USS MERVINE (DD-489)

Evidence

11 evidence entries recorded; each entry has a stable permalink (#ev-1 … #ev-11).

1. [1]Dictionary of American Naval Fighting Ships, 'Mervine II (DD-489)' entry, official NHHC page via Wayback Machine capture 2020-10-23 (live NHHC page returns HTTP 404; hazegray.org transcription corroborates verbatim) [nhhc_danfs]

   Locator

   DANFS 'Mervine II (DD-489)' entry, spec block + full service narrative; canonical NHHC URL https://www.history.navy.mil/research/histories/ship-histories/danfs/m/mervine-ii.html returns 404 live (standing NHHC link-rot per Batch-01 report); Wayback capture 2020-10-23 controls, corroborated by hazegray.org transcription via Wayback 2024-06-23 (hazegray host DNS-unreachable at access time)

   Finding type

   vessel_history

   Finding

   DANFS entry 'Mervine II' (DD-489): Gleaves-class destroyer, dp. 1,630, l. 348'4", b. 36', dr. 17'5", s. 35 k., cpl. 271, a. 4 5"/4 40mm/2 20mm/5 21" tt/6 dcp/2 act; laid down 3 November 1941 by Federal Shipbuilding & Dry Dock Co., Kearny, N.J.; launched 3 May 1942 (sponsored by Miss Mildred Mervine, great-granddaughter of Rear Adm. Wm. Mervine); commissioned 17 June 1942, Lt. Comdr. S. D. Willingham in command. Cuban shakedown; Gulf Sea Frontier New Orleans 30 August 1942; Gulf/West Indies escort. October 1942 to Norfolk, TF 34, Operation Torch - off Safi, Morocco 7 November, control vessel and fire support for Red Beach assault 8 November, patrol 5 days, then New York; seven months coastal/transatlantic convoy escort. 8 June 1943 with TF 65 to North Africa; Mers-el-Kebir 22 June; TF 85; Sicily 'Husky' - off Scoglitti/Camerina Plain 10-13 July, fire support for 7th Army; then North Atlantic/Mediterranean escort. 23 May 1945 entered Philadelphia Navy Yard for destroyer-minesweeper conversion; reclassified DMS-31 30 May 1945; departed Norfolk 15 July; en route at Japanese surrender; Buckner Bay, Okinawa 28 September; October mine sweeping off China coast near Kokuzan; November off Kyushu then Honshu. San Francisco 31 March 1946; two years west-coast operations; Yokosuka 25 March 1948 then Tsingtao, China escort/rescue/training to 5 October; San Diego November; Pearl Harbor training/availability; southern California 15 February 1949; decommissioned 27 May 1949, Pacific Reserve Fleet San Diego; redesignated DD-489 15 July 1955; Columbia River Reserve Group then Bremerton; struck 31 July 1968; sold for scrap 1969. Three battle stars for World War II service.

   Verification

   verified

   Role

   supporting

   Documentation level

   ship_specific

   Accessed

   2026-09-27

   Study period

   1941-1969

   Population

   Ship's company ~271 (DANFS design complement); Federal Shipbuilding construction trades 1941-42; Philadelphia Navy Yard conversion workforce 1945

   Limitations

   DANFS establishes identity, construction, service history, and awards; it contains no asbestos, insulation, or materials information and supports no asbestos claim. Spec block reads '5 21" tt.' where NavSource reads 10 tt (2x5) for the class as built - logged in gaps. Live NHHC page 404s; the 2020-10-23 Wayback capture of the official NHHC page is the controlling text, corroborated verbatim by the hazegray transcription and NavSource.

   Atlas source

   true

   Evidence ID

   ev-uss-mervine-dd489-01

2. [2]NavSource Naval History, Destroyer Photo Index DD-489/DMS-31 USS Mervine (navsource.org/archives/05/489.htm) - spec block, operational/building data, photo captions citing NARA and NHHC catalog numbers [other_primary]

   Locator

   Spec block + 'Operational and Building Data' section + photo captions (NARA 19-N-41140; NHHC NH 107414 and 80-G-170950/951; Terminal Island NSY 1947-10-25); live navsource.org fetch failed at access time; Wayback capture 2024-08-03 used

   Finding type

   vessel_history

   Finding

   NavSource Destroyer Photo Index entry for DD-489/DMS-31: class Gleaves (as built); displacement 2,395 tons (full); 348'4"(oa) x 36'1" x 13'2"(max); armament 4 x 5"/38AA, 6 x 0.5" MG, 10 x 21" tt (2x5); machinery 50,000 SHP Westinghouse geared turbines, 2 screws; 35 knots; range 6,500 NM at 12 knots; crew 208; radio call sign NXTM. Building/operational data: laid down Federal Shipbuilding, Kearny NJ, 3 November 1941; launched 3 May 1942; commissioned 17 June 1942; converted to high-speed minesweeper DMS-31 30 May 1945; decommissioned 27 May 1949; stricken 31 July 1968; sold 27 October 1969 and broken up for scrap. Photo captions document: NARA photo 19-N-41140 (Mervine at New York Navy Yard, 23 January 1943, via destroyerhistory.org); NHHC photo NH 107414 (underway in the Atlantic 9 May 1945, two weeks before entering Philadelphia Navy Yard for DMS conversion; Camouflage Measure 32 Design 3D; related drawings 80-G-170950/170951); crew photo at Terminal Island Naval Shipyard (later Long Beach Naval Shipyard) 25 October 1947 as DMS-31.

   Verification

   partial

   Role

   supporting

   Documentation level

   ship_specific

   Accessed

   2026-09-27

   Study period

   1941-1969

   Population

   Ship's company (crew 208 per NavSource; 271 per DANFS)

   Limitations

   Volunteer-compiled secondary archive; building data, dates, and photo catalog numbers are consistent with DANFS and NHHC collections but the compilation itself is not an official document - verification marked partial. 'Crew 208' conflicts with DANFS design complement 271 (configuration/era variance - logged in gaps). Armament row conflicts with DANFS spec block (10 tt vs. '5 21" tt.'; 0.5" MG vs. 40mm/20mm - reflects as-built vs. later fit). No asbestos content.

   Atlas source

   true

   Evidence ID

   ev-uss-mervine-dd489-02

3. [3]DANFS Mervine II narrative + NARA photo 19-N-41140 (destroyerhistory.org caption) + NHHC NH 107414 caption (ibiblio HyperWar photo-data mirror) + NavSource photo captions [other_primary]

   Locator

   ibiblio HyperWar photo-data page for NH 107414; destroyerhistory.org/benson-gleavesclass/0_allnum/489mervine_01.html (NARA 19-N-41140 caption); NavSource DD-489 photo captions; DANFS narrative yard entries

   Finding type

   vessel_history

   Finding

   Yard-presence documentation naming this hull: (a) New York Navy Yard, 23 January 1943 - NARA photo 19-N-41140 (caption via Destroyer History Foundation), consistent with the DANFS seven-month New York-based convoy-escort period after Operation Torch; (b) Philadelphia Navy Yard, entered 23 May 1945 for conversion to destroyer minesweeper, reclassified DMS-31 30 May, departed for Norfolk 15 July 1945 (DANFS; NHHC photo NH 107414 caption corroborates 'two weeks later she entered the Philadelphia Navy Yard for conversion to a high-speed minesweeper'); (c) Terminal Island Naval Shipyard (later Long Beach Naval Shipyard), crew photo 25 October 1947 as DMS-31 (NavSource photo caption); (d) Pearl Harbor training and availability late 1948-early 1949 (DANFS); (e) reserve layup - Pacific Reserve Fleet San Diego (1949), Columbia River Reserve Group, Bremerton/Puget Sound (to 1968 strike).

   Verification

   verified

   Role

   supporting

   Documentation level

   ship_specific

   Accessed

   2026-09-27

   Study period

   1943-1949

   Population

   Yard workers at NY Navy Yard (Jan 1943), Philadelphia NSY (May-Jul 1945), Terminal Island NSY (Oct 1947), Pearl Harbor (1948-49); ship's company during availabilities

   Limitations

   Documents which yards this hull entered and when - an exposure-window map, not a materials record. No work package, job order, or material list for any of these availabilities was located; the asbestos scope of the 1945 Philadelphia conversion is inference only. The 1947 Terminal Island entry rests on a NavSource photo caption (secondary).

   Atlas source

   true

   Evidence ID

   ev-uss-mervine-dd489-03

4. [4]Consolidated era/design inference - BuShips Ships' Data 1945 v1 'No. 421 Class' machinery table (575 psi/700 deg F, Bethlehem turbines 47,000 shp for lead ship DD-421) + NavSource hull spec (Westinghouse turbines, 50,000 shp) + DANFS-documented conversion event + Destroyer History Foundation DMS-conversion program page (MinRon 21 cohort naming this hull) + Atlas class profile benson-gleaves-class [other_primary]

   Locator

   SDB 1945 v1 DD machinery table (No. 421 Class row); NavSource DD-489 spec block; DANFS conversion paragraph; destroyerhistory.org/benson-gleavesclass/dms/ ('DesRon 15's Mervine, Quick, Davison ... organized as Mine Squadron 21'); class profile ev-benson-gleaves-class-04

   Finding type

   asbestos_application

   Finding

   Era/design inference: this hull carried the Benson/Gleaves-family machinery plant - 4 superheated Babcock & Wilcox boilers (575 psi/700 deg F per the BuShips Ships' Data 1945 'No. 421 Class' machinery data) feeding two geared steam turbines (Westinghouse per NavSource's hull spec; ~47,000-50,000 shp with a documented BuShips-vs-secondary discrepancy) - built November 1941-June 1942, peak Navy asbestos era. Typical applications for the type: boiler casing and fireroom insulation, steam-pipe and turbine lagging, valve/flange gaskets and packing, deck tile, accommodation insulation. The May-July 1945 Philadelphia Navy Yard DMS conversion was a machinery-space-disturbing yard period (minesweeping gear fitted to the fantail per the class DMS-conversion record) - work of the kind that disturbed original insulation. The conversion cohort is documented: destroyerhistory.org's DMS-conversion program page names 'DesRon 15's Mervine, Quick, Davison' among the twelve 1945 conversions organized as Mine Squadron 21 (minesweeping gear on the fantail; Cowie DMS-39 photo caption on the same page).

   Verification

   inferred

   Role

   supporting

   Documentation level

   class_or_era

   Accessed

   2026-09-27

   Study period

   1941-1969

   Population

   Federal Shipbuilding construction trades (Kearny, 1941-42); ship's company 1942-49; Philadelphia Navy Yard conversion workforce 1945; later availability/overhaul yard workers

   Limitations

   Inference from documented machinery class, construction era, and documented yard periods - NOT a hull record. No specification, material schedule, survey, or abatement contract naming DD-489 was located; establishes no asbestos content, quantity, location, individual exposure, or causation. Every listed application is 'typical of the type/era,' not 'installed on this hull.' The 47,000 vs. 50,000 shp discrepancy between BuShips (DD-421) and secondary sources is documented in the class profile.

   Atlas source

   true

   Evidence ID

   ev-uss-mervine-dd489-04

5. [5]Owens-Illinois, Inc., Industrial Health Survey of Federal Shipbuilding and Dry Dock Co., Kearny, NJ (Aug. 30-Sep. 2, 1944); introduced as Owens-Illinois interrogatory exhibit #20 in Heathman v. Owens-Corning Fiberglas Corp., Brazoria County TX (1990); Atlas shipyards.json yard record 'federal-shipbuilding-kearny' (evidence_tier 2, flagship ev-federal-kearny-ihs-1944) [other_primary]

   Locator

   shipyards.json 'federal-shipbuilding-kearny' evidence row ev-federal-kearny-ihs-1944 + products_documented; ToxicDocs scan of the 1944 survey

   Finding type

   gov_survey

   Finding

   Builder-yard documentation: Owens-Illinois conducted an Industrial Health Survey of Federal Shipbuilding and Dry Dock Co., Kearny, NJ (30 August - 2 September 1944), documenting insulator work with asbestos pipe covering (Johns-Manville Superex, amosite-based ~15%) and Kaylo boiler insulation in confined shipyard spaces, with dust counts measured during cutting and fitting operations; the Atlas shipyards dataset carries Federal Shipbuilding-Kearny at evidence tier 2 on this record (products also incl. Monokote fireproofing and Garlock gaskets). The survey postdates this hull's June 1942 delivery by ~26 months but documents the yard's wartime product environment during continuous Gleaves-class production at the same ways (Mervine's near-sisters McCalla DD-488 and Quick DD-490 were built alongside her; the wet-basin photo shows Radford, Quick, and Mervine together in 1942).

   Verification

   verified

   Role

   context

   Documentation level

   class_or_era

   Accessed

   2026-09-27

   Study period

   1941-1944 (hull build context); 1944 (survey)

   Population

   Shipyard insulators and pipefitters at Federal Shipbuilding & Drydock Co., Kearny NJ (survey dates Aug 30-Sep 2, 1944)

   Limitations

   Yard-level documentation, not a hull record - a 1944 survey of the builder's plant and products, conducted ~26 months after DD-489's delivery; it establishes the yard's documented asbestos-product environment during wartime Gleaves-class production, not that specific materials went aboard this hull, nor quantity, location, condition, exposure, or causation. Survey conducted by a manufacturer with commercial interest; dust counts in mppcf (pre-fiber-count era).

   Atlas source

   true

   Evidence ID

   ev-uss-mervine-dd489-05

6. [6]Atlas shipyards.json yard record 'philadelphia-naval-shipyard' (evidence_tier 3, documented product list) + DANFS Mervine II conversion narrative [other_primary]

   Locator

   shipyards.json 'philadelphia-naval-shipyard' record; DANFS conversion paragraph (entered Philadelphia Navy Yard 23 May 1945; reclassified DMS-31 30 May; departed Norfolk 15 July)

   Finding type

   gov_survey

   Finding

   Conversion-yard documentation: the Atlas shipyards dataset carries Philadelphia Naval Shipyard at evidence tier 3 with documented asbestos products (Eagle-Picher Super 60; Onecote cement; Thermasil pipe covering and block; Unibestos; Cary block; Baldwin-Ehret-Hill and Carey products; Kaylo; Garlock asbestos sheet gaskets, among others). DANFS documents this hull inside that yard 23 May - 15 July 1945 for the destroyer-minesweeper conversion (reclassified DMS-31 30 May 1945) - a machinery-space-disturbing availability at a tier-3-documented asbestos yard.

   Verification

   verified

   Role

   context

   Documentation level

   class_or_era

   Accessed

   2026-09-27

   Study period

   1945

   Population

   Philadelphia Navy Yard conversion workforce (May-Jul 1945); ship's company during the availability

   Limitations

   Yard-product documentation plus a documented hull-presence event - the combination is still not a hull materials record: no conversion work package, job order, or material list for DMS-31 was located, and nothing establishes what insulation was removed, disturbed, or installed aboard this hull. Establishes the opportunity and environment only.

   Atlas source

   true

   Evidence ID

   ev-uss-mervine-dd489-06

7. [7]GAO, Navy Efforts To Protect Workers From Asbestos Exposure, HRD-80-2 (Oct 18, 1979) [gao]

   Locator

   GAO product page HRD-80-2 (full text blocked to automated fetch, HTTP 403, per Batch-01 standing note; content via product-page description and class-profile record ev-benson-gleaves-class-05)

   Finding type

   gov_survey

   Finding

   Program context: GAO documented that the Navy's standing asbestos policy (1975) removed asbestos insulation only when damaged or required for repairs, modified 1979 to selective replacement in high-maintenance areas - meaning original-era insulation typically remained in place for decades unless a yard period disturbed it. For this hull the policy window is moot in the record sense: she decommissioned 1949, spent 19 years in reserve layup, and was struck and scrapped (1968-69) before the policy existed - but the 1945 DMS conversion falls inside the era when disturbance of original insulation was routine and undocumented.

   Verification

   verified

   Role

   context

   Documentation level

   context_only

   Accessed

   2026-09-27

   Study period

   1975-1979 policy window; hull context 1945-1949

   Population

   Navy shipyard workers (program context)

   Limitations

   Program-level documentation postdating this hull's entire commissioned life - cited for what the Navy's disturbance-driven exposure model implies about undocumented wartime conversion work, not as hull evidence. Establishes nothing about materials aboard DD-489.

   Atlas source

   true

   Evidence ID

   ev-uss-mervine-dd489-07

8. [8]DANFS/NavSource disposal entries (struck 1968-07-31; sold 1969-10-27, broken up for scrap) + Basel Convention (1989/1992); IMO Hong Kong Convention (2009/2025); EU Reg. 1257/2013 - regulatory timeline only [other_primary]

   Locator

   DANFS closing paragraph; NavSource 'Fate' line (sold October 27 1969, broken up for scrap); Basel/IMO/EU instrument dates

   Finding type

   regulatory

   Finding

   Disposal-context record: the hull was struck 31 July 1968, sold 27 October 1969, and broken up for scrap - a domestic 1969 shipbreaking that predates every modern regime governing hazardous-materials inventory in end-of-life vessels (Basel Convention in force 1992; IMO Hong Kong Convention adopted 2009, in force 26 June 2025; EU Ship Recycling Regulation 2013). No pre-scrapping survey, abatement contract, or hazardous-materials inventory for this hull was located in the sources searched; none was required by the regimes then in force.

   Verification

   verified

   Role

   context

   Documentation level

   context_only

   Accessed

   2026-09-27

   Study period

   1968-1969 disposal; later regimes 1992/2013/2025

   Population

   Shipbreaking workforce (1969, undocumented)

   Limitations

   Regulatory timeline plus documented disposal facts only - no source documents what materials were aboard or removed before scrapping. The 1969 breaking means no surviving hull exists for any present-day survey, and any ACM aboard was handled under 1969 domestic shipbreaking practice with no public record located. The scrap purchaser is not named in the sources checked.

   Atlas source

   true

   Evidence ID

   ev-uss-mervine-dd489-08

9. [9]CourtListener API v4 searches (2026-09-27, all HTTP 200 authenticated): '"USS Mervine"' o=0/r=0; 'Mervine asbestos' o=6 collisions/r=88 surname collisions; '"DD-489" OR "DMS-31"' o=2 identifier collisions; '"aboard the Mervine" OR "aboard USS Mervine"' o=0; class-profile sweeps sl-benson-gleaves-class-05/06 (2026-09-16) negative [court_record]

   Locator

   search_ledger rows sl-uss-mervine-dd489-04 through -07; class profile benson-gleaves-class ledger rows 05/06

   Finding type

   litigation_documented

   Finding

   CourtListener sweep (authenticated API v4, fleet-paced, all queries completed 2026-09-27): '"USS Mervine"' returned 0 hits on BOTH the opinion index (type=o) and the RECAP docket index (type=r, count 0 / document_count 0). 'Mervine asbestos' returned 6 opinion hits and 88 docket hits - every one a name collision: the opinions are family-law, criminal, contract, silica-MDL, and medical-malpractice matters where 'Mervine' is a surname or embedded string; the dockets are asbestos mass-tort/bankruptcy and railway matters where 'Mervine' appears as a party/attorney surname, with zero vessel-context text in the returned records. '"DD-489" OR "DMS-31"' returned 2 opinion hits, both identifier collisions (a Texas Attorney General opinion numbered GA-82; Ortho Diagnostic Systems v. Abbott Laboratories, S.D.N.Y. 1996, a patent dispute). '"aboard the Mervine" OR "aboard USS Mervine"' returned 0. No qualifying asbestos litigation naming the vessel was located. The Benson/Gleaves class profile's own RECAP sweeps (2026-09-16) located no asbestos-litigation docket naming any of the 96 class members. One uncorroborated marketing-page claim (mesotheliomahope.com) advertises a '$3.3 million' result for 'an Illinois boiler tender who worked on the USS Mervine, USS Sea Runner and USS Harwood' - no case name, docket, or court given; uncitable as a source and unverified against any docketed record.

   Verification

   verified

   Role

   negative_finding

   Documentation level

   ship_specific

   Accessed

   2026-09-27

   Study period

   2026-09-27

   Limitations

   All planned queries executed and classified: zero qualifying results; every hit is a surname or identifier collision, none with vessel context. RECAP coverage is limited to indexed text; unindexed dockets, state-court cases, and settled matters (which leave no published opinion) are outside coverage. The '$3.3M Illinois boiler tender' marketing claim could not be matched to any published or indexed docket and is excluded as non-authoritative. Absence of located litigation does not mean none exists.

   Atlas source

   true

   Evidence ID

   ev-uss-mervine-dd489-09

10. [10]Batch-3471 search ledger (this record), rows sl-uss-mervine-dd489-01 through -08 [other_primary]

    Locator

    search_ledger rows sl-uss-mervine-dd489-01 through -08

    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 Mervine, DD-489, or DMS-31 was found in the public sources searched (see search_ledger). Sources checked: DANFS (Wayback/hazegray transcription; live NHHC 404 on all slug variants), NavSource destroyer index (Wayback), NVR register check (out of scope - disposed pre-1987), NARA catalog (SPA shell returned), NHHC photo-data mirror (ibiblio), destroyerhistory.org NARA photo caption, Atlas class profile and shipyards dataset, general-web asbestos-mention check (law-firm list pages only - excluded), CourtListener authenticated sweep (exact-name opinion and docket queries verified zero; broader queries returned only surname/identifier collisions - sl-04/05/06).

    Verification

    verified

    Role

    negative_finding

    Documentation level

    ship_specific

    Accessed

    2026-09-27

    Study period

    2026-09-27

    Limitations

    Absence of a located public record does not prove absence of asbestos aboard - a 1941-42 Gleaves-class steam destroyer built at a yard with contemporaneously documented asbestos products and given a machinery-space-disturbing 1945 conversion at a tier-3 asbestos yard is era-consistent with asbestos-containing materials aboard. No hull survives for survey (scrapped 1969). Does not establish presence or absence; does not establish or defeat any exposure claim or legal eligibility.

    Atlas source

    true

    Evidence ID

    ev-uss-mervine-dd489-10

11. [11]NARA Guide to Federal Records: RG 24 (Navy deck logs), RG 19 (Bureau of Ships incl. General Information Books), RG 181 (naval districts and shore establishments); NHHC photographic collection [other_primary]

    Locator

    https://www.archives.gov/research/guide-fed-records/groups/024.html ; .../groups/019.html ; .../groups/181.html

    Finding type

    historical_record

    Finding

    Archival leads (not retrieved - require research-room or reproduction order; no spend authorized): (a) NARA RG 24 deck logs for USS Mervine's commissioned period, June 1942 - May 1949, series 'Logbooks of U.S. Navy Ships and Stations, 1941-1978' (NAID 594258) at Archives II, College Park - digitization status unverified; (b) NARA RG 19 (Bureau of Ships) records incl. the General Information Book for DD-489 (per-hull material specifications - the strongest potential hull-level materials source) and the Philadelphia Navy Yard DMS-31 conversion work package (May-July 1945); (c) NARA RG 181 yard records for Philadelphia NSY and New York Navy Yard availabilities; (d) NHHC photographic records (NH 107414; camouflage drawings 80-G-170950/170951); (e) Federal Shipbuilding contract records via BuShips (private yard - contracts ran through the Bureau).

    Verification

    unverified

    Role

    archival_lead

    Documentation level

    context_only

    Accessed

    2026-09-27

    Study period

    1941-1969 records

    Limitations

    Record-group/collection mapping only - no box-level retrieval performed; existence of asbestos-specific documents for DD-489 is unknown until surveyed in person. Nothing in this row is an asbestos finding.

    Atlas source

    true

    Evidence ID

    ev-uss-mervine-dd489-11