Evidence
10 evidence entries recorded; each entry has a stable permalink (#ev-1 … #ev-10).
-
[1]DANFS, Lawrence V (DDG-4) (builder, dates, specifications block, service narrative through disposal; live NHHC page serves 404 - Wayback capture 2024-12-18 used) [nhhc_danfs]
- Locator
- DANFS entry 'Lawrence V (DDG-4)', specifications block + service narrative + disposal paragraph (entry dated 20 July 2005)
- Finding type
- vessel_history
- Finding
- DANFS record for this hull: 'The fifth Lawrence, a 3370-ton Charles F. Adams guided-missile destroyer built at Camden, New Jersey, was laid down 27 October 1958 by New York Shipbuilding Corp.; launched 27 February 1960; sponsored by Mrs. Fernie C. Hubbard, great-great-grand-daughter of Capt. James Lawrence; and commissioned 6 January 1962, Comdr. Thomas W. Walsh in command.' Specifications block: displacement 3,370 tons; length 437'0"; speed 35 knots; complement 354; armament 1 Tartar missile launcher, 2 5-inch guns, 1 ASROC launcher, 6 ASW torpedo tubes; class Charles F. Adams. Service narrative: Great Lakes shakedown; Norfolk, Atlantic Fleet; Cuban Missile Crisis TG 136.1 quarantine October 1962 - with MacDonough (DLG-8) shadowed tanker Grozny 26 October; Mediterranean deployments 1963, 1964, 1965 (24 Aug-17 Dec), 1966-67 (27 Sep-1 Feb), 1968 (10 Jan-4 May, rescue of New Meadow crewmen off Crete), 1969-70, 1971; NATO North Atlantic exercise 3 Aug-5 Sep 1966; extensive Norfolk overhaul winter 1964-65; one Vietnam War tour 1972-73 (naval gunfire support, plane guard); Indian Ocean/Persian Gulf deployments 1974-75, 1980, 1983; Sixth Fleet cruises 1977-78 and 1979 (brief Black Sea visit); Operation Unitas XVII around South America 1986. 'Lawrence was decommissioned in late March 1990 and stricken from the Naval Vessel Register a few months later. She was sold in April 1994, but was repossessed in October 1996 after the failure of the ship breaking firm. Following two more years in Navy custody, Lawrence's hulk was again sold for scrapping in February 1999.'
- Verification
- verified
- Role
- supporting
- Documentation level
- ship_specific
- Accessed
- 2026-09-28
- Study period
- 1958-1999
- Population
- New York Shipbuilding construction trades 1958-61; crew across 1962-90 Atlantic Fleet career (design complement 354)
- Limitations
- DANFS documents service history and specifications, not materials or asbestos content. The published specifications block carries 'beam 20'0"; draft 20'0"' - a transcription anomaly against the class-consistent NavSource figures (47' beam, 15' max draft); carried in gaps. The DANFS narrative ends at the February 1999 resale; the final 2004 disposition is documented by NVR/NavSource (ev-02, ev-03). Live NHHC URL returns 404 (standing link rot); verbatim text also carried at globalsecurity.org/military/agency/navy/ddg-4.htm.
- Atlas source
- true
- Evidence ID
- ev-uss-lawrence-dd954-01
-
[2]Naval Vessel Register shipdetail, LAWRENCE (DDG 4) GUIDED MISSILE DESTROYER, UIC 04670 (NAVSEA; Wayback captures 2004/2005 and 2010 - live NVR retains only stricken-not-yet-disposed and active ships) [other_primary]
- Locator
- NVR shipdetail DDG4.htm, Wayback captures (status field, status-change date, planned disposition, and date blocks)
- Finding type
- vessel_history
- Finding
- Official NAVSEA register record for this hull: Builder NEW YORK SB CORP; Award Date 03/28/1957; Keel Date 10/27/1958; Launch Date 02/27/1960; Delivery Date 12/20/1961; Commission Date 01/06/1962; Decommission Date 03/30/1990; Stricken Date 05/16/1990. The 2004-05 capture shows status 'Stricken, to be disposed of by scrapping' with 'Date status changed: 07/10/2000' and planned disposition 'TO BE SCRAPPED THROUGH THE SHIP DISPOSAL PROJECT' - i.e., the hull remained in Navy disposal inventory a year and a half after the February 1999 resale recorded by DANFS/navysite. The 2010 capture shows status 'Disposed of by scrapping, dismantling' with 'Date status changed: 10/28/2004' (last updated 01/18/2005) - matching NavSource's sale to Metro Machine Corp. on that date.
- Verification
- verified
- Role
- supporting
- Documentation level
- ship_specific
- Accessed
- 2026-09-28
- Study period
- 1957-2005 (record window)
- Population
- n/a
- Limitations
- NVR documents registry status and the official disposal dates, not materials or asbestos content; it does not name the 1994 or 1999 buyers or state what hazmat work preceded dismantlement. Status-change dates are administrative - the physical dismantlement window is 2004-05 per secondary compilations.
- Atlas source
- true
- Evidence ID
- ev-uss-lawrence-dd954-02
-
[3]NavSource Destroyer Photo Index DD-954 / DDG-4 USS LAWRENCE (building/operational data, specifications, commanding-officer roster, captioned photographs, fate block; site fetch via Wayback 2023 capture - live fetch blocked in-session) [other_primary]
- Locator
- navsource.org/archives/05/01004.htm - specifications block, Operational and Building Data block, fate line, photo captions (Baltimore Fairfield Terminal 1994; Project Lawrence 1971-72), CO roster
- Finding type
- vessel_history
- Finding
- NavSource record for this hull: 'Originally classified as DD-954, classification changed to DDG-4 April 23 1957.' Laid down by New York Shipbuilding 27 October 1958; launched 27 February 1960; commissioned 6 January 1962; decommissioned 30 March 1990; stricken 16 May 1990; fate 'Sold to Metro Machine Corp. October 28 2004 for $184,550.88 for scrapping.' Specifications: 4,526 tons full; 437' x 47' x 15' max; 2 x 5"/54 RF, Tartar SAM (1x2 Mk 11), ASROC (1x8), 6 x 12.75" Mk 32 ASW TT; 70,000 shp geared turbines, 2 screws; 33 kt; 4,500 nm at 20 kt; crew 333-350. Captioned photographs document: the hull at Baltimore's Fairfield Marine Terminal awaiting scrapping alongside ex-Claude V. Ricketts (DDG-5) on 25 August 1994 and (11 November 1994) with ex-Blandy, ex-Forrest Sherman, ex-Davis, and ex-Bigelow; and a late-1971/early-1972 yard period that installed a Chaparral launcher and flame projector on the fantail for 'Project Lawrence,' an evaluation of anti-ship missile defenses, with the after 5"/54 mount removed in 1973. Full commanding-officer roster 1962-1990 (first CO CDR Thomas W. Walsh; final CO CDR Alan Y. Etter, Aug 1989-30 Mar 1990).
- Verification
- verified
- Role
- supporting
- Documentation level
- ship_specific
- Accessed
- 2026-09-28
- Study period
- 1957-2004
- Population
- Crew 1962-1990 (NavSource range 333-350); breaking-yard workers 2004-05
- Limitations
- NavSource is a volunteer-compiled archive, not an official record - dates here agree with DANFS/NVR where they overlap. The Project Lawrence details rest on a single contributor's photo caption (Ed Gillespie); the yard performing the 1971-72 work is not named. The $184,550.88 figure and Metro Machine identification are consistent with the NVR 10/28/2004 status change but the contract instrument itself was not retrieved.
- Atlas source
- true
- Evidence ID
- ev-uss-lawrence-dd954-03
-
[4]NHHC Online Library, 'USN Ships - by Hull Number: DDG - Guided Missile Destroyers' (ibiblio HyperWar transcription of Naval History and Heritage Command content) [other_primary]
- Locator
- ibiblio HyperWar, USN Ships by Hull Number, DDG series - lead narrative + DDG-4 line item
- Finding type
- historical_record
- Finding
- NHHC hull-number authority record resolving this hull's designation chain: 'DDG-4: Lawrence (1962-2003). Originally designated DD-954 and DDG-954.' The accompanying narrative documents that the first eight planned new-type guided-missile destroyers (the Charles F. Adams class) were designated DDG-952 through DDG-959 in August 1956 in the mainstream destroyer series - i.e., this hull's FY57 program designation was DD-954, reclassified DDG-954 in August 1956, then placed in the new DDG series as DDG-4 (23 April 1957 per NavSource) - all before the 27 October 1958 keel laying. DD-954 never designated a commissioned ship.
- Verification
- verified
- Role
- context
- Documentation level
- ship_specific
- Accessed
- 2026-09-28
- Study period
- 1956-1957 (designations)
- Population
- n/a
- Limitations
- Designation history only - establishes that 'DD-954' is a paper program designation, not an asbestos-relevant distinction from the commissioned hull. The intermediate DDG-954 step is corroborated by MaritimeQuest builder's data (DDG-954 on 16 August 1956, DDG-4 on 26 June 1957) which conflicts on the final date - NavSource, Wikipedia, and NavalCoverMuseum agree on 23 April 1957, which is carried.
- Atlas source
- true
- Evidence ID
- ev-uss-lawrence-dd954-04
-
[5]NavSource/DANFS specifications (Charles F. Adams class; four-boiler steam plant) + Atlas shipyard dataset records for New York Shipbuilding (tier 1), Norfolk Naval Shipyard (tier 2), Philadelphia Naval Shipyard (tier 3) [other_primary]
- Locator
- NavSource specifications block (DDG-4); shipyards.json records 'new-york-shipbuilding', 'norfolk-naval-shipyard', 'philadelphia-naval-shipyard'; Wikipedia class spec for maker attribution (secondary)
- Finding type
- asbestos_application
- Finding
- Era/yard inference: a Charles F. Adams-class guided-missile destroyer built 1958-61 with a four-boiler 1,275-psi 70,000-shp geared-steam-turbine plant (class spec: Foster Wheeler boilers, Westinghouse turbines) would have carried period-standard asbestos insulation, lagging, gaskets, packing, fireproofing, and deck coverings. Builder New York Shipbuilding Corporation (Camden) is documented at yard level in the Atlas dataset at tier 1 - the strongest yard documentation class - including named asbestos products (Ehret 85% magnesia insulation, Pabco Six-Ply Super Caltemp block, Johns-Manville Transite panels, Bakelite panels, asbestos gaskets and packing, asbestos-coated welding rods, wire insulation, felt insulation) and cohort findings (mesothelioma risk 16x background for electricians; ~86% asbestosis among ship-repair workers in a referenced study). Overhaul yard Norfolk Naval Shipyard (November 1964-April 1965 availability) is tier 2, and NISMF Philadelphia custody sat on the former Philadelphia Naval Shipyard site (tier 3).
- Verification
- inferred
- Role
- supporting
- Documentation level
- class_or_era
- Accessed
- 2026-09-28
- Study period
- 1958-2004
- Population
- New York Shipbuilding construction trades 1958-61; Norfolk NSY overhaul workers 1964-65; crew 1962-90
- Limitations
- Class/era and builder-yard inference only - NOT a hull-level finding. No ship-specific asbestos finding exists for DD-954/DDG-4 (see ev-10 negative finding). Yard product documentation does not establish what was installed aboard this hull, and the yard's cohort studies largely reflect different trades and periods. Establishes no individual exposure, no product identity aboard, and no quantity.
- Atlas source
- true
- Evidence ID
- ev-uss-lawrence-dd954-05
-
[6]GAO, Navy Efforts To Protect Workers From Asbestos Exposure, HRD-80-2 (Oct 18, 1979) [gao]
- Locator
- GAO product page HRD-80-2
- Finding type
- gov_survey
- Finding
- GAO documented that the Navy used asbestos insulation extensively aboard ships, did not begin substituting alternative insulation until the early 1970s, and removed asbestos insulation under standing policy only when damaged or required for repairs (1975 policy, modified 1979 to selective replacement in high-maintenance areas) - placing this hull's construction (1958-61), its Norfolk overhaul (1964-65), its Project Lawrence yard period (1971-72), and its entire service career (1962-1990) inside the documented asbestos-use era.
- Verification
- verified
- Role
- context
- Documentation level
- context_only
- Accessed
- 2026-09-28
- Study period
- 1979 (report); 1958-2004 (this hull's era)
- Population
- Navy shipyard workers; asbestos program review
- Limitations
- Program-level documentation; supports era context only, not any fact specific to this hull. Full report text not retrieved (gao.gov blocks automated fetch, HTTP 403 - standing, same as Batch-01); content via product-page description.
- Atlas source
- true
- Evidence ID
- ev-uss-lawrence-dd954-06
-
[7]CourtListener API v4 sweep for 'USS Lawrence' / 'DDG-4' / 'DD-954' / 'Lawrence' asbestos (opinions and RECAP dockets) via authenticated fleet-paced helper (cl-auth-search.py) [court_record]
- Locator
- cl-auth-search.py stderr diagnostics (exit 2 pacing banner, six attempts 2026-09-28); batch-3249 uss-lawrence-dd250.atlas.json search ledger (Great Lakes Dredge v. USS Lawrence (DDG-4), E.D.N.Y. 1989)
- Finding type
- litigation_documented
- Finding
- CourtListener sweep could not be executed in-session: every authenticated request through the fleet-paced helper (cl-auth-search.py) returned exit 2 - 'fleet-wide request budget momentarily spent' - across six spaced attempts over ~2.5 hours (the shared ~114/hr budget is consumed by concurrent fleet sessions). One out-of-band result is documented from a prior batch: the batch-3249 'USS Lawrence' sweep for DD-250 located Great Lakes Dredge v. USS Lawrence (DDG-4) (E.D.N.Y. 1989) - an admiralty proceeding naming this hull, classified as other litigation / name context, NOT asbestos litigation. No qualifying asbestos litigation naming this hull is verified; the direct sweep remains unrun.
- Verification
- unverified
- Role
- context
- Documentation level
- ship_specific
- Accessed
- 2026-09-28
- Study period
- sweep attempted 2026-09-28
- Population
- n/a
- Limitations
- Sweep NOT RUN (blocked, not a negative result): absence of a CourtListener finding in this record means the search could not be performed, not that no docket exists. 'Lawrence' is a high-collision name (Lawrence v. Texas; Lawrence County; party names; four naval hulls share 'USS Lawrence'), so future hits require hull resolution - exposure claims with 1962-1990 service windows involve this hull (DDG-4); earlier windows involve DD-8 or DD-250. Re-run '"USS Lawrence"' (type=o and type=r), '"DDG-4"', '"DD-954"', and '"USS Lawrence" asbestos' when the fleet budget clears.
- Atlas source
- true
- Evidence ID
- ev-uss-lawrence-dd954-07
-
[8]Maritime Reporter, 'Heightened Scrutiny On Ship Scrapping' (July 2000) + usspreble.org letter from Metro Machine Corp. manager Harry Lewis describing NAVSEA 333 dismantlement of ex-Preble (DDG-46) [reputable_press]
- Locator
- Maritime Reporter July 2000 feature; usspreble.org/location.html (quoted correspondence from Metro Machine Corp.)
- Finding type
- regulatory
- Finding
- Program-level documentation of the dismantlement regime this hulk entered at the October 2004 Metro Machine sale: Maritime Reporter (July 2000) records that obsolete Navy and MARAD hulls of this era 'contain a number of hazardous substances, including asbestos and solid and liquid polychlorinated biphenyls (PCBs),' that EPA had halted non-compliant foreign scrapping, and that in September 1999 the Navy awarded pilot dismantlement contracts (~$1.8-3.8M per ship) to Baltimore Marine Industries, International Shipbreaking Ltd. (Brownsville), a Ship Dismantling & Recycling JV, and Metro Machine Corp. to establish compliant domestic scrapping. The Metro Machine manager's letter on the parallel DDG-46 dismantlement (NAVSEA 333, Philadelphia Naval Business Center Drydock 2) describes the actual process for this hulk class: removal of hull insulation and interference items, sandblasting interior PCB paint systems to EPA standards, and segregated waste streams expressly including 'asbestos insulation' among PCB paint chips, lubricants, fiberglass insulation, bilgewater, and gaskets.
- Verification
- verified
- Role
- context
- Documentation level
- context_only
- Accessed
- 2026-09-28
- Study period
- 1998-2005 (program era); 2004-05 (this hull's dismantlement)
- Population
- Shipbreaking/dismantlement workers, Navy Ship Disposal Program era
- Limitations
- Process documentation for the NAVSEA dismantlement program and this contractor's method - NOT a survey or hazmat inventory of ex-Lawrence. The letter documents DDG-46's dismantlement; the same contractor and program dismantled Lawrence, but no hull-specific manifest or clearance record for DDG-4 is public.
- Atlas source
- true
- Evidence ID
- ev-uss-lawrence-dd954-08
-
[9]Archival leads not retrieved: NARA RG 24 deck logs (USS Lawrence DDG-4, 1962-1990); NARA RG 19 BuShips General Information Book / per-vessel material specifications; NHHC Command Operation Reports for the deployment years (a Vietnam-era Lawrence COR PDF did not surface under the filename patterns tried at history.navy.mil); New York Shipbuilding Corp. hull files (yard closed 1967-68; records dispersed - NHHC/maritime collections); NAVSEA Ship Disposal Program contract files for the 1994 sale, 1999 resale, and 2004 Metro Machine sale (would name buyers and any hazmat milestones); PADEP environmental files for the Philadelphia dismantlement [other_primary]
- Locator
- catalog.archives.gov; history.navy.mil command-operation-reports collection; NAVSEA 333 ship-disposal contract records
- Finding type
- historical_record
- Finding
- Hull-level material documentation may exist in archives: RG 24 deck logs for this hull (1962-1990), RG 19 BuShips General Information Books (per-vessel material specifications), NHHC command-operation-report volumes for the deployment years (the digitized Vietnam COR collection did not return a Lawrence file under the filename conventions tried - 'Lawrence 1972', 'Lawrence DDG-4 1972', 'USS Lawrence DDG-4 1972', hyphen/underscore variants), New York Shipbuilding construction records, and NAVSEA ship-disposal contract files for the three sales (1994 / 1999 / 2004) - the most asbestos-relevant potential record set, since disposal contracts specified hazmat handling. None was retrieved.
- Verification
- unverified
- Role
- archival_lead
- Documentation level
- ship_specific
- Accessed
- 2026-09-28
- Study period
- 1958-2005 records; leads identified 2026-09-28
- Population
- n/a
- Limitations
- Leads only - retrieval not performed; these holdings may or may not contain asbestos-relevant material specifications, yard work packages, or disposal hazmat records for this hull.
- Atlas source
- true
- Evidence ID
- ev-uss-lawrence-dd954-09
-
[10]Batch-3876 search ledger (this record): NHHC DANFS (live 404, verbatim Wayback capture used); NVR shipdetail via Wayback captures; NHHC hull-number list (ibiblio); NavSource DD-954/DDG-4 index (Wayback); navysite.de / seaforces.org / hazegray.org compilations; VA BVA decisions (web-index enumeration only - interface does not admit automated query); usspreble.org / Maritime Reporter disposal-program sources; GAO HRD-80-2 product page; shipyards.json yard records; CourtListener API v4 (blocked - fleet pacing) [other_primary]
- Locator
- search_ledger rows sl-uss-lawrence-dd954-01 through sl-uss-lawrence-dd954-10
- Finding type
- historical_record
- Finding
- No qualifying ship-specific asbestos record located: no asbestos survey, abatement contract, ACM inventory, product identification, museum hazmat disclosure, pre-disposal hazmat disclosure, BVA decision naming the hull, or adjudicated exposure finding naming DD-954/DDG-4 was found in the sources searched (see search_ledger). The CourtListener sweep itself was blocked by fleet pacing and is logged as blocked, not as a negative result - private-civil-asbestos dockets naming this hull may exist unlocated.
- 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 - a 1958-61 steam-plant guided-missile destroyer built at a tier-1 documented asbestos yard sits squarely in the documented asbestos-use era (ev-05, ev-06). Does not establish that asbestos is or is not present aboard, does not establish or defeat any claim of exposure or legal eligibility.
- Atlas source
- true
- Evidence ID
- ev-uss-lawrence-dd954-10