USS Schmitt (APD-76)

Evidence

9 evidence entries recorded; each entry has a stable permalink (#ev-1 … #ev-9).

1. [1]DANFS, Schmitt (DE-676), NHHC ship-history entry (live page serves 404; Wayback capture 2025-02-01; HyperWar/ibiblio carries only an APD-76 spec stub without the narrative) [nhhc_danfs]

   Locator

   NHHC DANFS 'Schmitt (DE-676)' entry - spec block + namesake paragraph + full service narrative; Wayback capture 2025-02-01

   Finding type

   vessel_history

   Finding

   DANFS record for this hull (spec block: dp. 1,400; l. 306'; b. 37'; dr. 13'6"; s. 23.6k.; cpl. 213; a. 3 3", 4 40mm., 4 1.1", 10 20mm., 2 dct., 8 dcp., 1 dcp. (hh.); cl. Buckley). Namesake: Father Aloysius H. Schmitt (b. St. Lucas, Iowa, 4 Dec 1909; Acting Chaplain Lt. (j.g.) 28 Jun 1939; serving aboard Oklahoma BB-37 on 7 Dec 1941 - assisted men through a porthole and gave up his own escape; posthumous Navy and Marine Corps Medal). Laid down 22 February 1943 by Bethlehem Shipbuilding Co., Quincy, Mass.; launched 29 May 1943; sponsored by Mrs. Elizabeth Buchheit; commissioned 24 July 1943, Lt. Comdr. T. D. Cunningham in command. Shakedown Bermuda, repairs New York; 19 October 1943 convoy to Curacao; Londonderry-New York convoy route to 30 September 1944 (16 crossings); 21 October convoy Norfolk-Bizerte/Mediterranean, returned New York 10 December; submarine training ship New London 16 December 1944-19 January 1945; arrived U.S. Naval Frontier Base, Tompkinsville, Staten Is., N.Y. 20 January 1945 for conversion to high speed transport; designation changed to APD-76 on 24 January 1945; conversion completed 3 April 1945; Pearl Harbor 16 May; embarked UDT, Maui exercises; arrived off Balikpapan, Borneo, 23 June; screened bombardment group 23-28 June; UDT night reconnaissance 25 and 28 June; 1 July her boat led the first 17 waves of landing craft to the beach; left Balikpapan 3 July; UDT disembarked Oceanside 2 August; under repair at San Pedro 4-18 August; Sasebo beach reconnaissance 20-27 September; San Diego 19 October; Pearl Harbor round-trip 17-30 November; joined Atlantic Fleet at Norfolk 16 December; three and a half years Atlantic-coast training; Charleston 16 April 1949 for inactivation; decommissioned and placed in reserve there 28 June 1949; struck from the Navy List 1 May 1967; transferred in February to Taiwan as Lung Shan (PF-44). One battle star for World War II service.

   Verification

   verified

   Role

   supporting

   Documentation level

   ship_specific

   Accessed

   2026-09-26

   Study period

   1943-1969

   Population

   Bethlehem Fore River construction trades 1943; wartime crew (design complement 213) and embarked UDT personnel through 1945

   Limitations

   DANFS documents namesake, construction, service chronology, striking, and transfer - not materials or asbestos content. DANFS prints the Taiwan transfer as 'in February' without a year in the closing line (context = post-1967; 1969 carried per NavSource); does not name the specific conversion contractor inside the Tompkinsville Frontier Base. Mirror citation because the live NHHC page returns 404.

   Atlas source

   true

   Evidence ID

   ev-uss-schmitt-apd76-01

2. [2]Naval Vessel Register, SCHMITT (APD 76) ex-DE 676 detail page (NAVSEA official register; live URL serves the record shell only; data read via Wayback capture 2016-11-07) [other_primary]

   Locator

   NVR SHIPSDETAIL_APD_76 page, Wayback capture 2016-11-07 (3 captures 2016-2024)

   Finding type

   vessel_history

   Finding

   NVR official register record for this hull: UIC 53676; class 'APD 37' (Charles Lawrence class); status 'Stricken, to be disposed of by dismantling' with date status changed 06/01/1967; builder 'Bethlehem Steel Co., Shipbuilding Div.'; award date 10/29/1942; keel 02/22/1943; launch 05/29/1943; delivery date printed 07/24/1954 (impossible - commission date is 07/24/1943; an NVR data-entry typo logged in gaps); commission 07/24/1943; decommission 06/28/1949; stricken 05/01/1967; overall length 306 ft, waterline length 300 ft, extreme beam 37 ft, waterline beam 36 ft, max navigational draft 14 ft; steel hull, steel superstructure; custodian TAIWAN; record last updated 08/10/2010.

   Verification

   verified

   Role

   supporting

   Documentation level

   ship_specific

   Accessed

   2026-09-26

   Study period

   1942-1967

   Limitations

   Official register data fielded as status/milestone dates and dimensions - the printed delivery date (07/24/1954) is internally impossible (commission 1943) and is logged as an NVR data-quality defect rather than reconciled; the 06/01/1967 status-change date records the register's stricken-status update (stricken date field itself is 05/01/1967). NVR documents dates/dimensions/status, not materials or asbestos content. NVR notes pre-1987 disposals are populated incrementally.

   Atlas source

   true

   Evidence ID

   ev-uss-schmitt-apd76-02

3. [3]NavSource Online Amphibious Photo Archive, USS Schmitt (APD-76) ex-DE-676 page (chronology, APD spec block, campaign table, CO list, Taiwan disposition) + Destroyer Escort Photo Index DE-676 (navsource.net/archives/06/676.htm: building/operational data, namesake biography) [other_primary]

   Locator

   NavSource APD-76 page chronology + spec block + campaign table + disposition lines; DE-676 index 'Building and Operational Data' and CO list; photo caption 80-G-453445

   Finding type

   vessel_history

   Finding

   NavSource record for this hull: APD configuration spec block - displacement 1,400 t lt / 2,130 t fl; 306 ft oa; beam 37 ft; draft 12 ft 7 in limiting; speed 23.6 kt trial; range 6,000 nm at 12 kt; ship's company 12 officers / 192 enlisted plus troop accommodations 12 officers / 150 enlisted; 4 LCVP; armament one 5-inch/38 DP, three twin 40 mm, six single 20 mm, two depth charge tracks; propulsion 'two Combustion Engineering "D" Express boilers, 435psi 750 deg; two General Electric turbines (turbo-electric drive); two propellers, 12,000shp'. Chronology: entered U.S. Naval Frontier Base, Tompkinsville, Staten Island, N.Y. for conversion 20 January 1945; redesignated APD-76; conversion completed 3 April 1945 (DE index prints 'Redesignated APD 76' on 24 January 1945). Campaign table credits Borneo operation - Balikpapan operation 21 June-6 July 1945. Occupation service Far East 20-27 September 1945 (Sasebo photos circa 20 September 1945). Decommissioned 28 June 1949 at Charleston, S.C. (DE index: 'after 5.9 years of service'); struck from the Naval Register 1 May 1967; 'transferred under the Military Assistance Program to Taiwan, 24 February 1969, renamed ROCS Lung Shan (PF-44)' (APD page) while the DE index reads '18 February 1969' - both carried in gaps; 'struck by the Taiwanese Navy and broken up for scrap in 1976'. One battle star; CO list includes LCDR Thomas D. Cunningham (24 Jul 1943), LT Nicholas Biddle USNR, LCDR Thomas A. Melusky USNR, LCDR James J. Seelig USNR, LTjg Robert J. Loomis, LCDR George E. Dawson, LCDR Jack R. English (decommissioning). NARA photo 80-G-453445 shows the ship in Measure 31 camouflage on 9 April 1945 following conversion.

   Verification

   partial

   Role

   supporting

   Documentation level

   ship_specific

   Accessed

   2026-09-26

   Study period

   1943-1976

   Population

   Crew 1943-1949 (DE 15/198; APD 12/192 per spec blocks); embarked troops (to 12 officers/150 enlisted); ROC Navy crews 1969-1976

   Limitations

   Volunteer-compiled secondary archive consistent with DANFS/NVR on the carried facts; the APD spec block is its own compilation (not a cited primary doc) - boiler manufacturer agrees with navypedia's block map but both are secondary. ROC-era service detail is documented only at this level in the sources searched. The DE index's '19 May 1943' launch date conflicts with DANFS/NVR/its own APD page (29 May) - logged in gaps, not reconciled.

   Atlas source

   true

   Evidence ID

   ev-uss-schmitt-apd76-03

4. [4]NARA Special List 44, named-vessel logbook inventory (archives.gov) [other_primary]

   Locator

   archives.gov SL44 'Schmitt (DE-676, APD-76)' row

   Finding type

   historical_record

   Finding

   NARA Special List 44 named-vessel logbook inventory lists 'Schmitt (DE-676, APD-76)' with coverage 7/24/1943-12/31/1945 - deck logs spanning commissioning through the Tompkinsville APD conversion, the Balikpapan operation, occupation service, and return to the Atlantic Fleet.

   Verification

   verified

   Role

   archival_lead

   Documentation level

   ship_specific

   Accessed

   2026-09-26

   Study period

   1943-1945 (logbook coverage)

   Limitations

   Archival lead only - holdings are undigitized/unpulled; deck logs record positions, operations, and personnel entries and may note yard/conversion periods relevant to material disturbance, but nothing is asserted from them. Retrieval not performed.

   Atlas source

   true

   Evidence ID

   ev-uss-schmitt-apd76-04

5. [5]Bureau of Ships, Ships' Data, U.S. Naval Vessels, Vol. 1 (Jan 1945), DE design-group table (shipscribe.com scan) + NavSource APD-76 spec block + Atlas class file buckley-class.class.json (background) [other_primary]

   Locator

   SDB1945v1 DE design-group table; NavSource APD-76 spec block; buckley-class.class.json ev-buckley-class-01/-02/-04 (background)

   Finding type

   asbestos_application

   Finding

   Era/design inference: this hull is a 1943 Fore River-built Buckley-class (TE) destroyer escort with a full steam plant - BuShips Ships' Data 1945 design groups 2-3 document the type at 2 'D' express-type boilers (435 psi/750 F superheat) feeding GE turbine-generators/electric motors, 12,000 shp, 2 shafts; NavSource's APD-76 spec block reads 2 Combustion Engineering 'D' Express boilers and the navypedia block map assigns Combustion Engineering to the DE-665-683 block including DE-676 (both secondary). Steam escorts of the 1942-43 DE program carried era-standard asbestos in boiler and machinery insulation, steam-line lagging, valve and flange gaskets, machinery packing, electrical insulation, deck coverings, and brake linings; the 1945 APD conversion added troop berthing/messing and four LCVP davits (work that disturbs existing insulation and adds new lagging/coverings).

   Verification

   inferred

   Role

   supporting

   Documentation level

   class_or_era

   Accessed

   2026-09-26

   Study period

   1943-1949

   Population

   Bethlehem Fore River construction trades 1943; Tompkinsville conversion yard workers 1945; crew and embarked troops 1943-49

   Limitations

   Class/era and builder-yard inference only - no ship-specific asbestos record supports 'documented aboard this hull' wording; establishes no quantities, no locations, and no individual exposure. Boiler manufacturer is secondary-sourced (NavSource spec block; navypedia block map), unverified against contract documents.

   Atlas source

   true

   Evidence ID

   ev-uss-schmitt-apd76-05

6. [6]Atlas shipyard dataset (shipyard-exposure-map/client/src/data/shipyards.json): fore-river-shipyard (tier 3), bethlehem-shipbuilding (tier 3), charleston-naval-shipyard (tier 2) yard-level records [other_primary]

   Locator

   shipyards.json yard_id fore-river-shipyard, bethlehem-shipbuilding, charleston-naval-shipyard

   Finding type

   historical_record

   Finding

   Yard-level context for the facilities tied to this hull: builder Fore River Shipyard (Bethlehem, Quincy, Mass.) is tier-3 in the Atlas dataset with an asbestos product list including boilers, pipes, turbines, fireproofing materials, gaskets, packing, electrical components, asbestos wire insulation, asbestos cement, and asbestos-containing paint, plus yard-level litigation (Oliver v. General Electric Co., D. Md. 1:16-cv-01057, pipefitter's/drafting apprentice 1967-1970); the bethlehem-shipbuilding yard record (tier 3) documents product lines incl. 85% magnesia block, Marinite, Transite and Aircell pipe covering, Limpet spray, Unibestos, and Raybestos cloth. Inactivation/decommissioning at Charleston, S.C. (1949) is documented by DANFS; charleston-naval-shipyard is tier-2 in the dataset with documented asbestos-product and litigation rows.

   Verification

   verified

   Role

   context

   Documentation level

   context_only

   Accessed

   2026-09-26

   Study period

   1943-1949 (yard events); litigation 2016

   Population

   Fore River trades 1943; Charleston inactivation facility trades 1949

   Limitations

   Yard-level records only - they document conditions/litigation at the builder and the documented inactivation port, not aboard this hull. DANFS says 'Charleston, S.C.' for inactivation without naming the shipyard facility; the charleston-naval-shipyard linkage is locational inference logged in gaps. The Tompkinsville Frontier Base conversion site is not an Atlas yard entry. No element of this row is evidence of asbestos aboard DE-676/APD-76.

   Atlas source

   true

   Evidence ID

   ev-uss-schmitt-apd76-06

7. [7]GAO, Navy Efforts To Protect Workers From Asbestos Exposure, HRD-80-2 (Oct 18, 1979) - program-level context via class file [gao]

   Locator

   GAO HRD-80-2 (Oct 1979); class file ev-buckley-class-06

   Finding type

   regulatory

   Finding

   GAO documented that the Navy's standing asbestos-removal policy dates from 1975 (remove asbestos insulation only when damaged or required for repairs, modified 1979 to selective replacement in high-maintenance areas). This hull left U.S. custody by MAP transfer to the Republic of China in February 1969 - before any standing Navy asbestos-control program and before disposal hazmat documentation practices - so the hull is consistent with era materials retained in place through its U.S. service life and transfer; no U.S.-custody abatement or disposal material record is expected to exist.

   Verification

   verified

   Role

   context

   Documentation level

   context_only

   Accessed

   2026-09-26

   Study period

   1975-1979 policy era vs. 1943-1969 U.S. custody of this hull

   Limitations

   Program-level context only - GAO HRD-80-2 does not name this hull or class; it bounds what documentation could exist, it does not establish that asbestos was or was not aboard. gao.gov returns 403 to automated fetches; product-page description relied on per BATCH-01 standing note.

   Atlas source

   true

   Evidence ID

   ev-uss-schmitt-apd76-07

8. [8]CourtListener API v4 opinion and docket sweeps for 'USS Schmitt' / 'DE-676' / 'APD-76' (authenticated, cl-auth-search.py) [court_record]

   Locator

   cl-auth-search.py sweeps 2026-09-26; search_ledger rows sl-uss-schmitt-apd76-05 through sl-uss-schmitt-apd76-09

   Finding type

   litigation_documented

   Finding

   CourtListener sweeps for this hull (authenticated, fleet-paced): '"USS Schmitt"' returned zero opinion and zero docket hits; '"DE-676"' returned 10 opinion hits and 79 docket hits, all identifier collisions in unrelated matters (Puerto Rico appellate records, employment/habeas/farm-services opinions; federal criminal, bankruptcy, and SEC dockets where 'DE-676' appears as an exhibit/document string - none asbestos or maritime, none naming the vessel); '"APD-76"' returned zero opinion hits. The '"APD-76"' docket-type sweep remained fleet-paced (shared ~114/hr token budget exhausted at attempt) - logged pending in the search ledger rather than assumed negative. No qualifying asbestos litigation naming this hull was located.

   Verification

   verified

   Role

   negative_finding

   Documentation level

   ship_specific

   Accessed

   2026-09-26

   Study period

   sweep 2026-09-26

   Limitations

   Zero-hit and collision-only results bound the indexed public record; docket-level asbestos references can exist without indexed opinions, and state-court asbestos dockets are incompletely indexed on CourtListener. The 'DE-676' collisions were classified from case names, courts, and docket metadata - none is plausibly maritime or asbestos. The pending 'APD-76' docket sweep means the sweep set is not fully exhaustive; if hits surface later this row is revisable.

   Atlas source

   true

   Evidence ID

   ev-uss-schmitt-apd76-08

9. [9]Batch-2453 search ledger (this record): NHHC DANFS (Wayback-verified), Naval Vessel Register APD-76 detail page via Wayback, NavSource DE/APD archives, HyperWar/ibiblio spec page, NARA Special List 44, CourtListener sweeps, marketing-list sweep [other_primary]

   Locator

   search_ledger rows sl-uss-schmitt-apd76-01 through sl-uss-schmitt-apd76-13

   Finding type

   historical_record

   Finding

   No qualifying ship-specific asbestos record located for DE-676/APD-76: no asbestos survey, abatement contract, disposal hazmat disclosure, museum documentation, or docketed asbestos case naming the vessel was found in the public sources searched (see search_ledger). The hull transferred to the Republic of China in February 1969 - before the Navy's documented asbestos-control program era (GAO HRD-80-2: standing removal policy dates from 1975) and before disposal hazmat documentation practices - so no U.S.-custody abatement or disposal-phase material record is expected to exist; the 1976 Taiwan scrapping is undocumented in the sources searched.

   Verification

   verified

   Role

   negative_finding

   Documentation level

   ship_specific

   Accessed

   2026-09-26

   Study period

   2026-09-26

   Limitations

   Absence of a located public record does not prove absence of asbestos aboard - a 1943 steam-plant hull is consistent with retained era materials through its U.S. service life and foreign transfer. Does not establish that asbestos is or is not present; does not establish or defeat any claim of exposure or legal eligibility. The 'APD-76' docket sweep remains pending (fleet pacing) - if completed hits surface later this finding is revisable.

   Atlas source

   true

   Evidence ID

   ev-uss-schmitt-apd76-09