USS Mayfield (PC-1196)

Evidence

10 evidence entries recorded; each entry has a stable permalink (#ev-1 … #ev-10).

1. [1]research packet 866-packet.md (1 sources cited) [nhhc_danfs]

   Finding type

   vessel_history

   Finding

   Identity packet verdict: VERIFIED

   Verification

   verified

   Role

   supporting

   Documentation level

   ship_specific

   Evidence ID

   uss-mayfield-pc1196-pkt-866-packet-md

2. [2]DANFS, 'Mayfield (PC-1196) 1943-1959' (Naval History and Heritage Command live page, and the fuller transcription of the same entry mirrored at hazegray/losthistory) [nhhc_danfs]

   Locator

   DANFS entry, specification block + service narrative (published online 2017-10-12)

   Finding type

   vessel_history

   Finding

   The live NHHC DANFS entry 'Mayfield (PC-1196) 1943-1959' ('A city in Kentucky') records: laid down 29 August 1942 at Morris Heights, N.J. [sic - Bronx, N.Y. per all other sources] by Consolidated Shipbuilding Corp.; launched 24 October 1942, sponsored by Mrs. S. M. Parslow, Jr.; commissioned at New York Navy Yard, Brooklyn, N.Y., 7 April 1943, Lt. John A. Williamson in command. Assigned to the Caribbean Sea Frontier, she departed New York 24 April 1943 for the Submarine Chaser Training Center, Miami, Fla., arriving three days later; after two weeks of training she sailed 10 May - the hazegray transcription of this same DANFS entry adds that she 'returned to Miami briefly for repairs from 14 to 25 May' - then departed Guantanamo Bay on the first of 22 patrol cruises from Cuba to Trinidad and Aruba and back, averaging almost one full patrol every 20 days. She operated on patrol and convoy duty in the Caribbean through 1945, putting into Kingston, Jamaica, and St. Thomas, Virgin Islands, periodically for repairs. She entered the navy yard at San Juan, P.R., in June 1945 for an extensive overhaul, then sailed to Charleston and decommissioned in July 1946, serving over three more years as a Naval Reserve training ship out of that port. The live entry's closing sentence reads 'Finally, in December 1956, she was struck from the Naval Register 1 April 1959 and sold to Wash. Construction Co. New York'; the hazegray transcription instead reads 'in December 1949, she was placed in the Atlantic Reserve Fleet at Norfolk, named Mayfield on 15 February 1956' and gives the buyer as 'Walsh Construction Co.' Specification block: displacement 450; length 173'8"; beam 23'; draft 10'10"; speed 20.2 knots; complement 65; armament 1 3-inch; class PC-461.

   Verification

   verified

   Role

   supporting

   Documentation level

   ship_specific

   Accessed

   2026-10-03

   Study period

   1942-1959

   Population

   Consolidated Shipbuilding Corp. construction trades (1942-43); U.S. Navy crew (1943-46); Naval Reserve trainees (1946-49)

   Limitations

   DANFS documents service history and specifications, not materials or asbestos content. The live entry contains two internal defects: it prints the builder's location as 'Morris Heights, N.J.' (the yard was in Morris Heights, Bronx, N.Y. per NavSource, shipbuildinghistory.com, and the Mystic Seaport photo catalog), and its closing sentence 'in December 1956, she was struck from the Naval Register 1 April 1959' is garbled - December 1949 was the Atlantic Reserve Fleet lay-up and 15 February 1956 the naming (per NavSource, uboat.net, and the hazegray DANFS transcription); the live NHHC text omits the naming sentence entirely. Dates that conflict with corroborated sources are carried in gaps.

   Atlas source

   true

   Evidence ID

   ev-uss-mayfield-pc1196-01

3. [3]NavSource Naval History, Submarine Chaser Photo Archive, Mayfield (PC-1196), live hull page [other_primary]

   Locator

   Mayfield (PC-1196) hull page, chronology block, specifications block, commanding-officers table

   Finding type

   vessel_history

   Finding

   NavSource's live PC-1196 hull page identifies the vessel as a PC-461-class submarine chaser, call sign November-Quebec-Delta-Charlie, later named Mayfield. It states that Consolidated Shipbuilding Corp. at Morris Heights, NY laid the vessel down on 29 August 1942; launched it 24 October 1942; commissioned USS PC-1196 on 7 April 1943 at the New York Navy Yard, Brooklyn, NY; that it decommissioned in July 1946 at Charleston, SC and was placed in service as a naval reserve training vessel in the 5th Naval District (Norfolk); was placed out of service in December 1949 and laid up in the Atlantic Reserve Fleet, Norfolk Group; was named Mayfield 15 February 1956; and was struck from the Navy Register 1 April 1959 and sold for scrap to Welsh Construction Co. of New York, NY. Specifications given: 450-ton displacement, 173 feet 8 inches length, 23-foot beam, 10 feet 10 inches draft, 20.2-knot speed, complement 65, armament of one 3"/50 dual-purpose mount, one 40mm mount, five 20mm guns, two rocket launchers and two depth-charge tracks, and two 1,440 bhp Hooven-Owen-Rentschler R-99DA diesel engines with Westinghouse single reduction gear driving two shafts. Listed commanding officer: LT John Alexander Williamson, USNR, from 7 April 1943.

   Verification

   verified

   Role

   supporting

   Documentation level

   ship_specific

   Accessed

   2026-10-03

   Study period

   1942-1959

   Population

   Consolidated construction workers (1942-43); U.S. Navy crew (1943-46); Naval Reserve trainees (1946-49)

   Limitations

   NavSource is a volunteer naval-history photo/archive compilation rather than a Navy material record; its milestone dates agree with DANFS where DANFS is ungarbled, and it supplies the naming date (15 February 1956) and the December 1949 lay-up that the live DANFS text omits or garbles. Its '5th Naval District (Norfolk)' reserve-training assignment conflicts with the DANFS implication that the reserve trainer operated out of Charleston - carried in gaps. Its 'Welsh Construction Co.' scrap buyer differs from the DANFS variants 'Wash.' and 'Walsh' - carried in gaps. It does not document asbestos, asbestos-containing products, crew exposure, or repair scope.

   Atlas source

   true

   Evidence ID

   ev-uss-mayfield-pc1196-02

4. [4]National Archives and Records Administration, Special List 44: Lists of Logbooks of U.S. Navy Ships, Stations, and Miscellaneous Units, by Ship Numbers [other_primary]

   Locator

   Special List 44, PDF p. 67 (document page count), PC-1196 row: 4/7/1943-6/30/1945

   Finding type

   historical_record

   Finding

   The National Archives' Special List 44, by Ship Numbers, lists PC-1196 with deck-log coverage beginning 7 April 1943 (the commissioning date) and ending 30 June 1945. The logs are an archival lead for hull-level wartime activity - patrols, port calls, availabilities - but were not retrieved in this batch.

   Verification

   verified

   Role

   archival_lead

   Documentation level

   ship_specific

   Accessed

   2026-10-03

   Study period

   1943-04-07 to 1945-06-30

   Population

   U.S. Navy crew recorded in deck logs

   Limitations

   The list identifies deck-log coverage, not the contents of the logs. The underlying logs were not retrieved in this batch, and post-June-1945 coverage is not shown in this list. The entry does not establish asbestos presence, a specific exposure, or litigation facts.

   Atlas source

   true

   Evidence ID

   ev-uss-mayfield-pc1196-03

5. [5]David J. Bercuson and Holger H. Herwig, 'Long Night of the Tankers: Hitler's War Against Caribbean Oil' (University of Calgary Press, 2014), ch. 15 'Gundown: U-615 and U-161' [reputable_press]

   Locator

   Open-access PDF, pp. 259-260 (chapter 15, convoy GAT-77 engagement narrative)

   Finding type

   vessel_history

   Finding

   A University of Calgary Press scholarly history of the Caribbean U-boat campaign documents a ship-specific wartime action: on 2 August 1943, while Convoy GAT-77 was east of the Dutch islands, 'the American patrol craft PC-1196 sighted the U-boat's periscope' (U-615, Kptlt. Ralph Kapitzky) at a range of 1,100 yards; PC-1196 'launched five depth charges and made four "mousetrap" runs over the swirl of U-615 as it executed an emergency dive,' detected diesel oil on the surface, but could make no certain damage assessment. The contact brought every American warship and aircraft in the Caribbean onto U-615, which was sunk by aircraft five days later (7 August 1943).

   Verification

   verified

   Role

   supporting

   Documentation level

   ship_specific

   Accessed

   2026-10-03

   Study period

   1943-08-02

   Population

   PC-1196 crew on the GAT-77 escort, 2 August 1943

   Limitations

   A scholarly secondary history, not a Navy record - it documents the engagement from published sources and does not name PC-1196's action report or deck log (NARA is the archival lead). It confirms the convoy-escort role DANFS describes but this specific engagement does not appear in the DANFS narrative. It contains no materials or asbestos content. The 'mousetrap' reference is to the forward-firing anti-submarine weapon, consistent with NavSource's two-rocket-launcher armament line.

   Atlas source

   true

   Evidence ID

   ev-uss-mayfield-pc1196-04

6. [6]Mystic Seaport Museum, Rosenfeld Collection, object catalog, 'Underbody of PC 1196, At Launching' [museum_official]

   Locator

   Object record kv=301943, accession 1984.187.57867

   Finding type

   historical_record

   Finding

   Mystic Seaport Museum's Rosenfeld Collection holds an 8x10 gelatin silver print cataloged 'Underbody of PC 1196, At Launching, Consolidated Shipbuilding Corporation, Morris Heights, NY, 1942' (object 1984.187.57867), photographed by Rosenfeld and Sons on 24 October 1942 - the documented launch date and the correct New York yard location, independently confirming the builder site that the live DANFS text misprints as 'N.J.'

   Verification

   verified

   Role

   supporting

   Documentation level

   ship_specific

   Accessed

   2026-10-03

   Study period

   1942-10-24

   Population

   Consolidated Shipbuilding Corp. construction workers visible in the launch context, October 1942

   Limitations

   A photographic catalog record: it confirms the launch date, the builder, and the Morris Heights, NY yard location; it contains no materials, insulation, or asbestos information and no post-construction history.

   Atlas source

   true

   Evidence ID

   ev-uss-mayfield-pc1196-05

7. [7]uboat.net Allied Warships, USS PC-1196 (PC-1196); shipbuildinghistory.com, Consolidated Shipbuilding yard list (Morris Heights, NY) [other_primary]

   Locator

   uboat.net warship page 8723 (spec table + Commands listed); shipbuildinghistory.com/shipyards/yachtsmall/consolidated.htm, hull 3126 row

   Finding type

   vessel_history

   Finding

   Secondary compilations corroborate the official chronology: uboat.net's Allied Warships entry for USS PC-1196 records the vessel as ordered 27 February 1942 and lists six wartime commanding officers - Lt. John A. Williamson, USNR (from 7 April 1943); Charles Morgan, USNR (mid/late 1943); K. R. Schoettle, USNR (late 1943); R. W. Sharp, USNR (mid/late 1944); V. A. Hires, USNR (early 1945); H. D. Myles, USNR (mid 1945) - with end of service July 1946, out of service December 1949, stricken 1 April 1959. shipbuildinghistory.com's Consolidated Shipbuilding yard table lists hull 3126 'PC 1196,' US Navy sub chaser of 463 tons displacement and 173 feet, delivered 7 April 1943, disposition 'Named Mayfield 1956, scrapped 1959.'

   Verification

   partial

   Role

   context

   Documentation level

   ship_specific

   Accessed

   2026-10-03

   Study period

   1942-1959

   Population

   Consolidated construction trades; wartime commanding officers and crews, 1943-1945

   Limitations

   Both are respected secondary compilations, not primary records. The order date, the post-Williamson commanding-officer sequence, and the delivery/hull-number table entries are carried as unverified corroboration consistent with DANFS and NavSource; the CO list covers the Second World War only. No asbestos content.

   Atlas source

   true

   Evidence ID

   ev-uss-mayfield-pc1196-06

8. [8]National Archives, 'Researching Asbestos aboard US Naval Vessel up through 1961' [other_primary]

   Locator

   Guide sections: General Information Books (RG 19 Entry P 12 Patrol Craft GIBs); Material Inspection Reports (RG 38 Entry P 1-E); Cartographic Branch Hull Series S39 insulation and lagging drawings

   Finding type

   asbestos_application

   Finding

   The National Archives asbestos-research guide identifies Record Group 19 and RG 38 sources relevant to pre-1961 Navy-vessel asbestos research, including RG 19 Entry P 12 'Patrol Craft General Information Books [Item S-68], 1902-1955' (NAID 1275932), RG 38 Entry P 1-E 'Patrol Craft Material Inspection Reports and Related Documentation, 1940-1978,' ship and machinery specifications, and S39 insulation-and-lagging drawings within the Hull Series of ship engineering drawings arranged by hull number. The guide states that asbestos use in U.S. Navy materiel from 1941-1961 is a frequently requested research topic. These records are archival leads for possible hull-level material documentation, not evidence that asbestos was aboard PC-1196.

   Verification

   verified

   Role

   archival_lead

   Documentation level

   class_or_era

   Accessed

   2026-10-03

   Study period

   1941-1961

   Population

   U.S. Navy vessels and shipyard records, generally through 1961

   Limitations

   This guide identifies record series and filing codes; it does not identify PC-1196, prove that any listed record survives for this hull, or establish asbestos content, quantity, location, disturbance, or exposure aboard this vessel.

   Atlas source

   true

   Evidence ID

   ev-uss-mayfield-pc1196-07

9. [9]MARAD Vessel History Database (vesselhistory.marad.dot.gov), public search [marad_nrc]

   Locator

   Search/SearchCharacteristics endpoint queried live for PC-1196, PC 1196, 1196, and Mayfield; Count: 0 for the hull variants; 'Mayfield' returns only MAYFIELD VICTORY (1944), id 3299

   Finding type

   historical_record

   Finding

   The U.S. Maritime Administration's Vessel History Database returns no record for 'PC-1196,' 'PC 1196,' or '1196' in live searches run this date; a 'Mayfield' search returns only MAYFIELD VICTORY (1944), the AK-232 Victory-type cargo ship - a different hull. NavSource records this hull as sold for scrap to a New York construction company after the 1 April 1959 striking; the MARAD database negative is consistent with a commercial scrap sale leaving no MARAD custody trail.

   Verification

   verified

   Role

   negative_finding

   Documentation level

   ship_specific

   Accessed

   2026-10-03

   Study period

   2026-10-03 (search); 1959+ (custody window)

   Limitations

   An empty database result is an absence-of-record finding, not proof the vessel never entered MARAD custody - the database documents vessels with status cards and may not capture hulls sold directly to commercial scrappers. It neither establishes nor defeats the documented 1959 scrap-sale disposition.

   Atlas source

   true

   Evidence ID

   ev-uss-mayfield-pc1196-08

10. [10]Batch-7692 search ledger for USS Mayfield / Mayfield (PC-1196) / PC-1196 [other_primary]

    Locator

    search_ledger rows sl-uss-mayfield-pc1196-01 through sl-uss-mayfield-pc1196-12

    Finding type

    historical_record

    Finding

    No qualifying ship-specific asbestos survey, abatement record, hazmat disclosure, product record, or completed litigation result was identified in the accessible public sources searched for USS Mayfield, Mayfield (PC-1196), and PC-1196. An asbestos-keyed web sweep surfaced only name collisions and excluded sources: law-firm marketing pages for USS Mayfield Victory (AK-232, a different hull) and a law-firm PC-461-class page whose technical claims are wrong for this class (it attributes four General Motors diesels to PC-461s; this class carried two Hooven-Owen-Rentschler diesels). This is a negative finding about the sources reviewed, not a finding that asbestos was absent aboard the vessel.

    Verification

    verified

    Role

    negative_finding

    Documentation level

    ship_specific

    Accessed

    2026-10-03

    Study period

    2026-10-03

    Limitations

    The absence of a located public record does not prove absence of asbestos aboard. The required authenticated CourtListener exact-name and hull-number sweep was blocked by the fleet daily-quota stand-down (~2.7 h requested wait), so no conclusion about qualifying litigation can be drawn from that unavailable search.

    Atlas source

    true

    Evidence ID

    ev-uss-mayfield-pc1196-09