Evidence
6 evidence entries recorded; each entry has a stable permalink (#ev-1 … #ev-6).
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[1]DANFS, Nucleus (AM-268) (builder, launch, commissioning, Atlantic service narrative, Cold Bay transfer, MSF-268 redesignation; verbatim transcription - live NHHC page serves 404) [nhhc_danfs]
- Locator
- DANFS entry, specifications block + service narrative
- Finding type
- vessel_history
- Finding
- DANFS record for this hull: built by Gulf Shipbuilding Corp., Chickasaw, Ala.; launched 26 June 1943, sponsored by Mrs. V. Ludwig; commissioned 11 February 1944, Lt. D. H. Elliot in command; Chesapeake shakedown, Caribbean escort, Boston-Argentia convoy; North Atlantic weather-reporting duty June-October 1944 with radiosonde platform added; minesweeping and ASW patrol off Chesapeake Bay December 1944; Caribbean escort January 1945; Norfolk to Navassa Island escorting Tetonkaha (AOG-41), then Panama to Cold Bay arriving 3 April 1945; trained Soviet Navy personnel until 20 May; decommissioned and transferred to the USSR under Lend-Lease; redesignated MSF-268 on 7 February 1955; 'as of 1970, she had been neither returned nor purchased by the USSR.' Class data line: dp. 625; 184'6" x 33' x 9'9"; 15 kt; complement 104; armament 1 x 3", 4 x 40mm; class Admirable.
- Verification
- verified
- Role
- supporting
- Documentation level
- ship_specific
- Accessed
- 2026-09-22
- Study period
- 1942-1970
- Population
- Gulf Shipbuilding construction trades 1942-44; wartime crew (design complement 104); Soviet trainees 1945
- Limitations
- DANFS documents service history and specifications, not materials or asbestos content. DANFS records no laid-down date. Verbatim transcription cited because the live NHHC page returns 404; text verified via Wayback capture 20220910054754 and search index. The hazegray transcriber's note 'T-276' conflicts with the NHC Project Hula appendix (T-278) - monograph controls; discrepancy carried in gaps.
- Atlas source
- true
- Evidence ID
- ev-uss-nucleus-am268-01
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[2]Richard A. Russell, Project Hula: Secret Soviet-American Cooperation in the War Against Japan (Naval Historical Center, 1997), Appendix: 'U.S. Navy Combatant Ships Transferred to the USSR Under Project HULA, May-September 1945' [other_primary]
- Locator
- Appendix table, AM section, row 'Nucleus (AM 268) / T-278 / 21 May / 1960-scrapped'
- Finding type
- vessel_history
- Finding
- The Naval Historical Center monograph's transfer appendix lists Nucleus (AM 268) as one of 24 Admirable-class minesweepers transferred at Cold Bay under Project Hula: Soviet designation T-278, transfer date 21 May 1945 (ditto under the 21 May group), disposition '1960-scrapped.' The monograph documents 149 vessels transferred and ~12,000 Soviet personnel trained at Cold Bay between April and September 1945.
- Verification
- verified
- Role
- supporting
- Documentation level
- ship_specific
- Accessed
- 2026-09-22
- Study period
- 1945-1960
- Population
- Soviet Navy crews (1945-c.1960)
- Limitations
- Documents the transfer designation and U.S.-recorded disposition only - no materials, condition, or asbestos content. Soviet-side service history (Guards rank, whaler conversion, Uragan rename) rests on secondary compilations, not this source. The scrapped-hull disposition means no present-day survey is possible.
- Atlas source
- true
- Evidence ID
- ev-uss-nucleus-am268-02
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[3]NPS National Register/NHL nomination, USS Hazard (AM-240), NRIS 79003712 (NPS Form 10-100, 'War in the Pacific Ship Study' federal-agency nomination) [nps]
- Locator
- Nomination form, description and significance sections (NRIS 79003712)
- Finding type
- historical_record
- Finding
- NPS class documentation for the Admirable type: 'Admirable class minesweepers were basic minesweepers similar to the British Bangor class designed to meet minimum requirements for size, speed, and endurance. They were fitted for both wire and acoustic sweeping and could also double as anti submarine warfare and antiaircraft ships. Admirable class minesweepers formed the majority of American minesweepers built during World War II.' Sister hull Hazard is described as transferred to Omaha 'with all of her spare parts and equipment intact' and 'a virtual time capsule dating from 1945.'
- Verification
- verified
- Role
- context
- Documentation level
- class_or_era
- Accessed
- 2026-09-22
- Study period
- 1943-1945 (class era); nomination 1979
- Population
- Admirable-class construction cohort (context)
- Limitations
- Sister-hull nomination (AM-240, Winslow Marine Railway build) - describes the class, not this hull. The nomination contains no asbestos or insulation-material statement; Hazard's intactness is not evidence about Nucleus, which was scrapped circa 1960.
- Atlas source
- true
- Evidence ID
- ev-uss-nucleus-am268-03
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[4]DANFS specifications block (Admirable class; 15 kt) + class machinery fit per secondary compilations (2 x Cooper-Bessemer GSB-8 geared diesels, ~1,710 shp, 2 shafts for AM-246...AM-291 build group) [other_primary]
- Locator
- DANFS specifications block; class machinery per secondary compilations (unverified)
- Finding type
- asbestos_application
- Finding
- Era/design inference: an Admirable-class steel-hulled minesweeper built 1942-44 would have carried era-standard asbestos applications appropriate to a diesel ship - exhaust and muffler insulation, gaskets and packing, electrical insulation, winch/windlass brake linings, and deck coverings. The geared-diesel plant (no boilers, no steam system) means the largest asbestos categories of steam ships (boiler and steam-line insulation) do not apply.
- Verification
- inferred
- Role
- supporting
- Documentation level
- class_or_era
- Accessed
- 2026-09-22
- Study period
- 1942-1960
- Population
- Gulf Shipbuilding construction trades 1942-44; crew 1944-45; Soviet crew 1945-c.1960
- Limitations
- Class/era inference only - NOT a hull-specific finding. No Admirable-class material list, BuShips plan, or shipyard record naming asbestos was located. Engine make rests on secondary compilations (Wikipedia class article citing Conway's; NavSource). Does not quantify material or establish any individual's exposure.
- Atlas source
- true
- Evidence ID
- ev-uss-nucleus-am268-04
-
[5]NavSource Online, Mine Warfare Vessel Photo Archive, Nucleus (MSF 268) ex-AM-268 - compiled secondary record [other_primary]
- Locator
- NavSource page 11/02268, chronology block
- Finding type
- historical_record
- Finding
- Secondary compilation carries details absent from DANFS: laid down 7 September 1942; completed 19 January 1944; decommissioned 20 May 1945 at Cold Bay; transferred 21 May 1945 as T-278 (consistent with the NHC monograph); Soviet Pacific Fleet assignment 17 June 1945; 'Guards rank' award 26 August 1945; transferred to Ministry of Transport 23 October 1947 and converted to a whaling vessel; renamed Hurricane (Uragan) 7 August 1948; 'scrapped in the early 1960s'; struck from the Navy Register 1 January 1983.
- Verification
- unverified
- Role
- archival_lead
- Documentation level
- ship_specific
- Accessed
- 2026-09-22
- Study period
- 1942-1983
- Limitations
- NavSource is a volunteer-compiled secondary source, not an official record - all details are unverified leads. Its launch date (12 June 1943) conflicts with DANFS (26 June 1943); DANFS controls. The 1983 strike date has no official-source confirmation located.
- Atlas source
- true
- Evidence ID
- ev-uss-nucleus-am268-05
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[6]Batch-1240 search ledger (this record): NHHC/DANFS transcription; NHC Project Hula monograph; NPS NHL nomination (sister hull); NavSource compilation; CourtListener exact-name and hull-number queries; Atlas shipyard dataset [other_primary]
- Locator
- search_ledger rows sl-uss-nucleus-am268-01 through sl-uss-nucleus-am268-09
- Finding type
- historical_record
- Finding
- No qualifying ship-specific asbestos record located for AM-268: no hull ACM survey (impossible - hull scrapped circa 1960), no abatement contract, no hazmat disclosure, and no qualifying asbestos case naming USS Nucleus or AM-268 in the sources searched (see search_ledger).
- Verification
- verified
- Role
- negative_finding
- Documentation level
- ship_specific
- Accessed
- 2026-09-22
- Study period
- 2026-09-22
- Limitations
- Absence of a located public record does not prove absence of asbestos aboard during 1942-60 service - era materials are plausible but undocumented for this hull. Does not establish or defeat any claim of exposure or legal eligibility. The hull's destruction in the USSR forecloses any survey-based confirmation.
- Atlas source
- true
- Evidence ID
- ev-uss-nucleus-am268-06