Evidence
9 evidence entries recorded; each entry has a stable permalink (#ev-1 … #ev-9).
-
[1]NHHC, Dictionary of American Naval Fighting Ships, 'Stewart II (Destroyer No. 224 / DD-224)' [nhhc_danfs]
- Locator
- DANFS entry, specification block and full service narrative; Wayback capture 2025-12-09 of the live NHHC page (live URL returns 404 to fetch); verbatim transcription also at https://losthistory.net/hazegray/danfs/destroy/dd224txt.htm
- Finding type
- vessel_history
- Finding
- DANFS record for this hull (NHHC entry 'Stewart II (Destroyer No. 224)', accessed via Wayback capture of the live page): laid down 9 September 1919 at Philadelphia, Pa., by William Cramp & Sons; launched 4 March 1920, sponsored by Mrs. Margaretta Stewart Stevens, granddaughter of Rear Admiral Charles Stewart; commissioned 15 September 1920, Lt. S. G. Lamb in command. Specification block: displacement 1,215; length 314'5"; beam 31'9"; draft 9'4"; speed 35 knots; complement 101; armament 4 4-inch, 1 3-inch, 12 21-inch torpedo tubes; class Clemson. Service: Atlantic Destroyer Squadron 1921; Asiatic Fleet 1922-1941 (China coast, Philippines, 1923 Yokosuka earthquake relief, 1924 round-the-world Army flight support, 1925-1939 China stations); Cavite Navy Yard overhaul 5 April-1 June 1940; ordered to Dutch East Indies 27 November 1941. WWII: Tarakan Roads at war's outbreak; convoy escort; Marblehead escort February 1942; damaged at Battle of Badung Strait 19-20 February 1942 (steering engine room flooded); entered Surabaya floating drydock 22 February, fell off keel blocks; demolished and scuttled in the drydock before the port's evacuation 2 March 1942; name struck 25 March 1942 and reassigned to DE-238. Raised by Japan February 1943; commissioned IJN 20 September 1943 as Patrol Boat No. 102 (two 3-inch guns, trunked funnel); Southwest Area Fleet escort duty; Kure repairs November 1944; bombed at Mokpo, Korea, 28 April 1945; found at Hiro Bay, Kure, August 1945. Recommissioned USN at Kure 29 October 1945 as 'DD-224' (crew nickname 'RAMP-224'); arrived San Francisco under tow early March 1946; struck 17 April 1946; decommissioned 23 May 1946; sunk off San Francisco 24 May 1946 as an aircraft target. Two battle stars.
- Verification
- verified
- Role
- supporting
- Documentation level
- ship_specific
- Accessed
- 2026-09-27
- Limitations
- Documents identity, builder, dates, specifications, service narrative, capture, IJN service, repatriation, and disposal; does not address materials or asbestos content anywhere aboard. Spec figures are the older DANFS transcription values (1,215 tons, complement 101, 35 kt); wartime Japanese-service complement and refit machinery details are not given.
- Atlas source
- true
- Evidence ID
- ev-uss-stewart-dd224-01
-
[2]Brennan, Delgado, Matthews & Sherrell, 'Discovery and Archaeological Characterization of the Wreck of ex-USS Stewart (DD-224) in Cordell Bank National Marine Sanctuary,' Journal of Maritime Archaeology 19:639-655 (2024), DOI 10.1007/s11457-024-09426-2; companion accounts: joint expedition press release (SEARCH/Ocean Infinity/Air-Sea Heritage/NOAA/NHHC, 1 Oct 2024) and Delgado, 'The Ghost Ship of the Pacific,' USNI Naval History 39:1 (Feb 2025) [other_primary]
- Locator
- Article abstract, acknowledgements (permit CBNMS-2024-002-A1; NARA College Park records incl. USS Algorma (ATO-34) logbook), and references; full text paywalled - findings quoted from abstract. Companion detail: searchinc.com/story/wreck-of-uss-stewart-discovered-off-coast-of-california; usni.org/magazines/naval-history/2025/february/ghost-ship-pacific (403 to automated fetch, reviewed via search excerpts)
- Finding type
- historical_record
- Finding
- Peer-reviewed archaeological record: a survey under Cordell Bank/Greater Farallones National Marine Sanctuary permit CBNMS-2024-002-A1 located the wreck of ex-USS Stewart (DD-224) in August 2024 using Ocean Infinity HUGIN 6000 AUVs; the intact wreck lies less than 4 miles from its reported sinking position in ~3,500 ft of water. The assessment confirmed the wreck's identity, documented modifications made during Japanese service and the stripping the hull received before its ceremonial 'burial' at sea after repatriation, and analyzed the forensics of its disposal. The study's archival basis for final disposition includes National Archives Record Group 45 records, specifically the logbook of USS Algorma (ATO-34), the tug that towed the hulk out for sinking. Companion accounts by expedition members add disposal detail: the hull was 'condemned by a board of inspection and survey,' stripped and rigged for scuttling before decommissioning 23 May 1946, and on 24 May 1946 absorbed aerial rocket and machine-gun attack without sinking before USS PC-799 sank her with naval gunfire.
- Verification
- verified
- Role
- supporting
- Documentation level
- ship_specific
- Accessed
- 2026-09-27
- Limitations
- Documents wreck identification, location (approximate), Japanese-service modifications, and pre-sinking stripping as observed archaeologically - but 'stripping' is described as removal of fittings before scuttling, not a documented asbestos abatement; no material or asbestos analysis of the wreck is published. Full text of the paper is paywalled; detail beyond the abstract and references was not reviewed. Disposal narrative (InSurv condemnation, PC-799 gunfire) is from the companion USNI account, verified via search excerpts only (403 on direct fetch).
- Atlas source
- true
- Evidence ID
- ev-uss-stewart-dd224-02
-
[3]NOAA Cordell Bank National Marine Sanctuary, 'Sanctuary History' page + NOAA sanctuary condition report (maritime heritage resource section); SMCA management authority per NOAA-affiliated program interview (Greater Farallones Association) [other_primary]
- Locator
- cordellbank.noaa.gov/about/history.html maritime heritage paragraph; sanctuaries.noaa.gov condition report resource-conditions section; farallones.org/news-items/ghost-ship-cbnms
- Finding type
- regulatory
- Finding
- NOAA Cordell Bank National Marine Sanctuary documentation identifies ex-USS Stewart (DD-224) as the sanctuary's historic maritime heritage resource: the destroyer was sunk offshore (Bodega Canyon area) in 1946 and rediscovered in 2024 approximately 30 miles from shore by researchers operating under a sanctuary permit. NOAA's sanctuary condition-report system treats the wreck as the site's one documented maritime heritage resource; the wreck lies within the sanctuary's protected waters, and the U.S. Navy retains management authority under the Sunken Military Craft Act.
- Verification
- verified
- Role
- supporting
- Documentation level
- ship_specific
- Accessed
- 2026-09-27
- Limitations
- Establishes the wreck's protected status and management regime - sanctuary permit requirement plus Navy authority under the Sunken Military Craft Act - not materials or asbestos content. The NOAA condition-report text describing the wreck as 'not specifically located or assessed since it sank' predates the August 2024 survey; NOAA's history page reflects the post-discovery state. No hazardous-material assessment of the wreck is published.
- Atlas source
- true
- Evidence ID
- ev-uss-stewart-dd224-03
-
[4]Navy Yard, 'DD Wickes & Clemson Class Booklet of General Plans' (1919), U.S. National Archives, digitized at archive.org/details/ddflushdeckersbogp1919; DANFS specification block for DD-224 [other_primary]
- Locator
- Booklet plates (cover sheet, general information, outboard/inboard profiles, deck plans, midship section); DANFS spec block
- Finding type
- asbestos_application
- Finding
- Era/class inference: Stewart is a Clemson-class flush-deck destroyer completed 1920 with a four-boiler, geared-turbine, twin-screw plant and 35-knot design speed (DANFS spec block). The class design is documented by the Navy Yard's 1919 'DD Wickes & Clemson Class Booklet of General Plans' (National Archives scan). Destroyers of this construction era and plant type carried period-standard thermal insulation - boiler and steam-line lagging, insulation felts, gaskets, packing, and fireproofing - that commonly contained asbestos fiber.
- Verification
- inferred
- Role
- supporting
- Documentation level
- class_or_era
- Accessed
- 2026-09-27
- Limitations
- Class/design-level inference only - the plans booklet covers the Wickes & Clemson classes, not this hull, and its image plates were not OCR-verified for insulation specification ('asbestos' content not confirmed in the plates). Nothing here is a ship-specific finding; asbestos presence aboard DD-224 remains unknown. Typical applications listed are era convention, not observed or specified aboard this hull.
- Atlas source
- true
- Evidence ID
- ev-uss-stewart-dd224-04
-
[5]National Archives, Ship Plan Index, STEWART DD-224 entry [other_primary]
- Locator
- STEWART DD-224 row, RG 19 Microfilm series, NAID 175670802
- Finding type
- historical_record
- Finding
- NARA's Ship Plan Index lists STEWART DD-224 in Record Group 19 (Records of the Bureau of Ships), series 'Microfilm of Ship Engineering Drawings,' NAID 175670802. The index establishes that ship-engineering-drawing holdings exist for this hull - a lead for examining any insulation (S39) or piping (S48) drawings on microfilm.
- Verification
- verified
- Role
- archival_lead
- Documentation level
- ship_specific
- Accessed
- 2026-09-27
- Limitations
- The index establishes holdings, not contents. No DD-224 drawing or material schedule was retrieved or reviewed; the entry is not evidence of asbestos aboard. NARA notes S39 insulation/lagging and S48 piping drawings are 'relatively rare' in the paper hull series and more often found in the microfilm series.
- Atlas source
- true
- Evidence ID
- ev-uss-stewart-dd224-05
-
[6]National Archives, 'Researching Asbestos aboard US Naval Vessel up through 1961' [other_primary]
- Locator
- Beginning Research; General Information Books (Entry P 9 destroyer subseries 1907-1961); Board of Inspection and Survey Reports (Entry P 1-D destroyer subseries 1940-1978); Cartographic Branch (S39/S48 drawing codes)
- Finding type
- asbestos_application
- Finding
- NARA's asbestos research guide describes the record groups most responsive to ship-level asbestos research: RG 19 Bureau of Ships correspondence (1940-1961, filed by hull designation), RG 19 General Information Books including the Destroyer/Destroyer Escort/Frigate subseries (Entry P 9, coverage 1907-1961 - in scope for this 1920 hull), RG 19 ship engineering drawings including S39-Insulation and Lagging and S48-Piping, and RG 38 Board of Inspection and Survey material reports including the Destroyer subseries (Entry P 1-D, 1940-1978 - in scope for DD-224's documented 1946 condemnation inspection before decommissioning).
- Verification
- verified
- Role
- context
- Documentation level
- class_or_era
- Accessed
- 2026-09-27
- Limitations
- Research guide, not a Stewart material record. The RG 19 correspondence coverage (1940-1961) postdates her 1920 construction but overlaps her 1940-42 and 1945-46 periods; the destroyer GIB (1907-1961) and destroyer InSurv (1940-1978) subseries are in scope. The guide establishes where to search - including a probable 1946 InSurv condemnation report for this hull - not that asbestos was aboard.
- Atlas source
- true
- Evidence ID
- ev-uss-stewart-dd224-06
-
[7]U.S. GAO, HRD-80-2, Navy Efforts To Protect Workers From Asbestos Exposure (1979) [gao]
- Locator
- Highlights, paragraphs 1-2
- Finding type
- asbestos_application
- Finding
- The 1979 GAO review documents asbestos insulation policy and exposure concerns across Navy shipbuilding and repair, with fieldwork at Long Beach and Norfolk Naval Shipyards. This is program-level context only.
- Verification
- verified
- Role
- context
- Documentation level
- context_only
- Accessed
- 2026-09-27
- Limitations
- GAO studied policy decades after Stewart's 1946 disposal and did not examine this hull. It cannot establish this ship's materials, exposures, or construction-era work. gao.gov blocks automated full-text retrieval; the product-page description is the cited content.
- Atlas source
- true
- Evidence ID
- ev-uss-stewart-dd224-07
-
[8]Negative result across the sources in this record's search ledger [other_primary]
- Locator
- Search ledger sl-uss-stewart-dd224-01 through sl-uss-stewart-dd224-14
- Finding type
- historical_record
- Finding
- The official sources and catalog entries reviewed for this record (DANFS/NHHC, Journal of Maritime Archaeology wreck paper, NOAA Cordell Bank pages, NARA Ship Plan Index, NARA asbestos research guide, GAO HRD-80-2, CourtListener sweep) yielded no ship-specific asbestos survey, product schedule, abatement record, exposure record, or qualifying litigation for Stewart. Asbestos presence aboard DD-224 remains unknown.
- Verification
- verified
- Role
- negative_finding
- Documentation level
- ship_specific
- Accessed
- 2026-09-27
- Limitations
- This is a bounded search result, not proof that asbestos was absent. Stewart was scuttled in 1942, submerged ~1 year, reconditioned and operated by the IJN 1943-45, and sunk as a target in 1946, so no postwar overhaul, scrapping, or museum documentation exists; remaining ship-specific material leads are archival (NARA microfilm drawings NAID 175670802, destroyer GIB series, and the probable 1946 InSurv condemnation report in RG 38 P 1-D).
- Atlas source
- true
- Evidence ID
- ev-uss-stewart-dd224-08
-
[9]CourtListener authenticated API v4 searches via fleet helper cl-auth-search.py (type=o and type=r), exact-name and hull-number queries [court_record]
- Locator
- Search ledger sl-uss-stewart-dd224-09 through sl-uss-stewart-dd224-12
- Finding type
- litigation_documented
- Finding
- CourtListener authenticated API v4 sweep for this hull (2026-09-27, via fleet helper): exact-name opinion search '"USS Stewart"' returned 0 results. Exact-name docket search returned 3 hits, all non-qualifying: Nelson v. Harris Trust and Savings Bank (N.D. Ill. 1:08-cv-04285, prisoner civil rights - name collision); R.M.S. Titanic, Inc. v. The Wrecked and Abandoned Vessel (E.D. Va. 2:93-cv-00902, admiralty salvage - other litigation, no asbestos nexus); Olarte v. Neale (N.D. Cal. 3:24-cv-02021, airplane/federal question - name collision). Hull-number opinion search '"DD-224"' returned 2 hits, both name collisions (Goldberg v. Stone, Ala. App. 1914; Cox ex rel. Cox v. Holder, Fla. DCA 1977). Hull-number docket search returned 7 hits where 'DD-224' is a document-designation string (NYC municipal-regulation suits, Vioxx MDL, employment, criminal) - all name collisions. No qualifying asbestos litigation and no docketed case naming this vessel was located.
- Verification
- verified
- Role
- negative_finding
- Documentation level
- ship_specific
- Accessed
- 2026-09-27
- Limitations
- Negative within the CourtListener corpus only - state-court and non-digitized dockets are outside the index. Name-collision risk is high for a future search: a second USS Stewart exists (DE-238, destroyer escort museum ship at Galveston, Texas) and any 'USS Stewart' hit must be hull-checked. DD-224 spent its exposure-relevant career in Asiatic Fleet and wartime service ending in combat loss and disposal in 1946, before the era of the asbestos litigation record.
- Atlas source
- true
- Evidence ID
- ev-uss-stewart-dd224-09