Evidence
11 evidence entries recorded; each entry has a stable permalink (#ev-1 … #ev-11).
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[1]research packet 1025-packet.md [other_primary]
- Finding type
- vessel_history
- Finding
- Identity packet verdict: VERIFIED
- Verification
- verified
- Role
- supporting
- Documentation level
- ship_specific
- Evidence ID
- uss-otter-yfb663-pkt-1025-packet-md
-
[2]NHHC DANFS, 'Otter I (YFB-663)' (published 18 Aug 2015): ferryboat, 77' length, 20' beam, built 1906 by the Navy Yard, Portsmouth, N.H.; naval career at Charleston, S.C.; originally named Kite, renamed Otter 12 October 1920; struck from the Navy List 3 May 1939 [nhhc_danfs]
- Locator
- DANFS 'Otter I (YFB-663)' page, section 'I', full entry text
- Finding type
- vessel_history
- Finding
- DANFS records the first Otter (YFB-663) as a ferryboat built in 1906 by the Navy Yard, Portsmouth, N.H., 77 ft long with a 20 ft beam, named for the animal; she spent her naval career at Charleston, S.C.; originally named Kite, renamed Otter 12 October 1920; struck from the Navy List 3 May 1939.
- Verification
- verified
- Role
- supporting
- Documentation level
- ship_specific
- Accessed
- 2026-10-04
- Study period
- 1906-1939
- Population
- Yard ferry crew and transported personnel (Charleston Navy Yard), 1906-1939
- Limitations
- Single-paragraph DANFS entry gives no detail on construction type, propulsion, crew, or post-sale disposition; the Charleston career statement is a summary and does not date individual assignments within the career (the 1923 Navy Directory places her at Parris Island within the Sixth Naval District). Does not contain asbestos information.
- Atlas source
- true
- Evidence ID
- ev-uss-otter-yfb663-01
-
[3]NavSource Online: Service Ship Photo Archive, 'Otter (YFB-663) ex Kite (1906-1920)' (page 14/350663) [other_primary]
- Locator
- NavSource 14/350663, vessel-data block and specifications block
- Finding type
- vessel_history
- Finding
- NavSource records the hull built as a composite-hulled launch by Portsmouth Navy Yard, Kittery, ME; delivered as Kite, 1906; assigned to Charleston Navy Yard her whole career; designated Yard Ferryboat (YFB-663) 17 July 1920; renamed Otter 12 October 1920; struck from the Naval Register 3 May 1939; sold 1940 to Foreman Blades Lumber Co., Elizabeth, N.C., renamed Carl Blades (ON 241782); registered to Carolina Towing Co. (1943), J. Dallas Orrell (1945), Cape Fear Towing Co. (1953), Bordeaux Salvage & Construction (1970s); out of service April 2014, fate unknown. Specifications: length 77'0" overall, beam 20'0", propulsion steam, no armament; displacement, draft, speed, complement unknown.
- Verification
- verified
- Role
- supporting
- Documentation level
- ship_specific
- Accessed
- 2026-10-04
- Study period
- 1906-2014
- Population
- Crew (unquantified) and transported personnel, 1906-1939; merchant crews, 1940-2014
- Limitations
- NavSource is a volunteer-compiled secondary reference consistent here with DANFS on every overlapping fact; the 17 July 1920 designation date and the merchant-registration trail are NavSource-only and were not independently verified against the Merchant Vessels of the United States lists (access-restricted). 'Elizabeth, N.C.' is printed as on the page (probably Elizabeth City). Does not contain asbestos information.
- Atlas source
- true
- Evidence ID
- ev-uss-otter-yfb663-02
-
[4]Navy Directory: Officers of the United States Navy and Marine Corps, May 1923 (Bureau of Navigation, Navy Dept., Washington, D.C.), via Internet Archive full text (navydirectoryoff19232unit) [other_primary]
- Locator
- May 1923 Navy Directory: 'SIXTH NAVAL DISTRICT' district-vessel list; 'INDEX TO VESSELS' entry 'Otter (ex Kite)' p.147
- Finding type
- historical_record
- Finding
- The official Navy Directory for May 1923 lists 'OTTER (Parris Island)' among Sixth Naval District vessels, and the Index to Vessels carries 'Otter (ex Kite)'. Sixth Naval District headquarters was the Navy Yard, Charleston, S.C.; Parris Island, S.C. lies within the district.
- Verification
- verified
- Role
- supporting
- Documentation level
- ship_specific
- Accessed
- 2026-10-04
- Study period
- 1923-05
- Population
- Yard/district craft crews, Sixth Naval District, 1923
- Limitations
- Places the vessel in Sixth Naval District service in May 1923 with a Parris Island annotation - a finer-grained station detail than DANFS's summary 'Charleston, S.C.' career; the two are consistent (same district, South Carolina coast) but the directory does not give dates or describe the duty. OCR-scanned full text; reading verified in context. Contains no asbestos information.
- Atlas source
- true
- Evidence ID
- ev-uss-otter-yfb663-03
-
[5]Navy Directory: Officers of the United States Navy and Marine Corps, January 1936 (Bureau of Navigation, Navy Dept., Washington, D.C.), via Internet Archive full text (navydirectoryoff1936unit) [other_primary]
- Locator
- Jan 1936 Navy Directory: 'DISTRICT CRAFT IN SERVICE - FERRYBOATS AND LAUNCHES (10)' list; 'SIXTH NAVAL DISTRICT' vessel list
- Finding type
- historical_record
- Finding
- The official Navy Directory for January 1936 lists 'Otter (YFB 663)' under 'DISTRICT CRAFT IN SERVICE - FERRYBOATS AND LAUNCHES (10)' and separately lists OTTER among Sixth Naval District vessels (with Catawba, Umpqua, YO-22).
- Verification
- verified
- Role
- supporting
- Documentation level
- ship_specific
- Accessed
- 2026-10-04
- Study period
- 1936-01
- Population
- Yard/district craft crews, Sixth Naval District, 1936
- Limitations
- Confirms the vessel in service as a district ferryboat in the Sixth Naval District in January 1936; the directory does not describe duties, crew, or condition. OCR-scanned full text. Contains no asbestos information.
- Atlas source
- true
- Evidence ID
- ev-uss-otter-yfb663-04
-
[6]Navy Directory: Officers of the United States Navy and Marine Corps, January 1939 (Bureau of Navigation, Navy Dept., Washington, D.C.), via Internet Archive full text (navydirectoryoff1939unit) [other_primary]
- Locator
- Jan 1939 Navy Directory: 'SIXTH NAVAL DISTRICT' vessel list; 'FERRYBOATS AND LAUNCHES' list
- Finding type
- historical_record
- Finding
- The official Navy Directory for January 1939 lists 'OTTER' under Sixth Naval District vessels (with Catawba, Umpqua, YO-22, YP-47, YP-49) and 'Otter (YFB663)' in the fleet-wide ferryboats-and-launches list - the vessel still in service four months before her 3 May 1939 striking.
- Verification
- verified
- Role
- supporting
- Documentation level
- ship_specific
- Accessed
- 2026-10-04
- Study period
- 1939-01
- Population
- Yard/district craft crews, Sixth Naval District, 1939
- Limitations
- Confirms continued service into January 1939; consistent with the documented 3 May 1939 strike. OCR-scanned full text. Contains no asbestos information.
- Atlas source
- true
- Evidence ID
- ev-uss-otter-yfb663-05
-
[7]Navy Directory: Officers of the United States Navy and Marine Corps, November 1940 (Bureau of Navigation, Navy Dept., Washington, D.C.), via Internet Archive full text (navydirectoryof1940unit_0) [other_primary]
- Locator
- Nov 1940 Navy Directory: vessel index and Sixth Naval District sections checked, no Otter entry
- Finding type
- historical_record
- Finding
- The official Navy Directory for November 1940 contains no Otter entry anywhere - in the Sixth Naval District vessel list, in the fleet-wide alphabetical Index to Vessels, or in the ferryboats-and-launches lists - consistent with the documented 3 May 1939 striking.
- Verification
- verified
- Role
- supporting
- Documentation level
- ship_specific
- Accessed
- 2026-10-04
- Study period
- 1940-11
- Limitations
- An absence finding corroborating the strike date; OCR-scanned full text searched for 'OTTER', 'Otter (YFB' with zero vessel-section matches. Absence from a directory is corroboration, not independent proof, of striking. Contains no asbestos information.
- Atlas source
- true
- Evidence ID
- ev-uss-otter-yfb663-06
-
[8]National Archives at Atlanta finding aid, 'RG 26, 36, 41 - Vessel Documentation Case Files - Wilmington, North Carolina' [other_primary]
- Locator
- NARA Atlanta finding aid page, entries 'Carl Blades / 241782 / 1952 / box 3' and 'Carl Blades / 241782 / 1980 / box 32 / 87-0101'
- Finding type
- historical_record
- Finding
- NARA at Atlanta holds U.S. Coast Guard / predecessor vessel-documentation case files for 'Carl Blades,' official number 241782, vessel type 'oil screw' (diesel propeller vessel), in two entries dated 1952 (RG 36, box 3) and 1980 (RG 26, box 32, accession 87-0101) - official documentation confirming the merchant registry NavSource reports for the former ferry, including continuity into 1980 and a repowering to diesel.
- Verification
- verified
- Role
- supporting
- Documentation level
- ship_specific
- Accessed
- 2026-10-04
- Study period
- 1952; 1980 (file dates)
- Population
- Merchant marine crews aboard Carl Blades, 1940-c.1980
- Limitations
- The finding aid indexes the case files; the files themselves were not examined - contents may include bills of sale (possibly documenting the 1940 Navy sale) and certificates with dimensions/tonnage, an archival lead. 'Oil screw' confirms diesel propulsion in the documented years but not when repowering occurred. The case files do not link the merchant tug to YFB-663 in so many words - the link rests on NavSource's official-number chain.
- Atlas source
- true
- Evidence ID
- ev-uss-otter-yfb663-07
-
[9]NHHC DANFS, 'Otter I (YFB-663)' name-etymology note and 'Otter II (DE-210)' separate entry [other_primary]
- Locator
- DANFS Otter I page preamble; DANFS Otter II (DE-210) entry at danfs/o/otter-ii.html
- Finding type
- vessel_history
- Finding
- DANFS carries Otter I (YFB-663) and Otter II (DE-210) as separate entries: the first Otter (this record) was named after the animal; the second Otter was named after Lt. Bethel V. Otter, killed in action on Corregidor 6 May 1942. The destroyer escort USS Otter (DE-210), built at Charleston Navy Yard in 1943-44, is a different vessel - this record is not that ship.
- Verification
- verified
- Role
- correction
- Documentation level
- ship_specific
- Accessed
- 2026-10-04
- Study period
- name distinction, 1920 vs 1943
- Limitations
- Name-collision control only; the two hulls are conflated in secondary sources and image captions. Any exposure or litigation record citing 'USS Otter' post-1943 almost certainly refers to DE-210, not this hull.
- Atlas source
- true
- Evidence ID
- ev-uss-otter-yfb663-08
-
[10]Rushworth, D.H., 'The Navy and asbestos thermal insulation,' Naval Engineers Journal 117(2):35-48 (2005); indexed at EPA HERO ref. 3584926 [other_primary]
- Locator
- EPA HERO reference page 3584926 (abstract/metadata; full article not publicly accessible)
- Finding type
- asbestos_application
- Finding
- The standard history of Navy shipboard thermal insulation documents asbestos use in U.S. Navy shipboard pipe and machinery thermal insulation and other shipboard products for ships built during and following World War II. This vessel's entire Navy career (1906-1939) precedes that documented period; asbestos aboard this hull is therefore an unsupported era inference - no ship-specific evidence exists and the era pattern documented does not reach this hull's era.
- Verification
- inferred
- Role
- context
- Documentation level
- class_or_era
- Accessed
- 2026-10-04
- Study period
- era context; hull era 1906-1939
- Limitations
- Class/era context only. The HERO abstract frames the documented period as WWII and after; commercial asbestos marine insulation did exist earlier, but no source located documents it aboard this hull or Navy yard craft of 1906. Does not establish that asbestos was or was not present aboard; a steam plant of this era was standard-practice lagged but lagging fiber content on this hull is unverified.
- Atlas source
- true
- Evidence ID
- ev-uss-otter-yfb663-09
-
[11]Batch-8762 search ledger (this record): NVR ship-detail page for YFB-663; CourtListener API v4 ship-name and hull-number searches; Merchant Vessels of the United States (Carl Blades ON 241782); Chronicling America/loc.gov newspapers; NARA catalog; EPA NEPIS [other_primary]
- Locator
- search_ledger rows sl-uss-otter-yfb663-01 through sl-uss-otter-yfb663-12
- Finding type
- historical_record
- Finding
- No qualifying ship-specific asbestos record located: no asbestos survey, abatement contract, hazmat disclosure, or litigation naming YFB-663, Otter, or Kite was found in the public sources searched (see search_ledger). CourtListener base queries returned zero opinions or dockets naming 'YFB-663' and zero opinions naming 'USS Otter'; the single 'USS Otter' docket hit is an unrelated foreclosure name collision. NVR has no ship-detail page for YFB-663 (vessel predates NVR coverage; detail URL redirects to the NVR home page).
- Verification
- verified
- Role
- negative_finding
- Documentation level
- ship_specific
- Accessed
- 2026-10-04
- Study period
- 2026-10-04
- Limitations
- Absence of a located public record does not prove absence of asbestos aboard - the hull's steam plant and 1906 construction are consistent with era lagging practice, but no source documents it. CourtListener coverage is limited to what the opinion and RECAP indexes hold; pre-1939-era litigation involving a yard craft is unlikely to be indexed even if it occurred.
- Atlas source
- true
- Evidence ID
- ev-uss-otter-yfb663-10