Evidence
13 evidence entries recorded; each entry has a stable permalink (#ev-1 … #ev-13).
-
[1]Naval History and Heritage Command, Dictionary of American Naval Fighting Ships, 'Magpie II (YMS-400)' [nhhc_danfs]
- Locator
- DANFS entry, postwar service, Korean War, loss, strike, and award paragraphs
- Finding type
- vessel_history
- Finding
- DANFS service narrative: after the Japanese surrender the ship arrived in the Panama Canal Zone on 10 September 1945 for six months of minesweeping; for the next three years, based at Guam, she continued sweeping duties interspersed with practice exercises in the Marshall, Caroline, and Palau Islands. Magpie began minesweeping duty off Korea in September 1950. On 1 October 1950, while operating off the east coast of Korea with sister ship Merganser (AMS-26), she struck a floating mine two miles off Chuksan and sank. Twenty-one of her crew, including the commanding officer, Lt. (jg.) Warren R. Person, were never found; Merganser picked up the 12 survivors and took them to Pusan. Magpie was struck from the Navy list on 20 October 1950 and received one battle star for Korean service.
- Verification
- partial
- Role
- supporting
- Documentation level
- ship_specific
- Accessed
- 2026-09-24
- Study period
- 1945-1950
- Limitations
- NHHC (history.navy.mil) returned HTTP 503 to the fetch tool and failed at the proxy to curl on every attempt this session; the page text was read only as search-engine index excerpts of this canonical NHHC URL (WebSearch restricted to history.navy.mil, 2026-09-24), not as a live page read. The index excerpts do not show the ship's 1943-1945 wartime service in full, so that service is not described here (see gaps). The loss date conflicts with another NHHC publication (see ev-uss-magpie-ams25-03). The 21 missing and 12 survivors are loss-event figures and are not an authorized complement. Contains no asbestos information and supports no asbestos claim.
- Atlas source
- true
- Evidence ID
- ev-uss-magpie-ams25-02
-
[2]NHHC, 'Ships Sunk and Damaged in Action during the Korean Conflict' (Online Reading Room), compared with DANFS 'Magpie II (YMS-400)' [nhhc_danfs]
- Locator
- Korean-conflict loss table, Magpie (AMS-25) line; DANFS loss paragraph
- Finding type
- historical_record
- Finding
- Unresolved discrepancy in the loss date. DANFS gives 1 October 1950 (ev-uss-magpie-ams25-02). A search-index excerpt returned with the NHHC Online Reading Room publication 'Ships Sunk and Damaged in Action during the Korean Conflict' gives 29 September 1950, with 21 missing in action and 12 survivors. The casualty figures agree (21 missing, 12 survivors) but the dates differ. Neither date is adopted over the other in this record.
- Verification
- disputed
- Role
- correction
- Documentation level
- ship_specific
- Accessed
- 2026-09-24
- Study period
- 1950
- Limitations
- NHHC (history.navy.mil) returned HTTP 503 to the fetch tool and failed at the proxy to curl on every attempt this session; the page text was read only as search-engine index excerpts of this canonical NHHC URL (WebSearch restricted to history.navy.mil, 2026-09-24), not as a live page read. The index snippet containing 29 September 1950 could not be tied with certainty to the loss table rather than to another NHHC page returned in the same search. The discrepancy is recorded so it is not silently resolved. The record's date fields carry both dates. Contains no asbestos information.
- Atlas source
- true
- Evidence ID
- ev-uss-magpie-ams25-03
-
[3]National Archives, Special List #44, by Ship Numbers (Navy deck logs) [other_primary]
- Locator
- Entry 'YMS-400 5/15/1943 6/30/1946' (PDF text extraction this session)
- Finding type
- historical_record
- Finding
- NARA Special List 44 (Navy deck logs, by ship number) lists wartime deck logs for 'YMS-400' with begin date 5/15/1943 and end date 6/30/1946. This establishes in-scope U.S. Navy service under the YMS-400 designation for at least that interval.
- Verification
- verified
- Role
- supporting
- Documentation level
- ship_specific
- Accessed
- 2026-09-24
- Study period
- 1943-05-15 to 1946-06-30
- Limitations
- Finding-aid listing of holdings only; the logs themselves were not retrieved or read. Per the batch brief, log coverage is not treated as a commissioning date (commissioning is supported separately by ev-02). Deck logs for 1946-1950 (AMS-25 period, including Korea) are not on this list and were not located. No asbestos content; supports no asbestos claim.
- Atlas source
- true
- Evidence ID
- ev-uss-magpie-ams25-04
-
[4]National Archives, 'Researching Asbestos aboard US Naval Vessel up through 1961' (Guided Research Topics for U.S. Navy Records) [other_primary]
- Locator
- 'Bureau of Ships General, Confidential, and Secret Correspondence' section; series links https://catalog.archives.gov/id/583799 (A1 1266-N), https://catalog.archives.gov/id/584016 (UD 1001) through https://catalog.archives.gov/id/587314 (UD 1004)
- Finding type
- historical_record
- Finding
- Archival lead (not retrieved; needs a research-room visit or a reproduction order, and no spending is authorized). NARA's guide 'Researching Asbestos aboard US Naval Vessel up through 1961' directs researchers to Record Group 19 (Bureau of Ships) correspondence, filed under the Navy Filing Manual by hull designation, then class, then type. For this hull the file codes would be YMS400 (hull), the YMS-1 class file, and the YMS type file. Candidate series: RG 19 Entry A1 1266-N, General Correspondence 1940-1945 (file codes YA through ZZ), and Entries UD 1001-UD 1004, Unclassified General Correspondence 1947-1950. The guide also recommends the builder's QM (private contractor) file, which here would be QM/Henry B. Nevins, Inc.
- Verification
- unverified
- Role
- archival_lead
- Documentation level
- context_only
- Accessed
- 2026-09-24
- Study period
- 1940-1950 records
- Limitations
- Maps record groups and series only; no box-level search was done. Whether any file for YMS400 or the YMS-1 class names asbestos-containing materials is unknown until the files are examined. The file-code spellings are extrapolated from the guide's DD661/DD445 example and have not been confirmed in the finding aids. Nothing in this row is an asbestos finding.
- Atlas source
- true
- Evidence ID
- ev-uss-magpie-ams25-05
-
[5]Corn, J.K., and Starr, J., 'Historical perspective on asbestos: policies and protective measures in World War II shipbuilding,' American Journal of Industrial Medicine 11(3):359-373 (1987); PMID 3555021 [other_primary]
- Locator
- Article (AJIM 11(3):359-373); bibliographic data confirmed via NCBI E-utilities esummary, PMID 3555021, 2026-09-24
- Finding type
- asbestos_application
- Finding
- A peer-reviewed historical study documents that asbestos was used extensively as a fireproofing and insulating material in U.S. shipbuilding during World War II, the period in which this hull was built (laid down 1942, commissioned 1943).
- Verification
- verified
- Role
- context
- Documentation level
- class_or_era
- Accessed
- 2026-09-24
- Study period
- 1940s era; article 1987
- Population
- WWII shipyard workers and ship crews (era context)
- Limitations
- Era-level scholarship on WWII shipbuilding in general. It does not name this vessel, the YMS-1 class, or Henry B. Nevins, Inc., and does not address small motor minesweepers. It does not establish that asbestos was ever aboard this hull, or any quantity, location, exposure, or causation. Bibliographic details were verified; the full text was not re-read this session.
- Atlas source
- true
- Evidence ID
- ev-uss-magpie-ams25-06
-
[6]Franke, K., and Paustenbach, D., 'Government and Navy knowledge regarding health hazards of asbestos: a state of the science evaluation (1900 to 1970),' Inhalation Toxicology 23(Suppl 3):1-20 (2011); PMID 22200078 [other_primary]
- Locator
- Article (Inhal Toxicol 23 Suppl 3:1-20); bibliographic data confirmed via NCBI E-utilities esummary, PMID 22200078, 2026-09-24
- Finding type
- asbestos_application
- Finding
- A peer-reviewed review traces U.S. government and Navy knowledge of asbestos health hazards from 1900 to 1970, a period covering this vessel's entire Navy service (1943-1950).
- Verification
- verified
- Role
- context
- Documentation level
- class_or_era
- Accessed
- 2026-09-24
- Study period
- 1900-1970
- Population
- U.S. Navy personnel and shipyard workers (institutional context)
- Limitations
- Institutional-knowledge context only. It does not name this vessel or its class and says nothing about materials installed aboard it. Its authorship has been associated with litigation-defense consulting, so it is used only as timeline context and never as exposure evidence. It supports no ship-specific asbestos claim.
- Atlas source
- true
- Evidence ID
- ev-uss-magpie-ams25-07
-
[7]CourtListener API v4 search (opinions and RECAP), batch-1714 search ledger [court_record]
- Locator
- search_ledger rows sl-uss-magpie-ams25-06 through sl-uss-magpie-ams25-09
- Finding type
- litigation_documented
- Finding
- No qualifying asbestos litigation located. CourtListener API v4 searches (via the authenticated CourtListener connector) for this hull's identifiers returned: 'USS Magpie' (opinions) 0; 'YMS-400' (opinions) 0; 'USS Magpie' OR 'U.S.S. Magpie' OR 'YMS-400' OR 'YMS 400' (RECAP documents) 0; Magpie AND asbestos (opinions) 0. Non-qualifying hits: Magpie AND (minesweeper OR 'AMS-25' OR 'YMS-400' OR Navy) returned 1 opinion, United States v. Bahe, 40 F. Supp. 2d 1302 (D.N.M. 1998), a federal criminal case (name collision); 'U.S.S. Magpie' OR 'YMS 400' OR 'AMS-25' returned 1 opinion, Nerison v. National Fire Ins. Co. (Neb. Ct. App. 2008), an insurance dispute ('AMS-25' string collision); a combined RECAP-document query that included Magpie AND asbestos returned 29 filings from asbestos bankruptcy dockets (e.g., W.R. Grace) and unrelated matters, none of which names the hull (name collision / non-qualifying).
- Verification
- verified
- Role
- negative_finding
- Documentation level
- ship_specific
- Accessed
- 2026-09-24
- Study period
- searches run 2026-09-24
- Limitations
- A negative search result, not proof that no claim exists. CourtListener does not index most state trial-court asbestos dockets, bankruptcy-trust claim filings, or VA claims. 'Magpie' is a four-way U.S. Navy name collision (AMc-2, AMS-25/YMS-400, AMCU-29/MHC-29 ex-LCI(L)-944, AM-418), so any future hit must be matched by hull number. The citation_url points to the collision case only as a pinpoint for the ledger, not as evidence about this ship.
- Atlas source
- true
- Evidence ID
- ev-uss-magpie-ams25-08
-
[8]Batch-1714 search ledger for this record [other_primary]
- Locator
- search_ledger rows sl-uss-magpie-ams25-01 through sl-uss-magpie-ams25-13
- Finding type
- historical_record
- Finding
- No qualifying ship-specific asbestos record located. The sources searched this session contain no asbestos survey, abatement record, hazmat disclosure, casualty-report materials statement, or docketed case naming YMS-400 / Magpie (AMS-25): the DANFS entry (as indexed), NHHC Korean-conflict loss publication (as indexed), NARA deck-log listing page, NARA asbestos research guide (general only), and CourtListener. The ship sank in 1950, so no hull survives for survey.
- Verification
- verified
- Role
- negative_finding
- Documentation level
- ship_specific
- Accessed
- 2026-09-24
- Study period
- searches run 2026-09-24
- Limitations
- Not finding a public record does not prove asbestos was absent. No inference about materials aboard is drawn from the class, construction era, or propulsion. The primary vessel-history sources were read only through index excerpts because of the NHHC outage, and NavSource was unreachable. Does not establish or defeat any exposure claim or legal eligibility.
- Atlas source
- true
- Evidence ID
- ev-uss-magpie-ams25-09
-
[9]National Archives Catalog, NAID 193222040, 'YMS-400', series 'Muster Rolls of U.S. Navy Ships, Stations, and Other Naval Activities, 1939-1949' (NAID 594996), Records of the Bureau of Naval Personnel (RG 24) [other_primary]
- Locator
- Image 32863_256143-00002 (quarterly forwarding sheet, 30 June 1943)
- Finding type
- historical_record
- Finding
- NARA RG 24/BuPers muster-roll file unit 'YMS-400' (182 digitized images). The first roll's forwarding sheet (BNP 605) is headed 'U.S.S. YMS 400', dated 30 June 1943, forwarded from Key West, Florida, certified by Lt.(jg) Harold A. Goldberg (Executive Officer) and approved by Lt. Alan Grayson Lynn (Commanding Officer); a handwritten archival annotation on the sheet reads 'comm 5-15-43 to 1-1-47 final', i.e. rolls run from commissioning on 15 May 1943 to a final roll dated 1 January 1947.
- Verification
- verified
- Role
- supporting
- Documentation level
- ship_specific
- Accessed
- 2026-09-24
- Study period
- 1943-05-15 to 1947-01-01
- Population
- Enlisted crew of YMS-400, 1943-1947 (names on rolls; not transcribed)
- Limitations
- Read directly from the digitized image this session. The '5-15-43' commissioning annotation is a handwritten archival notation on the roll, independently consistent with the DANFS commissioning date (ev-01) and the deck-log start date (ev-04). Muster rolls list enlisted personnel only; the remaining 179 images were not transcribed, so no complement figure is derived from them. No asbestos, materials, or machinery content; supports no asbestos claim and does not establish any individual's exposure.
- Atlas source
- true
- Evidence ID
- ev-uss-magpie-ams25-10
-
[10]National Archives Catalog, NAID 472239683 'Magpie (AMS-25) 1 October 1950' and NAID 472242944 'USS YMS-400', series 'Casualty Information Reports' (NAID 803937), RG 24 [other_primary]
- Locator
- Catalog file-unit descriptions; NAID 472242944 at https://catalog.archives.gov/id/472242944 ; National Archives at College Park, Textual Reference
- Finding type
- historical_record
- Finding
- NARA holds a Bureau of Naval Personnel casualty file unit titled 'Magpie (AMS-25) 1 October 1950' (paper, container 209) and a separate casualty file unit 'USS YMS-400' (paper, container 99) in the series 'Casualty Information Reports, 1941-1960', which the series description says contains casualty notifications, status reports (confirmed casualty or missing), case dispositions, next-of-kin notification, and in some cases details of the events surrounding the casualty.
- Verification
- verified
- Role
- archival_lead
- Documentation level
- ship_specific
- Accessed
- 2026-09-24
- Study period
- 1943-1950
- Population
- Crew casualties of 1 October 1950 (and any YMS-400-era casualties)
- Limitations
- Catalog-description level only: neither file unit is digitized and neither was read. The file title independently corroborates the 1 October 1950 loss date in ev-01 but not the cause, location, or number of casualties. The contents of the WWII-era 'USS YMS-400' file are unknown. These are casualty (personnel) records, not materials records; nothing in this row is an asbestos finding.
- Atlas source
- true
- Evidence ID
- ev-uss-magpie-ams25-11
-
[11]National Archives Catalog, NAID 175667653 'YMS-400', series 'Microfilm of Ship Engineering Drawings' (NAID 559593), Records of the Bureau of Ships (RG 19) [other_primary]
- Locator
- National Archives at College Park - Cartographic; not digitized
- Finding type
- historical_record
- Finding
- NARA Bureau of Ships holds a file unit 'YMS-400' in the series 'Microfilm of Ship Engineering Drawings, 1945-1955', which the series description says shows basic hull and deck construction and mechanical and electrical systems of commissioned Navy ships. These drawings are the most direct available lead for machinery-space insulation, lagging, gasket, and packing specifications for this hull.
- Verification
- unverified
- Role
- archival_lead
- Documentation level
- ship_specific
- Accessed
- 2026-09-24
- Study period
- 1945-1955 (series dates)
- Limitations
- Existence of the file unit is verified from the catalog, but the drawings were not retrieved (not digitized; reproduction order or research-room visit required, no spend authorized). Whether they specify any asbestos-containing material is unknown. Nothing in this row is an asbestos finding.
- Atlas source
- true
- Evidence ID
- ev-uss-magpie-ams25-12
-
[12]National Archives Catalog NAID 53484480 and NAID 2676053; National Archives Special List #44 entry 'AMC-2 (Magpie)' [other_primary]
- Locator
- https://catalog.archives.gov/id/2676053 ; https://www.archives.gov/files/research/military/logbooks/sl-44-ship-number.pdf
- Finding type
- historical_record
- Finding
- Two NARA catalog hits for 'Magpie' Navy records belong to an earlier, different vessel, not this hull: 'Plans for the Coastal Minesweeper USS Magpie (AMc-2)' (NAID 53484480) and '16547 - Magpie - AMC32 - 3/15/1941' inclining data (NAID 2676053); NARA Special List 44 likewise lists deck logs for 'AMC-2 (Magpie)' 3/27/1941-3/31/1942, before YMS-400 was launched (1943). The DANFS title 'Magpie II' reflects that this hull was the second Navy ship of the name. These records are excluded from this record.
- Verification
- verified
- Role
- correction
- Documentation level
- ship_specific
- Accessed
- 2026-09-24
- Study period
- 1941-1942
- Limitations
- Name-collision exclusion: dates (1941-1942) predate this hull's 1943 launch, and the designation differs (AMc-2). Prevents misattribution of the earlier Magpie's drawings and logs to AMS-25. No asbestos content.
- Atlas source
- true
- Evidence ID
- ev-uss-magpie-ams25-13
-
[13]Naval History and Heritage Command, Dictionary of American Naval Fighting Ships, 'Magpie II (YMS-400)' [nhhc_danfs]
- Locator
- DANFS entry, opening paragraph (construction, commissioning) and 1947 renaming/reclassification sentence
- Finding type
- vessel_history
- Finding
- DANFS 'Magpie II (YMS-400)': YMS-400 was laid down by Henry B. Nevins, Inc., City Island, New York, N.Y., on 3 July 1942; launched 24 March 1943; and commissioned 15 May 1943. YMS-400 was named Magpie and reclassified AMS-25 on 17 February 1947. DANFS describes the vessel as an auxiliary motor minesweeper.
- Verification
- partial
- Role
- supporting
- Documentation level
- ship_specific
- Accessed
- 2026-09-24
- Study period
- 1942-1947
- Limitations
- NHHC (history.navy.mil) returned HTTP 503 to the fetch tool and failed at the proxy to curl on every attempt this session; the page text was read only as search-engine index excerpts of this canonical NHHC URL (WebSearch restricted to history.navy.mil, 2026-09-24), not as a live page read. Dates are consistent across several independent index excerpts of the same page but must be re-confirmed against a live read before production. The commissioning date comes from DANFS, not from NARA deck-log coverage. Establishes identity only; contains no asbestos, insulation, or materials information and supports no asbestos claim.
- Atlas source
- true
- Evidence ID
- ev-uss-magpie-ams25-01