Evidence
13 evidence entries recorded; each entry has a stable permalink (#ev-1 … #ev-13).
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[1]DANFS, 'Sentry (AM-299)' entry, Naval History and Heritage Command (live NHHC URLs danfs/s/sentry-i.html and danfs/s/sentry.html return 404; hazegray.org canonical offline - verbatim DANFS transcription retrieved via the losthistory.net hazegray mirror) [nhhc_danfs]
- Locator
- DANFS 'Sentry (AM-299)' entry body + specifications block (via losthistory.net/hazegray/danfs/mine/am299.htm)
- Finding type
- vessel_history
- Finding
- DANFS records: 'Sentry (AM-299) was laid down on 16 May 1943 by the Winslow Marine Railway and Shipbuilding Co., Seattle, Wash.; launched on 15 August 1943 sponsored by Miss Nanette L. Pratt, and commissioned on 30 May 1944, Lt. Thomas R. Fonick in command.' Service: sailed from San Francisco 1944-08-28, joined 7th Fleet at Manus 1944-10-06; three-day pre-invasion sweep off Leyte from 17 October and anti-aircraft support during the 20 October landings; pre-invasion sweeps with Mine Division 34 at Ormoc Bay (6 Dec 1944), Mindoro (14 Dec), Lingayen Gulf (6 Jan 1945), Zambales and Subic Bay (29-31 Jan); Manila Bay sweeps 13-19 Feb 1945 for Mariveles/Corregidor under shore-battery fire - Mine Division 34 earned a Navy Unit Commendation; local sweeps incl. Legaspi (1 Apr) and an 8-day Sulu Sea/Palawan sweep from 22 Apr; Brunei Bay 7-18 Jun and Balikpapan 22 Jun-15 Jul (sister ship Salute mined and sunk 8 Jun); task unit received a Presidential Unit Citation for Borneo service 15 Jun-1 Jul 1945; post-surrender mine clearance in the Ryukyus, Tsushima Strait, and Van Diemen Strait; decommissioned Orange, TX 1946-06-19; reclassified MSF-299 effective 1955-02-07; struck 1962-02-01; transferred to the Republic of Vietnam 1962-08-31 as Ky Hoa (HQ-09); 6 battle stars for WWII. Spec block: dp. 795; l. 184'6"; b. 33'; dr. 9'; s. 15 k.; cpl. 104; a. 1 3", 2 40mm., 6 20mm., 2 dct., 2 dcp., 1 dcp. (hh.); cl. Admirable.
- Verification
- verified
- Role
- supporting
- Documentation level
- ship_specific
- Accessed
- 2026-09-22
- Study period
- 1943-1962
- Population
- Winslow Marine Railway construction workforce (1943-44); wartime crew (complement 104) 1944-46; reserve-fleet caretakers 1946-62
- Limitations
- Official NHHC entry naming this hull - confirms identity, builder, build/commissioning/decommission/strike/transfer dates, combat record, unit awards, and specifications. Contains no materials, insulation, or asbestos information and does not state a post-transfer disposition; supports no asbestos claim. Live NHHC page 404s; verbatim text via the losthistory.net hazegray mirror.
- Atlas source
- true
- Evidence ID
- ev-uss-sentry-am299-01
-
[2]NavSource Online: Mine Warfare Vessel Photo Archive - Sentry (MSF-299) ex-AM-299, file 11/02299 [other_primary]
- Locator
- NavSource 02299.htm - timeline block, specifications block, commanding-officers table
- Finding type
- vessel_history
- Finding
- NavSource timeline corroborates DANFS and adds detail: call sign November-Quebec-Papa-November; 'Naval Vessel Register of 1 January 1949 lists plan for decommissioning and placing in reserve as December 1945'; decommissioned 19 June 1946 at Orange, TX; reclassified Fleet Minesweeper (Steel Hull) MSF-299 on 7 February 1955; struck from the Naval Register 1 February 1962; transferred to the Republic of Vietnam 31 August 1962 and renamed RVN Ky Hoa (HQ 09); 'Fate unknown.' Spec block: 945 t (fl); 184'6" x 33' x 9'9"; 14.8 kts; complement 104; armament one 3"/50 dual-purpose mount, one twin 40mm mount, six 20mm mounts, one depth-charge projector (hedgehog), four depth-charge projectors (K-guns), two depth-charge tracks; propulsion two 855 shp Cooper Bessemer GSB-8 diesel engines, National Supply Co. single reduction gear, two shafts. Commanding officers listed: LCDR Thomas Robert Fonick, USNR (30 May 1944 - 1 July 1945) and LTJG Raymond J. Weigele, USNR (15 May 1946 - 19 June 1946).
- Verification
- verified
- Role
- supporting
- Documentation level
- ship_specific
- Accessed
- 2026-09-22
- Study period
- 1943-1975
- Population
- Winslow Marine Railway construction workforce (1943-44); wartime crew 1944-46; RVN crew 1962-75
- Limitations
- Specialist volunteer-compiled archive, not an official publication - consistent with DANFS and Ships' Data 1945 on all overlapping points. Direct fetch of navsource.org failed this session (DNS/timeout); page content verified via search-index retrieval. Contains no asbestos information; supports no asbestos claim.
- Atlas source
- true
- Evidence ID
- ev-uss-sentry-am299-02
-
[3]uboat.net Allied Warships - USS Sentry (AM 299), Admirable-class minesweeper entry (Gudmundur Helgason compilation) [other_primary]
- Locator
- uboat.net ship/5363 - data table, commanders list, notable-events section (Operation Oboe VI / TG 78.1 order of battle)
- Finding type
- vessel_history
- Finding
- Compiled warship record naming this hull: ordered 2 May 1942 (a datum DANFS does not carry); built by Winslow Marine Railways & Ship Building Corp., Winslow, Washington; laid down 16 May 1943; launched 15 Aug 1943; commissioned 30 May 1944; end of service 19 Jun 1946; struck 1 Feb 1962; transferred to the Republic of Vietnam 31 Aug 1962 as Ky Hoa (HQ 09). Commanding officer listed: Lt.Cdr. Thomas Robert Fonick, USNR, from 30 May 1944. Notable-events section places Sentry in the convoy SP 8 escort into Pearl Harbor (Aug 1944) and documents Task Group 78.1.5, the Minesweeping Group at the Ormoc landing, under Lt.Cdr. T.R. Fonick - Sentry's commanding officer leading the sweep unit.
- Verification
- verified
- Role
- supporting
- Documentation level
- ship_specific
- Accessed
- 2026-09-22
- Study period
- 1942-1962
- Population
- Wartime crew (complement 104), 1944-46
- Limitations
- Secondary compiled database (respected reference for Allied warship data) - corroborates DANFS/NavSource on all overlapping points; the 'ordered' date is unique to this source and not independently verified against the contract record. Contains no asbestos information; supports no asbestos claim.
- Atlas source
- true
- Evidence ID
- ev-uss-sentry-am299-03
-
[4]Bureau of Ships, Ships' Data, U.S. Naval Vessels, Vol. II (1945 edition, digitized via shipscribe.com) - Mine Vessels/Minesweepers (AM) tables [other_primary]
- Locator
- SDB 1945 Vol. II, AM machinery table (p. 38; PDF ~p. 54) and builder/date table (p. 39; PDF ~p. 55), 'SENTRY - AM 299' rows
- Finding type
- vessel_history
- Finding
- The official 1945 BuShips ships'-data tables name this hull: builder table 'Winslow Mar. Ry. & S. B. Co. ... 16 May 43 | 15 Aug 43 | 30 May 44 | SENTRY ... AM 299' (keel laid / launched / first commissioned); machinery table lists AM 299 inside the 'C. B. GSB-8 ... 1,710 ... Nat. Sup.' ditto chain - i.e., Cooper Bessemer GSB-8 diesel engines, 1,710 shaft horsepower, National Supply Co. reduction gear, with the class-standard ship's-service generator fit (3 x 60 kW 450 V A.C. plus 3 x 20 kW 120 V D.C.). This primary table contradicts the Wikipedia infobox's '2 x ALCO 539 diesel engines ... Farrel-Birmingham single reduction gear' - the SDB-documented fit is GSB-8/National Supply, consistent with sister ship USS Hazard's documented plant.
- Verification
- verified
- Role
- correction
- Documentation level
- ship_specific
- Accessed
- 2026-09-22
- Study period
- 1943-1945 (publication)
- Population
- Winslow Marine Railway construction and engineroom-installation trades (1943-44)
- Limitations
- Contemporaneous official technical publication naming this hull - authoritative for machinery fit and build dates. Contains no insulation-materials or asbestos information; supports no asbestos claim. The 1,710 shaft-horsepower figure is the table's per-ship value; NavSource expresses the same plant as two 855 shp engines (2 x 855 = 1,710).
- Atlas source
- true
- Evidence ID
- ev-uss-sentry-am299-04
-
[5]Consolidated era/design inference - NavSource spec block + Ships' Data 1945 machinery row for this hull + Admirable-class design data (NPS NHL nomination 79003712 for same-yard sister ship USS Hazard) [other_primary]
- Locator
- NavSource 02299.htm specifications block; SDB 1945 AM-299 row; NPS NRIS 79003712 (class design description)
- Finding type
- asbestos_application
- Finding
- Era/design inference: this hull was a diesel-powered Admirable-class minesweeper (twin Cooper Bessemer GSB-8 diesels, National Supply single reduction gear, twin shafts - no boilers or steam turbines) built at a WWII Navy contract yard during the peak of wartime asbestos usage in shipbuilding - the construction context for which exhaust-system and engine-room insulation, pipe lagging, valve and flange gaskets, machinery packing, electrical cable insulation, bulkhead and overhead panels, deck coverings, and winch/windlass brake linings of the period were commonly asbestos-containing. Documented disturbance windows for this hull: wartime construction at Winslow (1943-44), active commissioned service (1944-46), sixteen years of reserve-fleet lay-up at Orange TX (1946-62), transfer and RVN operation (1962-75), and the 1975 Ba Son shipyard repair/capture phase.
- Verification
- inferred
- Role
- supporting
- Documentation level
- class_or_era
- Accessed
- 2026-09-22
- Study period
- 1943-1975
- Population
- Winslow Marine Railway construction trades (1943-44); commissioned crew 1944-46; reserve-fleet caretakers 1946-62; RVN crew and Ba Son repair workforce 1962-75
- Limitations
- Inference from the documented machinery plant, class design, and construction era - NOT a hull record. No survey, specification, or material schedule naming AM-299 was located; establishes no asbestos content, quantity, location, individual exposure, or causation. The absence of a steam plant narrows but does not eliminate the era-typical application set.
- Atlas source
- true
- Evidence ID
- ev-uss-sentry-am299-05
-
[6]Fleischer, W.E., Viles, F.J. Jr., Gade, R.L., and Drinker, P., 'A health survey of pipe covering operations in constructing naval vessels,' J Ind Hyg Toxicol 28(1):9-16 (Jan 1946), PMID 21016030 [other_primary]
- Locator
- PubMed record PMID 21016030; article pp. 9-16 (pipe covering material section)
- Finding type
- gov_survey
- Finding
- The 1944-45 U.S. government industrial-hygiene survey of WWII pipe-covering operations at two Navy yards and two Navy contract yards documented that 'an important ingredient of pipe covering material used on U.S. Navy vessels is amosite' - i.e., asbestos insulation was standard material in wartime naval-vessel construction of exactly this hull's era and procurement channel (Winslow Marine Railway was a private commercial yard building Navy minesweepers under contract - the surveyed channel).
- Verification
- verified
- Role
- context
- Documentation level
- class_or_era
- Accessed
- 2026-09-22
- Study period
- survey ~1944-45; published 1946
- Population
- WWII pipe coverers and insulators at Navy and contract yards (era context)
- Limitations
- Era-level documentation of asbestos use in naval construction generally; the surveyed yards are anonymized (A-D) and it does not name this vessel, class, or builder - whether Winslow Marine Railway was among the surveyed contract yards is unverified. Establishes nothing about this hull's materials, condition, or any individual exposure. (The study's exculpatory 'not a dangerous occupation' conclusion has since been heavily criticized - see the 2026 critique at DOI 10.1177/10482911261446696.)
- Atlas source
- true
- Evidence ID
- ev-uss-sentry-am299-06
-
[7]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), PMID 3555021 [other_primary]
- Locator
- Abstract and article, AJIM 11(3):359-373
- Finding type
- asbestos_application
- Finding
- Peer-reviewed historical study documents that asbestos was used extensively as a fireproofing and insulating material in U.S. shipbuilding during WWII - the era and emergency construction program under which this Admirable-class minesweeper was built - and that wartime demand drove unprecedented asbestos utilization in shipbuilding.
- Verification
- verified
- Role
- context
- Documentation level
- class_or_era
- Accessed
- 2026-09-22
- Study period
- 1940s era documented; article 1987
- Population
- WWII shipyard workers and ship crews (class context)
- Limitations
- Program/era-level scholarly documentation of asbestos use in WWII shipbuilding generally; does not name this vessel or class and does not establish that asbestos was or remains aboard this hull, nor quantity, location, condition, exposure, or causation.
- Atlas source
- true
- Evidence ID
- ev-uss-sentry-am299-07
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[8]National Park Service, National Historic Landmark nomination, USS Hazard (AM-240), NRIS 79003712 (Admirable-class sister ship built at the same Winslow yard) [nps]
- Locator
- NPS NRIS 79003712 + NHL nomination text, description and significance sections
- Finding type
- historical_record
- Finding
- Official NPS documentation of the Admirable class via the sole surviving example - built at the SAME yard as this hull: 'USS Hazard (AM-240) was built by the Winslow Marine Railway & Shipbuilding Co., Winslow, Washington. She was launched on May 21, 1944, and was commissioned on October 31, 1944.' On the class: '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 antisubmarine warfare and antiaircraft ships. Admirable class minesweepers formed the majority of American minesweepers built during World War II.' The nomination records Hazard retaining essentially all original 1945 equipment - 'a virtual time capsule dating from 1945' - evidencing that the class's as-built WWII fabric survives intact on a sister hull built by the same yard in the same period.
- Verification
- verified
- Role
- context
- Documentation level
- class_or_era
- Accessed
- 2026-09-22
- Study period
- nomination 1979; class era 1943-1945
- Population
- Admirable-class crews and builders (class context)
- Limitations
- Documents a different hull (AM-240) and the class design generally; contains no asbestos or materials content and establishes nothing about AM-299 itself. The class-context value is the shared yard, shared design, and demonstrated as-built survival on a sister - not any asbestos finding.
- Atlas source
- true
- Evidence ID
- ev-uss-sentry-am299-08
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[9]U.S. EPA, Wyckoff/Eagle Harbor Superfund site pages (site overview; West Harbor Soils and Sediment Cleanup Area / OU3) [other_primary]
- Locator
- EPA Wyckoff/Eagle Harbor site overview + West Harbor OU3 page; NPL listing 1987; cleanup timeline (OU3 sediment dredge/cap 1997)
- Finding type
- environmental_record
- Finding
- The builder yard's footprint is part of a federal Superfund site: EPA added Eagle Harbor (Bainbridge Island, WA) to the National Priorities List in 1987; the West Harbor Operable Unit (OU3) 'became contaminated with mercury and other metals from a former shipyard located at the site'; contaminated sediments were excavated/disposed upland with a confined disposal facility built in intertidal areas next to the former shipyard property (remedial work completed 1997), and the area 'is now part of a Washington Department of Transportation ferry maintenance facility' - matching the documented post-1959 reuse of the Winslow yard property.
- Verification
- verified
- Role
- context
- Documentation level
- context_only
- Accessed
- 2026-09-22
- Study period
- 1987-2026 (cleanup); yard era 1916-1959
- Population
- Remediation workers (1990s-2020s); historical yard workforce (site-level context)
- Limitations
- Site-level environmental record for the builder yard's location, not a vessel record. EPA's public pages do not name the shipyard and list contaminants of concern as creosote, PCP, and mercury - asbestos is NOT listed as a contaminant of concern for this site. A 2007 Kitsap Sun report describes 'more than 600 cubic yards of asbestos' among debris removed near the former Hall Brothers/Winslow Marine Railway site, but that figure is press-level and unverified against the EPA record. Establishes nothing about materials aboard AM-299.
- Atlas source
- true
- Evidence ID
- ev-uss-sentry-am299-09
-
[10]Bainbridge Island Review, 'Minesweepers of steel: Kitsap's other shipyard' (2017-06-15) + Naval Marine Archive yard profile (navalmarinearchive.com/sbh/shipyards/small/winslow.html) [reputable_press]
- Locator
- Bainbridge Island Review 2017-06-15 feature; navalmarinearchive.com Winslow yard profile
- Finding type
- historical_record
- Finding
- Builder-yard history: the Eagle Harbor, Winslow (Bainbridge Island) yard began as Hall Bros. Marine Railway & Shipbuilding Co. (1903); Capt. James Griffiths purchased it in 1916 and renamed it Winslow Marine Railway & Ship Building Company; during WWII it built steel minesweepers for the Navy, reaching a peak workforce of about 2,300; the operation was sold in 1948 (renamed Commercial Ship Repair of Winslow), gradually shrank, and closed in 1959; the property was then divided among a marina, an apartment complex, and a Washington State Ferries maintenance facility.
- Verification
- verified
- Role
- context
- Documentation level
- context_only
- Accessed
- 2026-09-22
- Study period
- 1903-1959
- Population
- Winslow Marine Railway workforce, peak ~2,300 (yard-level context)
- Limitations
- Secondary/popular sources for the builder yard's corporate history (local newspaper feature + compiled yard profile) - neither is an official record and neither contains asbestos or materials information about this hull. Establishes the construction workforce context and the yard's 1948/1959 endpoint dates only.
- Atlas source
- true
- Evidence ID
- ev-uss-sentry-am299-10
-
[11]Hoang Dinh Bau, 'Chuyen cong tac cuoi cung cua HQ-09' (memoir of HQ-09's last commanding officer, Republic of Vietnam Navy veterans' association publication) + Vietnamese Wikipedia 'RVNS Ky Hoa (HQ-09)' corroboration [other_primary]
- Locator
- nhayduwdc.org HQ-09 memoir text (April 1975 sequence); vi.wikipedia RVNS Ky Hoa (HQ-09) article
- Finding type
- historical_record
- Finding
- Post-transfer fate beyond the U.S. record: after 1962-08-31 the hull served the Republic of Vietnam Navy as Ky Hoa (HQ-09). Her last commanding officer's memoir records that in April 1975 the ship, running on one main engine after weeks of evacuation operations, was ordered to the Ba Son naval shipyard in Saigon for repair and was still there when the city fell on 1975-04-30 - i.e., she was captured in port rather than escaping with the RVN fleet to the Philippines. NavSource records only 'fate unknown'; this memoir fills the gap at participant-testimony level.
- Verification
- partial
- Role
- supporting
- Documentation level
- ship_specific
- Accessed
- 2026-09-22
- Study period
- 1962-1975
- Population
- RVN crew (1962-75); Ba Son shipyard repair workforce (1975); post-capture handlers (undocumented)
- Limitations
- First-person participant memoir published on a veterans' association site, corroborated by Vietnamese Wikipedia - NOT an official U.S., RVN, or PAVN record; no capture inventory or subsequent Vietnam People's Navy service/scrapping record located. Classify as a well-sourced but unverified-at-official-level fate claim. Contains no asbestos information; supports no asbestos claim.
- Atlas source
- true
- Evidence ID
- ev-uss-sentry-am299-11
-
[12]Batch-1271 search ledger (this record): DANFS via losthistory.net hazegray mirror; NavSource 02299 (search-index retrieval); uboat.net ship/5363; BuShips Ships' Data 1945 Vol. II; NPS NHL nomination 79003712; EPA Wyckoff/Eagle Harbor pages; PubMed/DOI citation verification; CourtListener API + web UI (blocked); indexed-web litigation checks; MARAD ShipHistory [other_primary]
- Locator
- search_ledger rows sl-uss-sentry-am299-01 through sl-uss-sentry-am299-14
- Finding type
- historical_record
- Finding
- No qualifying ship-specific asbestos record located: no asbestos survey, specification, abatement contract, hazmat disclosure, court finding, or docketed asbestos case naming USS Sentry / AM-299 / MSF-299 / Ky Hoa (HQ-09) was found in the public sources searched (see search_ledger). CourtListener opinion and docket sweeps could not be executed this session - the shared API key returned HTTP 429 ('Rate limit exceeded: 2800/day') on the first query and the public web UI returns HTTP 403 to automated fetches; negative litigation coverage rests on indexed-web checking. Law-firm marketing pages name the hull in generic minesweeper ship lists (mesothelioma.com lists 'USS Sentry | AM-299 | Admirable | 5/30/1944 | To Vietnam, 1962'; mesotheliomahelp.org includes 'USS Sentry' in its minesweeper list) without primary support - excluded as a source class per the no-law-firm-sources rule.
- 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 - a 1943-44 contract-yard minesweeper is era-consistent with asbestos-containing materials, and the RVN-era (1962-75) and Ba Son repair phases are unexamined disturbance windows. Does not establish presence or absence; does not establish or defeat any exposure claim or legal eligibility. Litigation coverage is weaker than usual this session because the CourtListener API quota was already exhausted and the web UI blocks automation - a residual-unqueried surface remains; classify as a search limitation, not a clean negative.
- Atlas source
- true
- Evidence ID
- ev-uss-sentry-am299-12
-
[13]NARA Guide to Federal Records: RG 19 (Bureau of Ships - construction/specification records), RG 24 (deck logs - commissioned 1944-46, logs exist), RG 181 (Naval Districts/Shore Establishments - 8th Naval District / Atlantic Reserve Fleet Texas Group, Orange TX), and FMS/MAP transfer records for the 1962 Republic of Vietnam transfer [other_primary]
- Locator
- https://www.archives.gov/research/guide-fed-records/groups/019.html ; /groups/024.html ; /groups/181.html
- Finding type
- historical_record
- Finding
- Archival leads (not retrieved - requires research-room or reproduction order; no spend authorized): BuShips construction-contract and specification records for the Winslow Marine Railway minesweeper program (RG 19, incl. any Booklet of General Plans or hull-specific material schedules for AM-299); NARA deck logs for the commissioned period 1944-06 to 1946-06 (RG 24 - this hull WAS commissioned, so logs exist and may document maintenance/materials events); 8th Naval District / Atlantic Reserve Fleet Texas Group inactivation, berthing, and custody records for the 1946-62 Orange lay-up (RG 181); and the Foreign Military Sales / Military Assistance Program transfer file for the 1962-08-31 RVN handover - the most promising lead for any as-is condition or hazmat language at transfer.
- Verification
- unverified
- Role
- archival_lead
- Documentation level
- context_only
- Accessed
- 2026-09-22
- Study period
- 1943-1975 records
- Limitations
- Record-group mapping only - no box-level retrieval performed; existence of asbestos-specific documents for this hull is unknown until surveyed in person. Nothing in this row is an asbestos finding.
- Atlas source
- true
- Evidence ID
- ev-uss-sentry-am299-13