USS Peril (AM-272)

Evidence

8 evidence entries recorded; each entry has a stable permalink (#ev-1 … #ev-8).

1. [1]DANFS, 'Peril' (AM-272) - official NHHC-hosted text via Wayback capture 20040314002727 of history.navy.mil/danfs/p5/peril.htm (live history.navy.mil research pages return 404 - standing link rot, same as batches 01/07/1169/1240) [nhhc_danfs]

   Locator

   DANFS 'Peril' entry, specifications block + service narrative (Wayback capture of history.navy.mil/danfs/p5/peril.htm, 2004-03-14)

   Finding type

   vessel_history

   Finding

   Official DANFS record for this hull: name defined as 'danger or exposure to risk'; Admirable-class minesweeper (dp. 945 fl.; l. 184'6"; b. 33'; dr. 9'9"; s. 15 k.; cpl. 104; a. 1 3", 2 40mm., 6 20mm., 2 dct., 2 dcp., 1 dcp. (hh.)). Laid down 1 February 1943 by the Gulf Shipbuilding Co., Chickasaw, Ala.; launched 25 July 1943, sponsored by Mrs. Morris Sorbet; commissioned 20 April 1944, Lt. Donald W. Phillips in command. Departed Boston 5 February 1945 for Philadelphia; overhaul 8-27 February; then via the Panama Canal, San Diego, Seattle, and Kodiak to Cold Bay, Alaska, mooring 21 April 1945; received forty Soviet seamen and four Soviet officers for minesweeper training 1 May 1945 and thirty-two Soviet seamen and two Soviet officers 6 May 1945; decommissioned 21 May 1945 and transferred to the U.S.S.R. Navy; 'subsequently reported destroyed or lost in Soviet service.' DANFS records no laid-down-to-commissioning interval narrative - her April 1944 - February 1945 service is undocumented in this entry.

   Verification

   verified

   Role

   supporting

   Documentation level

   ship_specific

   Accessed

   2026-09-22

   Study period

   1943-1945

   Population

   Gulf Shipbuilding construction trades 1943-44; wartime crew (design complement 104); Soviet trainees May 1945

   Limitations

   DANFS documents identity, builder, dates, and service outline - not materials or asbestos content. The entry is unusually thin: nothing between commissioning (April 1944) and the Boston departure (February 1945) - Atlantic Fleet service is a documented coverage gap. Dates conflict with secondary sources on commissioning day (20 vs 2 April), Cold Bay arrival (21 vs 28 April), and decommission/transfer (21 vs 20/22 May) - flagged in ev-07. Archived NHHC page cited because the live NHHC research URL returns 404.

   Atlas source

   true

   Evidence ID

   ev-uss-peril-am272-01

2. [2]Richard A. Russell, Project Hula: Secret Soviet-American Cooperation in the War Against Japan (Naval Historical Center, Department of the Navy, Washington DC, 1997; ISBN 0-945274-35-1), appendix 'U.S. Navy Combatant Ships Transferred to the USSR Under Project HULA, May-September 1945' + program narrative - PDF mirror at ibiblio.org/hyperwar [other_primary]

   Locator

   Russell, Project Hula (NHC 1997), appendix p. 39 (Peril AM 272 row: T-281 / 22 May group / 1960-scrapped) + pp. 16-27 program narrative and transfer-ceremony captions; ibiblio PDF mirror

   Finding type

   vessel_history

   Finding

   The Naval Historical Center monograph's transfer appendix lists Peril (AM 272) among the Admirable-class minesweepers transferred under Project Hula: Soviet designation T-281, transfer date in the 22 May 1945 ditto group (the group opens at Disdain AM 222 / T-271 / 22 May), disposition '1960-scrapped.' Program context from the narrative: all Hula transfers physically occurred at Cold Bay, Alaska (Fort Randall), where roughly 12,000-15,000 Soviet personnel were trained April-September 1945 across 149 transferred vessels; the Soviet 16th Mine Sweeper Division was built around twelve Admirable-class minesweepers and six YMS-type ships; transfer ceremonies lowered the U.S. flag and raised the Soviet naval ensign together - U.S. decommissioning and Soviet commissioning were performed in a single ceremony (photo captions pp. 20-24; Coronado PF-38 example p. 27). Post-war: return negotiations ran from February 1946; Secretary of the Navy Forrestal's 8 May 1947 letter sought return of 480 of 585 transferred combatants; most transferred minesweepers were never returned.

   Verification

   verified

   Role

   supporting

   Documentation level

   ship_specific

   Accessed

   2026-09-22

   Study period

   1945-1960

   Population

   Soviet Navy crew and Project Hula trainees (1945); Soviet Pacific Ocean Fleet service 1945-c.1960

   Limitations

   NHHC official history built on U.S. and Russian Federation archival records unavailable during the Cold War - the best authority located for the Soviet half of this hull's career, but still a secondary historical work, not a ship file. Confirms T-281 designation, the 22 May 1945 transfer group, and '1960-scrapped' disposition; 'scrapped' does not date the actual breaking. Contains no asbestos information; supports no asbestos claim.

   Atlas source

   true

   Evidence ID

   ev-uss-peril-am272-02

3. [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 Peril, which was scrapped circa 1960.

   Atlas source

   true

   Evidence ID

   ev-uss-peril-am272-03

4. [4]Documented propulsion plant and construction era for this hull (NavSource per-hull spec block: 'Two 855shp Cooper Bessemer GSB-8 diesel engines, National Supply Co. single reduction gear, two shafts'; DANFS spec block: 945 t fl., 15 kt) + WWII shipbuilding asbestos-use literature (Corn & Starr 1987; Fleischer et al. 1946, PMID 21016030) [other_primary]

   Locator

   NavSource 11/02272 specifications/propulsion block; DANFS spec block; Wikipedia Admirable-class engine table (AM-246...AM-291 -> Cooper Bessemer GSB-8, National Supply gear); AJIM 11(3):359-373; PubMed PMID 21016030

   Finding type

   asbestos_application

   Finding

   Era/design inference: this hull is a 1943-44-built steel Admirable-class minesweeper with a twin-screw geared-diesel plant (two Cooper-Bessemer GSB-8 diesels through a National Supply Co. reduction gear per NavSource's per-hull spec block - the documented fit for the AM-246...AM-291 build group) - no boilers, no steam distribution. Its insulation load was materially lighter than a steam combatant's, but machinery and construction materials of the wartime era were commonly asbestos-containing: exhaust-system and muffler insulation, machinery gaskets and packing, electrical-cable insulation, accommodation/galley joiner insulation, winch and windlass brake linings, and deck compositions of the period. Exposure-relevant populations if any such material was present: Gulf Shipbuilding construction trades (1943-44); the wartime U.S. crew (design complement ~104) including the February 1945 Philadelphia overhaul; the 78 Soviet trainees of May 1945 and the Soviet crew of 1945-c.1960. Wartime shipbuilding used asbestos extensively (Corn & Starr 1987); the USMC-commissioned Fleischer et al. 1946 survey found amosite 'an important ingredient of pipe covering material used on U.S. Navy vessels' - era documentation, not a hull record.

   Verification

   inferred

   Role

   supporting

   Documentation level

   class_or_era

   Accessed

   2026-09-22

   Study period

   1943-1960

   Population

   Gulf Shipbuilding trades (1943-44); U.S. crew Apr 1944 - May 1945; Soviet crew 1945-c.1960

   Limitations

   Inference from documented design, machinery type, and construction era - NOT a hull materials record. No survey, specification, or material schedule naming AM-272 was located; establishes no asbestos content, quantity, location, condition, individual exposure, or causation. The diesel (non-steam) plant makes even era-level inference weaker than for steam vessels of the same era. Soviet-service maintenance and the circa-1960 scrapping are undocumented in located sources. Engine make rests on secondary compilations (NavSource; Wikipedia class article citing Conway's) - the Wikipedia Peril infobox's 'ALCO 539' is the early-group fit and conflicts; flagged in ev-07.

   Atlas source

   true

   Evidence ID

   ev-uss-peril-am272-04

5. [5]NavSource Online: Mine Warfare Vessel Photo Archive - Peril (MSF 272) ex-AM-272, file 11/02272 (compiled secondary record) + uboat.net Allied Warships ship page 5337 [other_primary]

   Locator

   NavSource 11/02272 chronology block, specifications block, CO list, photo credits; uboat.net/allies/warships/ship/5337.html

   Finding type

   historical_record

   Finding

   Secondary compilations carry details absent from or conflicting with DANFS: commissioned 2 April 1944 (NavSource, uboat.net; both list LCDR Donald Wilson Phillips USNR in command from 2 Apr 1944 to 18 Feb 1945, then LT Arthur Patrick Keegan Jr. USNR to 20 May 1945); ordered 2 May 1942 (uboat.net); decommissioned 20 May 1945 at Cold Bay (NavSource, uboat.net); transferred to the Soviet Union 22 May 1945 and reclassified T-281 (consistent with the NHC monograph appendix); assigned to the Soviet Pacific Fleet 27 June 1945; 'participated in the landing at Rasin, Korea 12 August 1945'; awarded 'Guards Rank' 26 August 1945; reclassified by U.S. Navy MSF-272 on 7 February 1955; reclassified BRN-32 on 3 December 1956; 'Scrapped 18 January 1960.' NavSource photo credits include a NARA-credited construction photograph (catalog.archives.gov insert, image 110226902) and note the yard history: Chickasaw site established 1917 by U.S. Steel as Chickasaw Shipbuilding, reopened 1940 by Waterman Steamship Corp. as Gulf Shipbuilding.

   Verification

   unverified

   Role

   archival_lead

   Documentation level

   ship_specific

   Accessed

   2026-09-22

   Study period

   1942-1983

   Limitations

   NavSource and uboat.net are volunteer-compiled secondary sources, not official records - all details are unverified leads. Commissioning (2 Apr), decommission (20 May), and arrival dates conflict with DANFS; the Rasin landing, Guards rank, BRN-32 reclassification, and 18 Jan 1960 scrap date are uncorroborated by the NHC monograph or any other official source located. NavSource's photo caption dates a pictured Admirable-class transfer ceremony 'probably on 21 or 22 May 1945,' while Russell captions the same photograph 20 May - the photographed hull is not positively identified as Peril. Contains no asbestos information.

   Atlas source

   true

   Evidence ID

   ev-uss-peril-am272-05

6. [6]Batch-1245 search ledger (this record): NHHC DANFS via Wayback capture of history.navy.mil; NHC Project Hula monograph (ibiblio PDF); NPS NHL nomination (sister hull); NavSource and uboat.net compilations; Colton shipbuilding-history yard tables; HyperWar per-hull page; NVR hull-detail URLs; NARA catalog; CourtListener API v4 authenticated queries; general web index [other_primary]

   Locator

   search_ledger rows sl-uss-peril-am272-01 through sl-uss-peril-am272-10

   Finding type

   historical_record

   Finding

   No qualifying ship-specific asbestos record located for USS Peril / AM-272 / MSF-272 / T-281: no hull ACM survey (impossible - hull scrapped in the USSR circa 1960), no abatement contract, no hazmat disclosure, no preservation record, and no court finding or docketed asbestos case naming this hull was found in the public sources searched (see search_ledger). The one CourtListener query that completed before the shared quota re-exhausted ('MSF-272', opinion index) returned 0 hits; exact-name and RECAP queries were throttled (sl-08). Non-authoritative marketing rosters (mesothelioma.com minesweeper jobsites page: 'USS Peril | AM-272 | Admirable | 4/2/1944 | To Soviet Union, 1945'; mesotheliomahelp.org minesweeper list) carry the name in generic ship tables - excluded per source rules; they carry no hull-specific evidence.

   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 1943-60 service - era materials are plausible but undocumented for this hull, and the diesel plant makes even era-level inference weaker than for steam ships. The hull's destruction in the USSR forecloses any survey-based confirmation; Soviet-era maintenance and disposal records are inaccessible. CourtListener opinion sweep is PARTIAL: 'MSF-272' completed clean (0 hits); 'USS Peril', 'U.S.S. Peril', 'aboard the Peril', 'AM-272', and all RECAP queries were throttled at the quota boundary (HTTP 429) and not retried - a residual risk that a differently-phrased hull reference exists is logged as a gap. Does not establish presence or absence; does not establish or defeat any claim of exposure or legal eligibility.

   Atlas source

   true

   Evidence ID

   ev-uss-peril-am272-06

7. [7]Source-discrepancy resolution - DANFS (NHHC Wayback capture) vs NavSource 11/02272 vs Russell, Project Hula (NHC 1997) appendix vs Colton minesweeper/Chickasaw yard tables vs uboat.net 5337 vs HyperWar per-hull page vs Wikipedia infobox [other_primary]

   Locator

   history.navy.mil/danfs/p5/peril.htm (Wayback 20040314002727); hazegray.org/danfs/mine/am272.htm; navsource.net/archives/11/02272.htm; Russell Project Hula appendix p.39 + pp. 20-27; shipbuildinghistory.com smallships/minesweepers1.htm AM 272 row ('Gulf SB | Madisonville LA | 22-May-44 | To USSR 1945 as T 281, scrapped 1956') and shipyards/large/chickasaw.htm yard-history header; uboat.net/allies/warships/ship/5337.html; ibiblio.org/hyperwar/USN/ships/AM/AM-272_Peril.html; en.wikipedia.org/wiki/USS_Peril_(AM-272)

   Finding type

   historical_record

   Finding

   Source discrepancies logged, not silently merged: (a) Commissioning - DANFS reads 20 April 1944; NavSource, uboat.net, and the Wikipedia infobox read 2 April 1944 (both CO lists start Phillips on 2 April); Colton's delivered-date is 22-May-44 - DANFS carried, conflict flagged. (b) Cold Bay arrival - DANFS 'moored 21 April 1945'; Russell-derived Wikipedia text reads 28 April - DANFS carried. (c) Decommission/transfer - DANFS: decommissioned and transferred 21 May 1945; NavSource/uboat.net: decommissioned 20 May, transferred 22 May; Russell appendix: 22 May transfer group, and Russell's program narrative documents single-ceremony turnover (U.S. decommissioning and Soviet commissioning in one event) - 22 May 1945 is the best-supported transfer date; the one-to-two-day spread flagged. (d) Soviet designation T-281 - consistent across hazegray transcriber's note, NavSource, Russell appendix, and Wikipedia - no conflict. (e) Disposal - DANFS 'reported destroyed or lost' (no date); hazegray transcriber's note and Colton '1956'; NavSource 'Scrapped 18 January 1960'; Russell appendix '1960-scrapped' - Russell's 1960 carried as the better-sourced value, per the Nucleus precedent. (f) Build yard - DANFS, NavSource, uboat.net, and Wikipedia read Gulf Shipbuilding, Chickasaw AL; Colton's minesweeper table attributes the AM-267...AM-280 block to 'Gulf SB, Madisonville LA' (Gulf's sister naval yard on the old Baham Shipyard site) - Chickasaw carried per DANFS; the Madisonville attribution is unresolved and flagged. (g) Propulsion - NavSource per-hull block 'two 855shp Cooper Bessemer GSB-8, National Supply Co. single reduction gear' matching the class engine table's AM-246...AM-291 group fit; Wikipedia Peril infobox reads 'ALCO 539, Farrel-Birmingham' (the AM-136...AM-165 early-group fit, contradicting Wikipedia's own class article); HyperWar's per-hull block reads 'Diesel-electric engines, twin screws, 1,800 h.p.' - contradicted by the documented reduction gear; NavSource carried. (h) HyperWar per-hull page reads 'Transferred to U.K. under Lend-Lease, 1945' - flat error (the transfer was to the USSR, documented by DANFS and Russell); also 625 t / 15 kt vs DANFS 945 fl. - DANFS carried. (i) U.S. strike date 1 January 1983 is secondary-only (NavSource-pattern; Wikipedia flags it citation-needed).

   Verification

   partial

   Role

   correction

   Documentation level

   ship_specific

   Accessed

   2026-09-22

   Study period

   1943-1983

   Limitations

   Resolves publication-level discrepancies among the official DANFS text, the official NHHC Project Hula monograph, and secondary compilations, adopting the better-supported values and flagging the rest. For the Soviet-service half of the record Russell is treated as the better authority because it used Soviet-era records; DANFS predates that access. No asbestos content in any of these sources.

   Atlas source

   true

   Evidence ID

   ev-uss-peril-am272-07

8. [8]Archival leads - NARA WWII muster rolls and RG 24 deck logs for this hull's April 1944 - May 1945 commission; NARA RG 19 (Bureau of Ships) General Information Books and the Navy contract file for the Gulf Shipbuilding Admirable-class block; the NARA-credited construction photograph (NavSource image credit, catalog.archives.gov 110226902); Project Hula program records underlying Russell's official history (U.S. and Russian Federation archives); Soviet-service records for T-281 (1945-c.1960) are not held in U.S. archives [other_primary]

   Locator

   archives.gov RG 19/24 group guides; NavSource 11/02272 photo credits; Russell, Project Hula (NHC 1997) source notes

   Finding type

   historical_record

   Finding

   Archival leads (not retrieved - require research-room or reproduction order; NARA catalog returns only its JS application shell to automated fetch): (a) NARA's WWII muster-rolls series should cover this hull for her Apr 1944 - May 1945 commission; (b) NARA RG 24 deck logs, same window; (c) NARA RG 19 Bureau of Ships records / General Information Books and the Navy contract file for the Gulf Shipbuilding Admirable-class block - the plausible home of hull-level material schedules, which would also resolve the Chickasaw-vs-Madisonville build-yard conflict; (d) the NARA-credited construction photograph (NavSource image 110226902, catalog.archives.gov) showing the hull under construction at the Gulf yard; (e) Project Hula transfer records - the U.S. and Russian Federation archival base Russell cites (Navy operational archives, lend-lease transfer files, Cold Bay detachment records); (f) Soviet-service records for T-281 - service file, the reported 12 Aug 1945 Rasin landing action, 1956 BRN-32 reclassification, and circa-1960 disposal - held in Russian archives, inaccessible this session.

   Verification

   unverified

   Role

   archival_lead

   Documentation level

   context_only

   Accessed

   2026-09-22

   Study period

   1943-1983 records

   Limitations

   Record-group mapping only - no box-level retrieval performed; existence of asbestos-specific documents for AM-272 is unknown until surveyed in person. Muster rolls, deck logs, and transfer files are personnel/operations records, not materials documentation. The Soviet half of this hull's life is doubly undocumented in U.S. sources. Nothing in this row is an asbestos finding.

   Atlas source

   true

   Evidence ID

   ev-uss-peril-am272-08