USS Reedbird (AMS-51)

Evidence

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

1. [1]Dictionary of American Naval Fighting Ships - 'Reedbird' (YMS-291/AMS-51/MSC(O)-51); verbatim transcription via hazegray.org DANFS mirror, Internet Archive capture 2022-09-10 [nhhc_danfs]

   Locator

   DANFS 'Reedbird' entry, stats line + full text (hazegray /danfs/mine/yms291.htm)

   Finding type

   vessel_history

   Finding

   DANFS entry for Reedbird (YMS-291): 'The second Reedbird was laid down as YMS-291 by the Associated Shipbuilders, Seattle Wash., 29 January 1943 launched 20 April 1943, and commissioned 9 August 1943.' Stats line: 'YMS-291: dp. 380 (f.); l. 136'; b. 24'6"; dr. 10'; s 15 k.; cpl. 32; a. 1 3", 2 20mm., 2 dct., 2 dcp.; cl. YMS-135.' Service narrative: shakedown completed 11 November 1943, five months Western Sea Frontier duty; April 1944 joined 5th Fleet Amphibious Force for Operation Forager in TG 52.12 (minesweeping and hydrographic survey group) - Saipan assault 15 June, Guam and Tinian into 1945; Iwo Jima area late March through first week of April 1945; San Pedro 19 May; west again 20 July; postwar sweeping with TF 95 in Japanese and Korean waters (Fukuoka channels 3 November - 7 December; Inland Sea until March 1946); departed Kobe 11 March, San Francisco 26 April; St. Lawrence to the Great Lakes; decommissioned and placed in service as Naval Reserve training ship at Chicago 1 November 1946; named Reedbird and redesignated AMS-51 1 September 1947 (9th Naval District); out of service December 1949 at Orange, Texas; recommissioned 15 February 1951 Atlantic Fleet; redesignated MSCO-51 7 February 1955; decommissioned 16 December 1957 at San Diego; 11th Naval District reserve trainer; transferred to the 3rd Naval District for Portsmouth, N.H. reserve duty; ordered to Philadelphia summer 1968 for inactivation; struck from the Navy list 1 October 1968; two WWII battle stars.

   Verification

   verified

   Role

   supporting

   Documentation level

   ship_specific

   Accessed

   2026-09-24

   Study period

   1943-1968

   Population

   Associated Shipbuilders construction trades (Seattle, 1943); wartime crew (design complement 32); Naval Reserve trainees (Chicago 1946-49, southern California 1957-63, Portsmouth NH 1963-68)

   Limitations

   Authoritative identity/history record naming this hull. Contains no asbestos, materials, or insulation information - supports no asbestos claim. Live NHHC DANFS page not located (404 on standard URL patterns 2026-09-24 - same link-rot pattern as batches 01/1460/1636); hazegray.org live DNS-dead this session, so the verbatim transcription is cited via the 2022-09-10 Wayback capture of the canonical mirror path that NavSource links to. DANFS applies 'Reedbird' retroactively - the hull was unnamed YMS-291 during the entire 1943-46 combat record described. DANFS's 'December 1949' out-of-service date carries no day; NavSource's '6 December 1949' and '18 December 1957' prints are the conflicting precision sources (correction row). DANFS '3rd Naval District' for Portsmouth N.H. duty is printed as-is though Portsmouth lies geographically in the 1st Naval District - a possible DANFS anomaly, flagged in the correction row.

   Atlas source

   true

   Evidence ID

   ev-uss-reedbird-ams51-01

2. [2]NavSource Online: Mine Warfare Vessel Photo Archive - Reedbird (MSC[O] 51) ex-AMS 51 ex-YMS-291, navsource.org/archives/11/19291.htm (Internet Archive capture 2024-12-27) [other_primary]

   Locator

   NavSource AMS-51 page, chronology block, specifications block, commanding-officer table, photo table

   Finding type

   vessel_history

   Finding

   NavSource Mine Warfare Vessel Photo Archive entry for Reedbird (MSC[O] 51) ex-Reedbird (AMS 51) ex-YMS-291: chronology block confirms laid down 29 January 1943, launched 20 April 1943, commissioned 9 August 1943; decommissioned and placed in service 1 November 1946 at Chicago ('Naval Vessel Register of 1 January 1949 lists plan for placing in service as a Naval Reserve training ship in the 9th Naval District (Great Lakes) as September 1947'); named Reedbird, AMS-51, 1 September 1947; out of service December 1949 at Orange, TX; recommissioned 15 February 1951; MSC(O)-51 on 7 February 1955; decommissioned 18 December 1957 at San Diego; reserve training ship California then Portsmouth NH; out of service 1968, Atlantic Reserve Fleet Philadelphia Group; struck 1 October 1968. Sole source for the post-Navy chain: sold 10 December 1969 to John B. Clayton (Marietta, GA); 1970 to King and Co. of Florida, Inc. (Merritt Island), renamed Dragon Lady; 1975 to Braxton B. Young (Cape Canaveral); 1976 to William J. Gifford (Absecon, NJ), renamed Diane Maria; 1979 to Joseph M. Millen (Clinton, NC), renamed Etta M.; out of documentation 1988; fate unknown. Commanding officer list (Helm 1943; Herkenham 1944-45; Willis 1950-51; Lawson; Hooper; Ryan; Monroe 1954-56) and call sign November-Golf-Tango-Zulu are NavSource-only.

   Verification

   partial

   Role

   supporting

   Documentation level

   ship_specific

   Accessed

   2026-09-24

   Study period

   1943-1988

   Population

   Wartime crew (1943-1946); reserve trainees (1946-49, 1957-68); Philadelphia inactivation workforce (1968); civilian owners/crews (1969-1988)

   Limitations

   Volunteer-maintained secondary compilation, not an official record - corroborated against DANFS where they overlap. Sole source for the entire post-1969 chain (Clayton, Dragon Lady, Young, Gifford/Diane Maria, Millen/Etta M., out of documentation 1988, fate unknown), the '6 December 1949' out-of-service precision, the CO list, and the call sign - none located in any corroborating source. Its spec block (270 t, 24'6" beam, 8' draft, 2 x 800 bhp GM 8-268A diesels, Snow & Knobstedt gear, two shafts) prints verbatim on sister AMS-50 Nightingale's page - class boilerplate, not hull-verified data. Its 18 December 1957 decommission date conflicts with DANFS/uboat.net 16 December - flagged in the correction row. Contains no asbestos or materials information.

   Atlas source

   true

   Evidence ID

   ev-uss-reedbird-ams51-02

3. [3]Shipbuilding History (Tim Colton), minesweepers3 table - AMS-51 Reedbird ex-YMS-291 row; YMS-to-AMS program header (59 retained hulls) [other_primary]

   Locator

   shipbuildinghistory.com/smallships/minesweepers3.htm - 'Minesweepers Coastal (YMS/AMS/MSC(O))' table, AMS-51 row; program header paragraph (Internet Archive capture 2026-04-15)

   Finding type

   vessel_history

   Finding

   Shipbuilding History (Tim Colton compilation), 'Mine-Warfare Ships (AMS, MSC, MSO, MSI, AMCU) Built Since WWII' table, row for this hull: 'AMS | 51 | YMS | 291 | Reedbird | Associated SB | 270 | 136 | 9-Aug-43 | U.S. Navy | Struck 1968' - corroborating builder (Associated Shipbuilders), delivery/commissioning date (9 August 1943), tonnage class (270 t light), length (136 ft), and the 1968 striking. Program header documents the fleet context: after the war the Navy retained 59 Yard Minesweepers (YMS) and reclassified them as Motor Minesweepers (AMS), later changed to MSC(O) ('Old') - the reclassification pathway this hull followed.

   Verification

   verified

   Role

   supporting

   Documentation level

   ship_specific

   Accessed

   2026-09-24

   Study period

   1943-1968

   Population

   Associated Shipbuilders construction workforce (Seattle, 1943)

   Limitations

   Compiler's yard table, secondary - corroborates builder, delivery date, dimensions class, and 1968 strike. Its 270 t figure is the light/standard convention vs DANFS's 380 t full-load print - different conventions, not necessarily a conflict (correction row). The shipbuildinghistory.com domain is parked/expired; the row is cited via Internet Archive capture of 2026-04-15 (njscuba.net mirror returned HTTP 500 this session). Contains no asbestos or materials information.

   Atlas source

   true

   Evidence ID

   ev-uss-reedbird-ams51-03

4. [4]Historical Collections of the Great Lakes, BGSU University Libraries - vessel records 'YMS-291' (item 441077) and 'AMS-51 (USS REEDBIRD)' (item 449225) [museum_official]

   Locator

   greatlakes.bgsu.edu/item/441077 (YMS-291 record: rig, dimensions, 'Hull Material: Wood', DANFS-derived history text) and /item/449225 (AMS-51 linkage record); HCGL also supplied the YMS-291 photo reproduced on NavSource

   Finding type

   vessel_history

   Finding

   Bowling Green State University, Historical Collections of the Great Lakes vessel record for YMS-291 (item 441077): Registry U.S., Official Number 'U.S. NAVY', rig 'Propeller', dimensions 136.00 x 24.50 x 10.00, and 'Hull Material: Wood' - an archive-of-record confirmation of the wooden hull. The record reproduces the full DANFS service narrative and links to the companion record 'AMS-51 (USS REEDBIRD)' (item 449225: 'Vessel Name For: YMS-291', begin 1947, end 1955) - a university archive's confirmation that AMS-51 and YMS-291 are the same hull.

   Verification

   verified

   Role

   supporting

   Documentation level

   ship_specific

   Accessed

   2026-09-24

   Study period

   1943-1968

   Limitations

   University archival collection record - establishes the wooden hull and hull-number/name linkage for this specific vessel. Its embedded narrative is DANFS-derived (secondary to the DANFS row). Contains no asbestos, insulation, or materials information beyond the wooden-hull datum; 'Hull Material: Wood' establishes hull structure only, not machinery-fitting or interior materials.

   Atlas source

   true

   Evidence ID

   ev-uss-reedbird-ams51-04

5. [5]uboat.net Allied Warships of WWII - USS YMS-291, ship 9713 [other_primary]

   Locator

   uboat.net/allies/warships/ship/9713.html data table and history lines

   Finding type

   vessel_history

   Finding

   uboat.net Allied Warships entry for USS YMS-291 (ship 9713): 'Minesweeper of the YMS class'; built by Associated Shipbuilders (Seattle, Washington); ordered 30 March 1942; laid down 29 January 1943; launched 20 April 1943; commissioned 9 August 1943; end service 16 December 1957; history lines matching the DANFS chronology - decommissioned/in service 1 November 1946, named Reedbird AMS-51 1 September 1947, out of service December 1949, recommissioned 15 February 1951, MSC(O)-51 7 February 1955, out of service and stricken 1 October 1968.

   Verification

   verified

   Role

   supporting

   Documentation level

   ship_specific

   Accessed

   2026-09-24

   Study period

   1942-1968

   Limitations

   Specialist secondary compilation - corroborates dates, builder, and class. 'Ordered 30 March 1942' rests on uboat.net alone (not in DANFS) - secondary-only, not carried into record fields. Its 'End service 16 December 1957' agrees with DANFS's 16 December against NavSource's 18 December - counted toward the majority print in the correction row. Contains no asbestos information.

   Atlas source

   true

   Evidence ID

   ev-uss-reedbird-ams51-05

6. [6]Puget Sound Bridge & Dredging Co. v. Department of Labor & Industries, 26 Wash. 2d 534, 174 P.2d 541 (Wash. 1946), CourtListener opinion 4219885; companion 26 Wash. 2d 550, 174 P.2d 957 (1946), CourtListener opinion 4219541 [court_record]

   Locator

   Opinion text, JV-agreement paragraph (Sept. 19, 1940 agreement; hulls at Puget Sound plant, equipment at Lake Union plant); companion opinion caption

   Finding type

   vessel_history

   Finding

   Builder identity documented by contemporaneous court record: Puget Sound Bridge & Dredging Co. v. Department of Labor & Industries, 26 Wash. 2d 534, 174 P.2d 541 (1946) - 'on September 19, 1940, these two corporations entered into what they termed a "Shipbuilding Joint Venture Agreement" under the name of Associated Shipbuilders ... for the purpose of bidding for, taking and completing contracts for the construction, reconstruction and repair of ships and vessels; ... the hulls were to be constructed at the plant of the Puget Sound and then taken to the plant of Lake Union for the installation of equipment.' Companion opinion 26 Wash. 2d 550, 174 P.2d 957 (1946) names both corporations 'doing business as Associated Shipbuilders.' The joint venture thus physically built this hull's structure at the Puget Sound Bridge & Dredging Harbor Island plant and outfitted it at Lake Union Dry Dock - the reason 'puget-sound-bridge-dredging' is carried as the related_shipyards slug.

   Verification

   verified

   Role

   context

   Documentation level

   context_only

   Accessed

   2026-09-24

   Study period

   1940-1946

   Population

   Puget Sound Bridge & Dredging / Lake Union Dry Dock workforce (1940-45 venture period)

   Limitations

   The opinions name the builder (Associated Shipbuilders) and describe the venture's plants and minesweeper work, but do not name YMS-291 - builder-structure context only. Which partner plant handled which phase for this specific hull is not hull-documented. Industrial-insurance litigation about the venture's premium rating - unrelated to asbestos or vessel condition; carries no materials information.

   Atlas source

   true

   Evidence ID

   ev-uss-reedbird-ams51-06

7. [7]NavSource Reedbird (AMc 30) page + DANFS 'Reedbird' opening line ('The second Reedbird') + NARA SL-44 index (AMC-30 (Reedbird) run 4/29/1941-9/30/1945) + project hull-list-verify master-hull-list.json (USS Reedbird AMC-30 and USS Reedbird AMS-51 as separate tier-2 entries) [other_primary]

   Locator

   NavSource AMc-30 chronology; DANFS YMS-291 entry first line; SL-44 AMC block; hull-list-verify/master-hull-list.json

   Finding type

   vessel_history

   Finding

   Name-collision surface documented for this hull: (a) USS Reedbird (AMc-30) - the FIRST Reedbird - was a 1935 wooden purse-seiner (Fearless, built by Al Larson Boat Shop, Terminal Island CA) converted to a coastal minesweeper, in service 29 April 1941 to 14 January 1946, present at Pearl Harbor on 7 December 1941. Its service window overlaps this hull's entire WWII career (9 August 1943 - January 1946); DANFS opens this hull's entry with 'The second Reedbird' precisely because of it. (b) Both hulls were wooden diesel minesweepers of similar size, so name alone cannot separate exposure claims. (c) The unqualified string 'Reedbird' additionally collides with Reedbird Avenue, Baltimore (the dominant CourtListener docket match) and a surname. Any 'Reedbird' document, veteran claim, deck log, or docket must be hull-resolved before attribution to AMS-51; conversely the AMc-30 logs (SL-44 run 4/29/1941-9/30/1945) must not be misattributed to this hull.

   Verification

   verified

   Role

   context

   Documentation level

   ship_specific

   Accessed

   2026-09-24

   Study period

   1941-1968

   Limitations

   Disambiguation context only - establishes that two different wooden minesweepers carried the name Reedbird during an overlapping 1943-46 window. Does not itself evidence anything about this hull's materials. The AMc-30 was a converted commercial vessel whose material profile differs from a purpose-built YMS - misattribution cuts both ways.

   Atlas source

   true

   Evidence ID

   ev-uss-reedbird-ams51-07

8. [8]DANFS 'Reedbird' stats line and narrative vs NavSource AMS-51 spec/chronology block vs uboat.net ship/9713 vs Colton minesweepers3 AMS-51 row vs BGSU item 441077 [nhhc_danfs]

   Locator

   Same citations as ev-01 through ev-05

   Finding type

   vessel_history

   Finding

   Source discrepancies documented, not reconciled: (a) final decommissioning - 16 December 1957 (DANFS, uboat.net, BGSU-DANFS text) vs 18 December 1957 (NavSource). (b) displacement - 380 t full-load (DANFS stats line, Wikipedia) vs 270 t (NavSource spec block, Colton table) - likely light vs full-load conventions rather than a true conflict. (c) draft - 10' (DANFS, BGSU depth field) vs 8' (NavSource). (d) Orange, TX out-of-service - 'December 1949' (DANFS) vs '6 December 1949' (NavSource, NavalCoverMuseum) - NavSource-only precision. (e) DANFS prints reserve training at Portsmouth, N.H. under the '3rd Naval District' - Portsmouth lies geographically in the 1st Naval District; the print may reflect a postwar administrative realignment or be a DANFS error - carried as printed. (f) DANFS typography 'MSCO-51' vs formal designation MSC(O)-51. (g) NavSource's note that the 1 January 1949 Naval Vessel Register 'lists plan for placing in service ... as September 1947' is consistent with the 1 September 1947 naming date - corroborating, not conflicting.

   Verification

   disputed

   Role

   correction

   Documentation level

   ship_specific

   Accessed

   2026-09-24

   Study period

   1943-1968

   Limitations

   Resolves nothing - documents a genuine multi-source conflict so a future pass does not silently pick one figure. DANFS 16 December is carried in the decommissioned field on majority-authority grounds (DANFS + uboat.net + BGSU); NavSource's 18 December is the minority print. NavSource's spec block is class boilerplate shared with sister pages. No asbestos content in any of these sources.

   Atlas source

   true

   Evidence ID

   ev-uss-reedbird-ams51-08

9. [9]Corn, Jacqueline Karnell, and Jennifer Starr, 'Historical perspective on asbestos: Policies and protective measures in World War II shipbuilding,' American Journal of Industrial Medicine 11(3):359-373 (1987) [other_primary]

   Locator

   Abstract and article, AJIM 11(3):359-373

   Finding type

   asbestos_application

   Finding

   Era-level inference only: peer-reviewed scholarship documents that asbestos was used extensively as a fireproofing and insulating material in U.S. shipbuilding during WWII - the era and program under which this wooden-hulled motor minesweeper was built (laid down January 1943). Period marine diesel installations and auxiliary machinery commonly used asbestos-containing gaskets, packing, and exhaust-system insulation; aboard a ~270-380-ton, 136-ft diesel-driven wooden minesweeper the plausible applications, if any, would be confined to such machinery fittings plus possible electrical insulation and adhesives - no boiler-room or steam-line insulation envelope exists on this design. The documented disturbance events - December 1949 reserve-fleet berthing at Orange, 1951 reactivation, the 1968 'placed out of service and stripped' inactivation at Philadelphia, and the post-1969 civilian conversions - would have disturbed whatever materials were fitted, but nothing documents the materials themselves.

   Verification

   inferred

   Role

   supporting

   Documentation level

   class_or_era

   Accessed

   2026-09-24

   Study period

   1943-1988

   Population

   Associated Shipbuilders construction trades (Seattle, 1943); wartime crew (design complement 32); Orange TX reserve-fleet berthing and 1951 reactivation workforces; Philadelphia inactivation/stripping workforce (1968); civilian conversion crews (1969-1988)

   Limitations

   Program/era-level scholarship only - does not name this vessel or the YMS-1 class and does not establish that asbestos was or is aboard this hull, nor quantity, location, condition, individual exposure, or causation. No class- or design-specific material documentation for YMS/AMS minesweepers was located; the diesel/wooden-hull profile limits plausible scope relative to steam-driven vessels. The machinery-fitting applications named are general era practice, not documented aboard this class; the disturbance events' material scope is entirely undocumented.

   Atlas source

   true

   Evidence ID

   ev-uss-reedbird-ams51-09

10. [10]NARA, Special List #44 by ship number (sl-44-ship-number.pdf, YMS block - 'YMS-291 11/14/1943 6/30/1945'); NARA 'Navy Deck Logs Available in the National Archives Catalog' list ('Reedbird (YMS-291/AMS/MSCO-51)' - 1956, 1957, Oct-Dec 1963, 1964-67, Jan-Sep 1968) [other_primary]

    Locator

    SL-44 ship-number list, YMS block (verified by direct PDF text extraction); archives.gov/research/military/logbooks/navy-online 'Reedbird' entry

    Finding type

    historical_record

    Finding

    NARA deck-log coverage for this hull is partially indexed and partially digitized: (a) Special List #44 (List of Logbooks of U.S. Navy Ships ... by ship number) indexes one run for YMS-291, '11/14/1943 - 6/30/1945' - covering post-shakedown through the Marianas/Iwo Jima campaigns - held in RG 24 at Archives II. (b) NARA's 'Navy Deck Logs Available in the National Archives Catalog' list carries 'Reedbird (YMS-291/AMS/MSCO-51)' with digitized runs for all of 1956, all of 1957, October-December 1963, all of 1964-1967, and January-September 1968 - the Atlantic Fleet period and the Portsmouth reserve/inactivation window. No indexed coverage exists for commissioning through November 1943, July 1945 through 1946 (the Japan/Korea sweeping window and the Chicago transit), 1951-1955, or 1958 through September 1963.

    Verification

    verified

    Role

    archival_lead

    Documentation level

    ship_specific

    Accessed

    2026-09-24

    Study period

    1943-1968 records

    Limitations

    Verifies that indexed/digitized deck-log coverage exists for this hull - an unusually good log trail for a yard minesweeper. Log contents unsurveyed; the digitized 1963-68 runs cover the stripped/inactivation period and could contain material-handling entries, but none has been read. SL-44 indexes paper logs only through 1947; the postwar reserve-training runs sit in later series. Nothing in this row is an asbestos finding.

    Atlas source

    true

    Evidence ID

    ev-uss-reedbird-ams51-10

11. [11]Batch-1741 search ledger (this record): DANFS via hazegray Wayback capture; NavSource; BGSU HCGL; shipbuilding-history; uboat.net; NARA SL-44 + digitized-log list; CourtListener API v4 (6 authenticated queries); NVR; MARAD ShipHistory; hull-list-verify; class-profile worktrees [other_primary]

    Locator

    search_ledger rows sl-uss-reedbird-ams51-01 through sl-uss-reedbird-ams51-16

    Finding type

    historical_record

    Finding

    No qualifying ship-specific asbestos record located: no asbestos survey, abatement contract, hazmat disclosure, court finding, or docketed case naming USS Reedbird, YMS-291, AMS-51, MSC(O)-51, Dragon Lady, Diane Maria, or Etta M. was found in the public sources searched (see search_ledger). The CourtListener sweep executed cleanly this pass (authenticated via cl-auth-search.py, no throttle on final state): exact-name '"USS Reedbird"' returned zero opinions and zero dockets; hull-number '"YMS-291" OR "AMS-51" OR "MSCO-51" OR "MSC(O)-51"' returned two opinions (Draper v. Austin Manufacturing Services, Tex. App. 2017 - 'AMS' corporate string; Wright v. Wright, Ala. 1935 - predates the hull) and eleven dockets, all collisions; '"Reedbird" asbestos' returned zero opinions; unqualified 'Reedbird' dockets returned eleven collisions (Reedbird Avenue Baltimore address strings; a surname). No qualifying case names this hull.

    Verification

    verified

    Role

    negative_finding

    Documentation level

    ship_specific

    Accessed

    2026-09-24

    Study period

    2026-09-24

    Limitations

    Absence of a located public record does not prove absence of asbestos aboard - a 1943-built vessel is era-consistent with asbestos-containing machinery fittings even accounting for its lighter diesel insulation load. The hull's fate is unknown after 1988, so whether any surveyable structure exists cannot be determined. CourtListener coverage was complete this pass (authenticated, zero throttles on executed queries), so 'no qualifying litigation' is a real negative - subject to the standing caveat that RECAP indexing is incomplete for older dockets and that unindexed complaints naming the hull cannot be ruled out. Does not establish presence or absence; does not establish or defeat any exposure claim or legal eligibility.

    Atlas source

    true

    Evidence ID

    ev-uss-reedbird-ams51-11