Evidence
10 evidence entries recorded; each entry has a stable permalink (#ev-1 … #ev-10).
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[1]research packet 909-packet.md [other_primary]
- Finding type
- vessel_history
- Finding
- Identity packet verdict: VERIFIED
- Verification
- verified
- Role
- supporting
- Documentation level
- ship_specific
- Evidence ID
- uss-pc-578-pc578-pkt-909-packet-md
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[2]NavSource Online: Submarine Chaser Photo Archive, PCC-578 ex-PC-578 (construction timeline, wartime operations, specifications, commanding officers, disposal; page states 'There is no DANFS history available for PCC-578') [other_primary]
- Locator
- NavSource 12/010578.htm header block, operations list, specifications block, commanding-officer table
- Finding type
- vessel_history
- Finding
- Documented for this hull: laid down 20 December 1941 by the Albina Engine and Machinery Works, Portland, OR; launched 29 April 1942; commissioned USS PC-578, 15 July 1942. Assigned to the Asiatic-Pacific theater: Yellow Beach control vessel for the Iwo Jima landings, 19-26 February 1945; damaged in a collision with LSM-207 at Iwo Jima, 24 February 1945; assault and occupation of Okinawa Gunto, 1 April - 10 June 1945; Navy occupation service (Asia), 2 September - 1 November 1945. Reclassified Control Submarine Chaser PCC-578, 20 August 1945. Struck from the Naval Register 8 May 1946; sold 14 April 1948 at Pearl Harbor, HI. Specifications: 280 t (lt) / 450 t (fl); 173'8" x 23' x 10'10"; 20.2 kts; complement 65; one 3"/50 DP mount, one 40mm, three 20mm, two rocket launchers, four depth-charge projectors, two depth-charge tracks; two 1,440-bhp Fairbanks Morse 38D8 1/8 diesels (serial nos. 832277, 832278), Westinghouse single reduction gear, two shafts. CO list: LT J. H. McWhorter (15 Jun 1942-Dec 1943); LT A. J. Brent (Dec 1943-Sep 1944); LT C. D. Chalfant (Sep 1944-Aug 1945); LT J. E. Girard (Aug 1945-Dec 1945); LTJG J. U. Barton (Dec 1945-26 Apr 1946).
- Verification
- verified
- Role
- context
- Documentation level
- ship_specific
- Accessed
- 2026-10-03
- Study period
- 1941-1948
- Population
- Albina construction trades (1941-42); crew (1942-46)
- Limitations
- NavSource is a volunteer secondary compilation, not a primary registry - milestone dates track NVR/DANFS-style records but the underlying Navy records (war diary, muster rolls, deck logs) sit at NARA as archival leads (see ev-03, ev-04). Contains no asbestos or material content. 'No DANFS history' means NHHC never produced a narrative entry for this hull.
- Atlas source
- true
- Evidence ID
- ev-uss-pc-578-pc578-01
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[3]University of Hawaii, School of Ocean and Earth Science and Technology, Hawaii Undersea Research Laboratory (HURL) Maritime Heritage record SBB-5, 'Patrol Craft USS PC-578' [other_primary]
- Locator
- HURL Maritime Heritage artifact page SBB-5 (artifact data tables; survey images)
- Finding type
- vessel_history
- Finding
- Official academic wreck record for this hull: HURL artifact SBB-5, found 24 August 2002 in the Kewalo area (Oahu) at 394 m by HURL deep-diving submersibles (dives PIV-039/PV-492; additional dive PV-512). Circumstance of loss 'Scuttled'; reason 'Redundant after WW II'; lost after 14 April 1948. Artifact condition: 'Ship is in excellent condition. Although stripped of it's armament, it is largely still intact. No apparent major damage to the hull or superstructure. Propellers and shafts are present... Numbers are visible on bow.' Artifact history additionally credits Leyte landings service and 'White' beach control-vessel duty at Hagushi in April 1945, and describes the August 1945 PCC conversion (extra personnel and communications equipment added; depth charges removed; hull number unchanged; not reverted post-war as many PCCs were). NavSource's caption for the same find gives 'approximately 2 - 5 miles from the entrance to Pearl Harbor, at a depth of 1,200'' (see gaps for location/depth variance).
- Verification
- verified
- Role
- context
- Documentation level
- ship_specific
- Accessed
- 2026-10-03
- Study period
- 1948 (loss); 2002 (documentation)
- Population
- None exposed at wreck (deep-water site); scuttling crews (1948) undocumented
- Limitations
- Ship-specific disposal/condition documentation only: the record contains no asbestos, hazmat, or material content - the wreck's intact condition is consistent with retained era materials but nothing at the site establishes or excludes asbestos. 'Lost after April 14, 1948' plus 'Scuttled' implies post-sale disposal by scuttling; the scuttling agent and date are not documented. 'Built/Launched: 15460' is an unexplained figure in the record and is not used.
- Atlas source
- true
- Evidence ID
- ev-uss-pc-578-pc578-02
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[4]NARA, Records of the Office of the Chief of Naval Operations, World War II War Diaries: 'USS PC-578 - War Diary, 3/1/45 to 4/30/45' (NAID 140007324; micro serial 122660; National Archives at College Park; metadata via DPLA item 2f851563f0d856b6339e4b76908e8cd2) [other_primary]
- Locator
- NARA catalog NAID 140007324; DPLA item record (partner: NARA College Park - Textual Reference)
- Finding type
- historical_record
- Finding
- NARA holds this hull's own WWII war diary for 1 March - 30 April 1945 - the window covering the tail of Iwo Jima operations and the opening of the Okinawa assault (she was the Yellow Beach control vessel at Iwo Jima and a beach control vessel at Okinawa). A ship-authored operational record: the strongest located archival lead for ship-specific history and any documented battle/collision-damage repair activity in that window.
- Verification
- partial
- Role
- archival_lead
- Documentation level
- ship_specific
- Accessed
- 2026-10-03
- Study period
- 1945-03-01 to 1945-04-30
- Population
- Ship's company, March-April 1945
- Limitations
- Archival lead only: catalog-level record; page-level contents not examined (microfilm-format record at NARA College Park). Whether it documents damage repair from the 24 Feb 1945 LSM-207 collision - or any material content - is unexamined.
- Atlas source
- true
- Evidence ID
- ev-uss-pc-578-pc578-03
-
[5]NARA, Records of the Bureau of Naval Personnel, Muster Rolls of U.S. Navy Ships, Stations, and Other Naval Activities: 'PC-578, 7/15/42-4/26/46' (NAID 192658043; National Archives at College Park; metadata via DPLA item ae8588f5f23882b894fe108d1e2f0922) [other_primary]
- Locator
- NARA catalog NAID 192658043; DPLA item record (partner: NARA College Park - Textual Reference)
- Finding type
- historical_record
- Finding
- NARA holds this hull's muster rolls spanning her entire commissioned life, 15 July 1942 - 26 April 1946 - the named-individual crew record for the full wartime and occupation-service period.
- Verification
- partial
- Role
- archival_lead
- Documentation level
- ship_specific
- Accessed
- 2026-10-03
- Study period
- 1942-07-15 to 1946-04-26
- Population
- All hands, 1942-46
- Limitations
- Archival lead only: catalog-level record; muster rolls document who served aboard, not what materials they worked with. No asbestos content.
- Atlas source
- true
- Evidence ID
- ev-uss-pc-578-pc578-04
-
[6]Era inference built on: NavSource specifications (two Fairbanks Morse 38D8 1/8 diesels, diesel plant, no steam); PC-461-class program context (USNI Naval History, 'Historic Fleets,' Feb 1996: one standard 173-ft diesel design built across 15 yards); GAO HRD-80-2 Navy asbestos-program documentation (see ev-07) [other_primary]
- Locator
- NavSource specifications block; USNI Naval History Feb 1996 class summary; GAO HRD-80-2 product page
- Finding type
- asbestos_application
- Finding
- A steel-hulled diesel patrol craft built 1941-42 sits inside the Navy's documented asbestos-use era; era-standard applications aboard a small vessel of this type and period were engine/exhaust and machinery insulation, gaskets, valve packing, electrical insulation, and deck/accommodation materials. As a diesel craft she carried no boilers or steam turbines - the boiler/turbine lagging pathway of steam vessels does not apply, and her asbestos-relevant systems are the smaller diesel-era set in a compact 173-ft hull.
- Verification
- inferred
- Role
- supporting
- Documentation level
- class_or_era
- Accessed
- 2026-10-03
- Study period
- 1941-1948
- Population
- Albina construction trades (1941-42); crew (1942-46); any Pearl Harbor-area repair/disposal trades (1945-48); scuttling crews (1948)
- Limitations
- Class/era inference only - no hull-specific insulation survey, material list, or work package located for PC-578. Names era-standard applications, not confirmed installed materials. No quantity. Product names are normalized era terms; no manufacturer attribution for this hull.
- Atlas source
- true
- Evidence ID
- ev-uss-pc-578-pc578-05
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[7]K.M. (widow of J.M.) v. Lockheed Shipbuilding, Albina Engine and Machine, Willamette Iron and Steel Co., U.S. DOL Benefits Review Board No. 08-0403 (Decision and Order, 30 December 2008); affirmed in part as Albina Engine & Machine v. Director, OWCP, 627 F.3d 1293 (9th Cir. 2010) [court_record]
- Locator
- BRB 08-0403 (decision text, fact recital); 627 F.3d 1293 (9th Cir. 2010), docket 09-70592
- Finding type
- litigation_documented
- Finding
- Adjudicated asbestos exposure at this hull's builder yard: in LHWCA death-benefits litigation, shipyard carpenter James McAllister worked for three shipyards between 1956 and 1960 - Willamette Iron & Steel (to 1956), Albina Engine and Machine (to 1957), and Puget Sound/Lockheed (1957-1960) - and died 22 September 2002 of left pleural mesothelioma; per the Ninth Circuit, all parties stipulated that the death was due to mesothelioma caused by exposure to asbestos during his shipyard work, and the merits issue was which employer bore liability. The Ninth Circuit ultimately assigned liability to Lockheed under the last-employer rule.
- Verification
- verified
- Role
- context
- Documentation level
- class_or_era
- Accessed
- 2026-10-03
- Study period
- 1956-1960 (exposure); 2004-2010 (litigation)
- Population
- Albina Engine & Machine shipyard workers (exposure window litigated: 1956-57)
- Limitations
- Yard-level record, not a hull record: documents asbestos exposure at Albina Engine & Machine in 1956-57 - fourteen-plus years after PC-578's construction - and never names this hull or any vessel. The employer-liability disposition (Lockheed liable) does not negate the stipulated fact of asbestos exposure at Albina; the case is cited for yard-level exposure context only, at the adjudicated (trial-finding) stage.
- Atlas source
- true
- Evidence ID
- ev-uss-pc-578-pc578-06
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[8]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, HTTP 403)
- Finding type
- gov_survey
- Finding
- GAO documented that the Navy used asbestos insulation extensively aboard ships and did not begin substituting alternative insulation materials until the early 1970s - spanning this hull's construction (1941-42) and entire service era (1942-46).
- Verification
- verified
- Role
- context
- Documentation level
- class_or_era
- Accessed
- 2026-10-03
- Study period
- 1979
- Population
- Navy shipyard workers; asbestos program review
- Limitations
- Program-level documentation; supports era context only, not any fact specific to this hull. Full text not retrieved (gao.gov blocks automated fetch, HTTP 403, confirmed 2026-10-03) - content via product-page description.
- Atlas source
- true
- Evidence ID
- ev-uss-pc-578-pc578-07
-
[9]Batch-7953 search ledger (this record): NavSource; UH HURL Maritime Heritage; NHHC/DANFS (no entry exists); NARA catalog (war diary, muster rolls); NVR (pre-1987 disposal not covered); CourtListener authenticated API queries; DOL BRB + Ninth Circuit (yard level); Oregon DEQ ECSI; GAO product page; uboat.net secondary corroboration; secondary web litigation sweep [other_primary]
- Locator
- search_ledger rows sl-uss-pc-578-pc578-01 through -16
- Finding type
- historical_record
- Finding
- No qualifying ship-specific asbestos record located: no asbestos survey, abatement contract, hazmat disclosure, or litigation naming PC-578/PCC-578 was found in the public sources searched (see search_ledger). Secondary web sweeps surfaced no qualifying case or survey; the only 'asbestos' content touching this hull's builder is law-firm marketing material (mesothelioma.net, mesotheliomalawyercenter.org Albina pages) asserting yard asbestos use without primary sourcing - excluded by source policy, including an untraceable 'OSHA found extensive asbestos contamination on the yard site' claim.
- Verification
- verified
- Role
- negative_finding
- Documentation level
- ship_specific
- Accessed
- 2026-10-03
- Study period
- 2026-10-03
- Limitations
- Absence of a located public record does not prove absence of asbestos aboard - the scuttled wreck is intact and unsurveyed, and era materials may survive aboard. Deck logs (RG 24), Albina build/work records, and the 1948 sale/scuttling contract are undigitized leads. Does not establish or defeat any claim of exposure or legal eligibility.
- Atlas source
- true
- Evidence ID
- ev-uss-pc-578-pc578-08
-
[10]uboat.net, Allied Warships of WWII, 'USS PC-578 (PC-578)' (Guðmundur Helgason's long-running reference compilation; event entries sourced to submarine war-patrol reports) [other_primary]
- Locator
- uboat.net warship page shipID 8555 (spec block, commanders table, 'Notable events' entries 9 Mar 1944 and 11 Jul 1944)
- Finding type
- vessel_history
- Finding
- Secondary corroboration for this hull: 'Ordered 20 Sep 1941' (the only located source carrying an order date); wartime CO sequence consistent with NavSource; and two 1944 Pearl Harbor escort events placing PC-578 on Hawaiian escort duty - escorting USS Apogon in at the end of her second war patrol on 9 March 1944, and escorting USS Burrfish out for her third war patrol on 11 July 1944, LT A. J. Brent, USNR, in command (the Burrfish event cited to Burrfish's own report of third war patrol).
- Verification
- partial
- Role
- context
- Documentation level
- ship_specific
- Accessed
- 2026-10-03
- Study period
- 1941-1944
- Population
- Crew (1944 Hawaiian escort duty)
- Limitations
- Secondary compilation, not a primary registry - milestone corroboration only; the order date is carried from this source alone and could not be confirmed against a Navy contract record. No asbestos content.
- Atlas source
- true
- Evidence ID
- ev-uss-pc-578-pc578-09