1966-02-25 to 1966-10-27; repair duty into mid-1967.
- Verification
- verified
- Role
- supporting
- Documentation level
- ship_specific
- Accessed
- 2026-09-19
- Study period
- 1943-1967
- Limitations
- DANFS entry text ends in 1967 (DANFS Vol. III-era entry) - post-1967 service, decommissioning, striking, and disposal are not covered by this source. Contains no asbestos, insulation-material, or condition information. Live NHHC URL returned 404 on 2026-09-19; verified via Wayback capture of the canonical page (2023-11-20).
- Atlas source
- true
- Evidence ID
- ev-uss-klondike-ad22-03
-
[4]Shipscribe.com (T. Colton compilation of official U.S. Navy/Maritime Commission records), Klondike (AD-22) class page - construction table, class notes, and disposition table [other_primary]
- Locator
- AD-22 class page, Construction/Disposition tables and Class Notes/Ship Notes
- Finding type
- vessel_history
- Finding
- Navy-records compilation: class design 'Navy C3' (Navy adaptation of the Maritime Commission C3, duplicating USS Cascade AD-16 with ~90% of working plans; George S. Sharp design agent). AD-22 ordered 1942-12-02 from Los Angeles Shipbuilding & Dry Dock; keel 1943-12-06; launched 1944-08-12; commissioned 1945-07-30. Builder history: Navy requisitioned the Los Angeles yard 1943-12-03, turned it over to Todd Shipyards Corp., N.Y. as managing agent 1943-12-09, and awarded a new contract to Todd Shipyards Corp., San Pedro 1944-07-10. Machinery: G.E. turbine, 1 screw, 8,500 HP; complement 741 (1944). Disposition: decommissioned 1970-12-15; stricken 1974-09-15; disposal 1975-05-08, fate MA/S (MARAD sale). Ship note: 'In USN reserve 1946-59 (in service in reserve at San Diego 1947-55). To AR-22 20 Feb 60.'
- Verification
- verified
- Role
- supporting
- Documentation level
- ship_specific
- Accessed
- 2026-09-19
- Study period
- 1942-1975
- Limitations
- Secondary compilation of official records - reliable for dates/milestones but not itself a primary document; keel date corroborated by a second independent compilation (NavalCoverMuseum). 'In service in reserve 1947-55' here vs. DANFS 'placed in service late summer 1948' - minor discrepancy logged in gaps. Contains no asbestos or materials information.
- Atlas source
- true
- Evidence ID
- ev-uss-klondike-ad22-04
-
[5]U.S. Maritime Administration, ShipHistory database - KLONDIKE (AR-22), Ship History Detail 2894, incl. digitized Form MA-20 'Record of Ship Sales' status card (2894_AF.jpg) [marad_nrc]
- Locator
- ShipHistory Detail 2894; status card image /cards/2894_AF.jpg
- Finding type
- vessel_history
- Finding
- MARAD ShipHistory record: KLONDIKE (AR-22), year built 1944, shipyard Todd-Pacific Shipyards, type Naval Auxiliary / AR Repair Ship, MARAD type C3, fate 'Sold -NTU'. Status card (Form MA-20, Record of Ship Sales): sale PD-X-996; awarded to American Ship Dismantlers, Inc. on 1975-05-08 for $486,177.78; contract MA-7918; light displacement 7,500; location San Diego, California; advertised under PD-X-996 dated 1975-03-25, bids opened 1975-04-25 under two conditions - (1) NTU (non-transportation use) and (2) SCRAP HULL-US; award under condition (1) NTU.
- Verification
- verified
- Role
- supporting
- Documentation level
- ship_specific
- Accessed
- 2026-09-19
- Study period
- 1974-1975 (disposal)
- Limitations
- Authoritative for disposal milestones and sale terms; no asbestos, materials, or hull-condition information on the card. 'NTU' denotes non-transportation-use sale terms; physical dismantling details beyond the sale are not in this record. Shipyard field 'Todd-Pacific Shipyards' reflects the post-1944 yard operator rather than the 1942 contracting yard (Los Angeles Shipbuilding & Dry Dock) - builder attribution handled in ev-04.
- Atlas source
- true
- Evidence ID
- ev-uss-klondike-ad22-05
-
[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 Navy C3-type destroyer tender was built (keel 1943, launched 1944).
- Verification
- verified
- Role
- context
- Documentation level
- class_or_era
- Accessed
- 2026-09-19
- Study period
- 1940s era documented; article 1987
- Population
- WWII shipyard workers and ship crews (class context)
- Limitations
- Program/era-level scholarship; does not name this vessel and does not establish that asbestos was or remains aboard this hull, nor quantity, location, condition, exposure, or causation. Aboard Klondike the era inference is additionally complicated by her scrapping in 1975 - no surviving fabric to survey.
- Atlas source
- true
- Evidence ID
- ev-uss-klondike-ad22-06
-
[7]NavSource Online, Service Ship Photo Archive - USS Klondike (AR-22) ex-AD-22 page (contributor-compiled chronology, awards, commanding-officer roster, NARA-held photo index) [other_primary]
- Locator
- NavSource 09/25/2522 chronology, awards box, CO roster; companion PDF 2522b.pdf
- Finding type
- vessel_history
- Finding
- NavSource compilation: decommissioned and placed in service 1946-11-30 as depot ship for Subgroup Two, San Diego Group, Pacific Reserve Fleet; out of service 1955-05-11; recommissioned 1959-07-15; reclassified AR-22 1960-02-20; struck from the Naval Register 1974-09-15; sold for scrapping 1975-05-08 by MARAD at San Diego to American Ship Dismantlers Inc. (PD-X-996 dated 1975-03-25) for $486,177.78 - matching the MARAD status card. Credits one Vietnam Service Medal campaign star for Tet/69 Counteroffensive, 1969-03-31 to 1969-04-24. Commanding-officer roster gives first CO as CDR Maurice Edward Hatch (USNA 1920).
- Verification
- unverified
- Role
- archival_lead
- Documentation level
- ship_specific
- Accessed
- 2026-09-19
- Study period
- 1945-1975
- Limitations
- Volunteer-compiled archive - not an official source; used as lead corroboration only. The Vietnam campaign-star credit is NOT yet verified against the CNO-approved awards listing (awards.navy.mil unreachable 2026-09-19); carried as unverified. DANFS names the first CO 'M. B. Hatch' - middle-initial discrepancy vs. NavSource's 'Maurice Edward Hatch' is logged in gaps.
- Atlas source
- true
- Evidence ID
- ev-uss-klondike-ad22-07
-
[8]NARA guidance - U.S. Navy Ship Deck Logs, Record Group 24 (Records of the Bureau of Naval Personnel); reproduction via NATF Form 72 process [other_primary]
- Locator
- NARA 'An Introduction to Navy Deck Logs' + 'How to Order Deck Log Reproductions' (RG 24, U.S. Navy Ship Deck Logs series)
- Finding type
- historical_record
- Finding
- Archival lead (not retrieved - requires reproduction order or research-room visit; no spend authorized): Klondike's commissioned-era deck logs (1945-1970) are the record series most likely to document alongside-ship repair operations, shipyard availabilities, and any recorded material-handling or industrial-hygiene entries relevant to asbestos work aboard. Deck logs for commissioned Navy ships are retained permanently in RG 24.
- Verification
- unverified
- Role
- archival_lead
- Documentation level
- context_only
- Accessed
- 2026-09-19
- Study period
- 1945-1970 records
- Limitations
- Record-group mapping only - no retrieval performed; whether the logs contain any asbestos-specific entries is unknown until surveyed. Nothing in this row is an asbestos finding.
- Atlas source
- true
- Evidence ID
- ev-uss-klondike-ad22-08
-
[9]Batch-452 search ledger (this record): NHHC/DANFS (via Wayback); MARAD ShipHistory 2894 + status card; shipscribe AD-22 page; NavSource 2522; NVR (out of coverage); CourtListener API (throttled); web litigation sweep incl. VA BVA file [other_primary]
- Locator
- search_ledger rows sl-uss-klondike-ad22-01 through sl-uss-klondike-ad22-09
- Finding type
- historical_record
- Finding
- No asbestos survey, abatement contract, hazmat disclosure, or hull-condition report naming this hull was located in the public sources searched. Beyond Oxford v. Foster Wheeler, no additional qualifying asbestos opinion or docket naming USS Klondike / AD-22 / AR-22 was located in reachable indexes; a VA Board of Veterans' Appeals decision mentioning Klondike service concerned herbicide (not asbestos) exposure - classified non-qualifying. Law-firm and marketing pages asserting asbestos aboard (asbestos-ships.com, gorilaw.com, mesotheliomabook.com, mesotheliomahope.com) are non-citable and were not used.
- Verification
- verified
- Role
- negative_finding
- Documentation level
- ship_specific
- Accessed
- 2026-09-19
- Study period
- 2026-09-19
- Limitations
- Absence of a located public record does not prove absence of asbestos aboard - the ship was scrapped in 1975 and no survey regime then applied. The CourtListener API was rate-limited (125/day exhausted; ~6h backoff) at research date, so a full opinion/docket sweep by hull number is incomplete - logged as a gap. Does not establish or defeat any exposure claim or legal eligibility.
- Atlas source
- true
- Evidence ID
- ev-uss-klondike-ad22-09