Evidence
13 evidence entries recorded; each entry has a stable permalink (#ev-1 … #ev-13).
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[1]research packet 1097-packet.md (2 sources cited) [nhhc_danfs]
- Finding type
- vessel_history
- Finding
- Identity packet verdict: VERIFIED
- Verification
- verified
- Role
- supporting
- Documentation level
- ship_specific
- Evidence ID
- uss-vaga-yt116-pkt-1097-packet-md
-
[2]DANFS, 'Vaga I (YT-116)' (NHHC, updated 11 April 2022, Robert J. Cressman) - construction as Army tug General Weeks, Navy transfer, conversion, commissioning, decade of Cavite service, December 1941 operations, Inshore Patrol, scuttling, stricken date, battle star [nhhc_danfs]
- Locator
- DANFS 'Vaga I (YT-116)' entry body and spec block
- Finding type
- vessel_history
- Finding
- Documented for this hull: completed in 1910 as General Weeks, a single-screw, steel-hulled harbor tug built at Shanghai, China, for the U.S. Army Quartermaster Corps; operated out of Manila Bay on tug and towing services until transferred to the Navy 7 April 1930; classified YT-116, inactivated at Cavite Navy Yard 22 May 1930 for naval conversion; renamed Vaga 29 July 1931; commissioned at Cavite 1 August 1931, Boatswain Glen B. Swortwood in command. For the ensuing decade provided tug and tow services at Cavite, Sangley Point, and Manila, occasional Cavite-Manila ferry duty, and assisted Asiatic Fleet warships mooring and unmooring; on 2 December 1941 assisted USS Houston (CA-30) mooring after her accelerated Cavite overhaul. On the morning of 8 December 1941 (7 December east of the date line) she embarked the 1st Battalion, 4th Marines under Lt. Col. Curtis T. Beecher for Mariveles, Bataan. Cavite Navy Yard was nearly obliterated 10 December 1941; on 31 December Vaga was assigned to the Inshore Patrol for Corregidor's shoreline defense, operating out of Corregidor until scuttled 5 May 1942 to prevent capture. Stricken from the Navy Register 24 July 1942. One battle star for the Philippine Islands Operation (8 December 1941-6 May 1942). Spec block: displacement 529; length 148'6"; beam 26'; draft 12'10" (mean); complement 28.
- Verification
- verified
- Role
- context
- Documentation level
- ship_specific
- Accessed
- 2026-10-05
- Study period
- 1910-1942 (entry coverage 1931-1942)
- Population
- U.S. Army Quartermaster Corps tug crews (1910-1930); U.S. Navy crew, complement 28 (1931-1942); Cavite Navy Yard conversion and waterfront trades; embarked 1st Battalion, 4th Marines (8 Dec 1941)
- Limitations
- Ship-specific service history only - contains no asbestos or material-content information. Does not state propulsion type, launch/lay-down dates, builder firm name, crew fate after scuttling, or any post-scuttling disposition. The live NHHC page is verified as of 2026-10-05 (canonical entry URL is .../v/vaga-i.html; bare /vaga.html 404s).
- Atlas source
- true
- Evidence ID
- ev-uss-vaga-yt116-01
-
[3]The Official Chronology of the U.S. Navy in World War II (NHHC publication, Robert J. Cressman; HyperWar/ibiblio transcription), entry for 5 May 1942, Pacific [nhhc_danfs]
- Locator
- USN-Chron-1942, 'May 5, Tue.' Pacific section
- Finding type
- vessel_history
- Finding
- Official U.S. Navy chronology corroborates the loss event and supplies loss coordinates: under 'May 5, Tue.', Pacific - 'Japanese troops (61st Infantry Regiment, and supporting units) land on Corregidor, initially opposed by the 1st Battalion, 4th Marines. Submarine rescue vessel Pigeon (ASR-6) is bombed and sunk, 14 deg 23 min N, 120 deg 36 min E; tug Genesee (AT-55) and harbor tug Vaga (YT-116) are scuttled off Corregidor, 14 deg 25 min N, 120 deg 30 min E.'
- Verification
- verified
- Role
- context
- Documentation level
- ship_specific
- Accessed
- 2026-10-05
- Study period
- 1942-05-05
- Population
- Vaga crew at loss (complement ~28); consort crews Genesee (AT-55) and Pigeon (ASR-6)
- Limitations
- Corroborates scuttling date, place, and coordinates only; no casualty, crew-disposition, material, or asbestos content. HyperWar transcription of an official NHHC-published chronology - cited as transcription because the live history.navy.mil chronology page was not located.
- Atlas source
- true
- Evidence ID
- ev-uss-vaga-yt116-02
-
[4]NHHC, 'Casualties: Navy and Coast Guard Ships - Continued' (WWII ship-loss listing) - USS Vaga (YT-116) entry [nhhc_danfs]
- Locator
- NHHC casualties page, V section (tug/YT entries)
- Finding type
- vessel_history
- Finding
- NHHC's official ship-loss listing states: 'USS Vaga (YT-116) scuttled to prevent capture off Corregidor, Luzon, Philippine Islands, 5 May 1942.'
- Verification
- verified
- Role
- context
- Documentation level
- ship_specific
- Accessed
- 2026-10-05
- Study period
- 1942-05-05
- Population
- Vaga crew at loss
- Limitations
- Loss-listing only - no asbestos, material, or crew-casualty content. Verified live 2026-10-05.
- Atlas source
- true
- Evidence ID
- ev-uss-vaga-yt116-03
-
[5]NavSource Online: Service Ship Photo Archive, Vaga (YT-116) (District Harbor Tug index 14/08116; page last updated 25 June 2017) - builder attribution, propulsion type, campaign display, stricken date, post-capture salvage claim, builder's-advertisement photograph [other_primary]
- Locator
- NavSource 14/08116.htm header, 'District Harbor Tug' timeline, specifications block, ribbon display, photo table
- Finding type
- vessel_history
- Finding
- NavSource timeline and specs for this hull: built by Shanghai Dock & Engineering Co., Ltd., Shanghai, China; completed as the single-screw, steel-hulled tug General Weeks for the U.S. Army Quartermaster Corps, 1910; transferred to the Navy 7 April 1930; inactivated at Cavite Navy Yard for naval conversion 22 May 1930; renamed Vaga 29 July 1931; commissioned at Cavite 1 August 1931, Boatswain Glen B. Swortwood commanding; Philippine Islands operation campaign 8 December 1941 to 5 May 1942; scuttled off Corregidor to prevent capture 5 May 1942; struck from the Naval Register 24 July 1942. Specifications: displacement 529 t, length 148'6", beam 26', draft 12'10", speed unknown, complement 28, armament unknown, propulsion 'steam, single screw.' Ribbon display: American Defense Service Medal; Asiatic-Pacific Campaign Medal (1 star); World War II Victory Medal; Philippine Defense Medal. Page carries one image - a builder's advertisement view of General Weeks as completed (New Map of China, 2nd ed., Shanghai, 1915, via contributor Dave Wright). NavSource further reports - SECONDARY CLAIM - 'Salvaged by the Japanese, renamed Taiyo Maru; sunk by US aircraft in the Borneo area, about 15 January 1944.'
- Verification
- partial
- Role
- context
- Documentation level
- ship_specific
- Accessed
- 2026-10-05
- Study period
- 1910-1944
- Population
- Construction trades, Shanghai (1910); Army tug crews (1910-1930); Navy crew, complement 28 (1931-1942); possible Japanese salvage/refit crews (1942-1944, unverified)
- Limitations
- NavSource is a volunteer secondary compilation - milestone dates agree with DANFS/NHHC where they overlap, but the builder firm name, the propulsion type 'steam', and the entire post-scuttling Japanese-service narrative (salvage, rename Taiyo Maru, loss ~15 January 1944 in the Borneo area) rest on NavSource alone and could not be corroborated: the NHHC/JANAC Japanese Naval and Merchant Shipping Losses list contains two Taiyo Maru losses (a 14,457-ton transport sunk May 1942; a 4,168-ton cargo ship sunk October 1944; neither near Borneo in January 1944) - see ev-12. Speed and armament are listed as unknown. No asbestos or material content.
- Atlas source
- true
- Evidence ID
- ev-uss-vaga-yt116-04
-
[6]NARA catalog, file unit 'Vaga (YT-116), 1/1/39-3/31/42', NAID 192579865, Roll 7656 - RG 24, Records of the Bureau of Naval Personnel, series 'Muster Rolls of U.S. Navy Ships, Stations, and Other Naval Activities' [other_primary]
- Locator
- catalog.archives.gov NAID 192579865 (file unit); NAID 118967608 (index)
- Finding type
- historical_record
- Finding
- Vessel-named muster rolls exist and are cataloged for this hull: 'Vaga (YT-116), 1/1/39-3/31/42' (NARA catalog marks the file unit available to access online). Muster rolls are the authoritative personnel record - they document the named crew population aboard Vaga quarter-by-quarter from January 1939 through March 1942, the period that ends with her scuttling. A companion index file unit 'USS T-1 (SST-1) to USS YMS-24' (NAID 118967608, RG 24 Index to Muster Rolls) covers this vessel's position in the muster-roll index.
- Verification
- verified
- Role
- archival_lead
- Documentation level
- ship_specific
- Accessed
- 2026-10-05
- Study period
- 1939-1942
- Population
- All hands mustered aboard Vaga, Jan 1939 - Mar 1942 (complement ~28)
- Limitations
- Archival lead only: the rolls establish who served aboard, not what materials were aboard - they contain no asbestos or material content. Rolls end 31 March 1942; the final weeks (April 1942 through the 5 May scuttling) are not covered by this file unit. Individual crew names were not extracted this session.
- Atlas source
- true
- Evidence ID
- ev-uss-vaga-yt116-05
-
[7]NARA catalog, 'World War II Prisoners of the Japanese File, 2007 Update', NAID 2123836 - Collection ADBC, Records of the American Defenders of Bataan and Corregidor, series 'World War II Prisoners of the Japanese Data Files'; also casualty-list file unit NAID 631849172 (RG 24, 'Casualty Lists for World War II and Korean War Battles', Philippine Islands Operation) [other_primary]
- Locator
- catalog.archives.gov search "Vaga" "YT-116" (8 file-unit results, all 'available to access online'); NAID 2123836; NAID 631849172
- Finding type
- historical_record
- Finding
- Crew-disposition research path for this hull: a NARA catalog search on the vessel's name and hull number matches the American Defenders of Bataan and Corregidor (ADBC) 'World War II Prisoners of the Japanese' data file (NAID 2123836) and the RG 24 casualty-list file unit for the Philippine Islands Operation (NAID 631849172). Personnel ashore on Corregidor when the fortress surrendered on 6 May 1942 - the day after Vaga's scuttling - generally became prisoners of the Japanese; these records are the documented path for establishing the fate of Vaga's crew, which no located narrative source states.
- Verification
- partial
- Role
- archival_lead
- Documentation level
- ship_specific
- Accessed
- 2026-10-05
- Study period
- 1942-1945
- Population
- Vaga crew at loss; Corregidor garrison POW population (May 1942)
- Limitations
- Archival lead only: the catalog match establishes that these record series reference the vessel/operation, not what any record says about Vaga's crew - contents unexamined. Does not establish that any specific Vaga crewman was captured, killed, or survived. No asbestos or material content.
- Atlas source
- true
- Evidence ID
- ev-uss-vaga-yt116-06
-
[8]NARA research guide, 'Researching Asbestos aboard US Naval Vessel up through 1961' - official guidance locating ship-specific asbestos documentation in RG 19 Bureau of Ships correspondence filed by hull designation [other_primary]
- Locator
- NARA guided-topics page, 'Bureau of Ships General, Confidential, and Secret Correspondence' section; RG 19 Entries A1 1266-A thru -P (NAID 577048 et al.)
- Finding type
- regulatory
- Finding
- NARA's official asbestos-research guide states that 'the use of asbestos in U.S. Navy materiel from 1941-1961 is a frequently requested topic,' and directs researchers to Record Group 19 (Records of the Bureau of Ships) general, confidential, and secret correspondence arranged by Navy Filing Manual codes - where 'types of ships, ship classes, and individual ships are filed by ship's designation and hull designation.' For this hull the corresponding file code is YT116 within the RG 19 General Correspondence 1940-1945 series (Entries A1 1266-A through -P by file-code range; the C-S1 thru X52/S67 volume, A1 1266-M, is the alphabetical range covering YT designators). This is the documented repository where a ship-specific asbestos record for YT-116 would exist if any was ever filed.
- Verification
- verified
- Role
- archival_lead
- Documentation level
- ship_specific
- Accessed
- 2026-10-05
- Study period
- 1940-1945 (correspondence coverage)
- Population
- Future researchers into YT116 correspondence; crew-era population potentially documented therein
- Limitations
- Research-path documentation only: the guide establishes WHERE a ship-specific record would live, not that one exists - no YT116 correspondence file was located or reviewed this session. Vaga's pre-1940 service (1931-1939) falls outside the guide's 1940-1961 correspondence coverage; any earlier records would sit in other RG 19 series.
- Atlas source
- true
- Evidence ID
- ev-uss-vaga-yt116-07
-
[9]Era inference built on: NavSource specifications ('steam, single screw'); DANFS description (single-screw, steel-hulled harbor tug, completed 1910); NARA asbestos research guide (asbestos in U.S. Navy materiel documented as standard for the era); GAO HRD-80-2 (ev-09) [other_primary]
- Locator
- NavSource 14/08116.htm specifications; DANFS entry; NARA asbestos research guide
- Finding type
- asbestos_application
- Finding
- A coal- or oil-fired steam harbor tug completed in 1910 and in U.S. Navy service 1931-1942 is a vessel type for which era-standard asbestos applications were boiler and steam-drum insulation, steam-line lagging between boiler and machinery spaces, valve and flange gaskets, and machinery packing - thermal insulation on a small, crowded steam plant worked daily in harbor service, including alongside Asiatic Fleet warships at Cavite.
- Verification
- inferred
- Role
- supporting
- Documentation level
- class_or_era
- Accessed
- 2026-10-05
- Study period
- 1910-1942
- Population
- Army tug engine crews (1910-1930); Cavite Navy Yard conversion trades (1930); Navy crew (1931-1942); possible Japanese salvage crews (1942-44, unverified)
- Limitations
- Class/era inference only - no hull-specific insulation survey, material list, conversion work package, or maintenance record was located for YT-116. The 1910 build date precedes the heaviest naval asbestos era but steam-plant insulation of the period commonly contained asbestos; whether Vaga's 1930 naval conversion added or renewed asbestos materials is undocumented. No quantity. Product names are normalized era terms; no manufacturer attribution for this hull.
- Atlas source
- true
- Evidence ID
- ev-uss-vaga-yt116-08
-
[10]GAO, Navy Efforts To Protect Workers From Asbestos Exposure, HRD-80-2 (Oct 18, 1979) [gao]
- Locator
- GAO product page HRD-80-2 (full text blocked, HTTP 403)
- Finding type
- gov_survey
- Finding
- GAO documented that the Navy used asbestos insulation extensively aboard ships and did not begin substituting alternative insulation materials until the early 1970s - spanning the entirety of this hull's Navy service era (1930-1942), including her WWII Philippine-operations period.
- Verification
- verified
- Role
- context
- Documentation level
- class_or_era
- Accessed
- 2026-10-05
- Study period
- 1979
- Population
- Navy shipyard workers; asbestos program review
- Limitations
- Program-level documentation; supports era context only, not any fact specific to this hull. Full text not retrieved (gao.gov blocks automated fetch, HTTP 403 - same standing defect noted in batches 01 and 98); content via product-page description.
- Atlas source
- true
- Evidence ID
- ev-uss-vaga-yt116-09
-
[11]DANFS, 'Vaga II (YTB-374)' (NHHC, Robert J. Cressman) - the second ship of the name, a distinct hull [nhhc_danfs]
- Locator
- DANFS 'Vaga II (YTB-374)' entry (verified live 2026-10-05)
- Finding type
- historical_record
- Finding
- NAME DISAMBIGUATION: the name Vaga was borne by two U.S. Navy harbor tugs. This record covers the first, YT-116 (1910-1942). The second, an Allaquippa-class district harbor tug, was laid down 21 March 1944 at Port Arthur, Texas, by Gulfport Boiler & Iron Works; launched 6 May 1944; reclassified YTB-374 15 May 1944; placed in service 31 May 1944; served the Fourteenth Naval District at Pearl Harbor, then San Diego; reclassified YTM-374 February 1962; stricken 1 October 1972; sold for scrap 11 September 1973. Any 'USS Vaga' hit in post-1944 records - including litigation, muster rolls, or veterans' claims - must be classified against the correct hull; the vast majority of postwar references will be YTB-374, not the 1942-scuttled YT-116.
- Verification
- verified
- Role
- context
- Documentation level
- ship_specific
- Accessed
- 2026-10-05
- Study period
- 1944-1973
- Population
- None for this hull (Vaga II population: 15-man complement, 1944-1972)
- Limitations
- Disambiguation context only - the row documents a different hull solely to prevent name-collision misattribution in this record and downstream research. Contains no asbestos content.
- Atlas source
- true
- Evidence ID
- ev-uss-vaga-yt116-10
-
[12]Batch-9296 search ledger (this record): NHHC DANFS (Vaga I and Vaga II entries); NHHC casualties listing; official USN WWII chronology 1942; NavSource service-ship archive; NARA catalog (muster rolls, POW file, casualty lists); NARA asbestos research guide; JANAC/NHHC Japanese-losses list; CourtListener (throttled); secondary web sweep [other_primary]
- Locator
- search_ledger rows sl-uss-vaga-yt116-01 through -12
- Finding type
- historical_record
- Finding
- No qualifying ship-specific asbestos record located: no asbestos survey, insulation material list, conversion/overhaul work package, abatement record, or verified litigation naming USS Vaga (YT-116) was found in the public sources searched (see search_ledger). CAVEAT: the CourtListener sweep is PARTIAL - the 'USS Vaga' opinion query ran and returned zero results, but the remaining three base queries ('USS Vaga' docket, 'YT-116' opinion, 'YT-116' docket) were blocked on repeated attempts over ~90 minutes by the fleet-wide pacing limiter (hourly share of the 1,400/day account quota); logged as blocked-in-part, not as a negative result. Secondary web sweeps surfaced no qualifying case and no vessel-specific asbestos marketing page; the only 'asbestos aboard' material is generic law-firm listicle content (asbestos-ships.com, asbestos.com, nemerofflaw.com) - excluded by source policy.
- Verification
- verified
- Role
- negative_finding
- Documentation level
- ship_specific
- Accessed
- 2026-10-05
- Study period
- 2026-10-05
- Limitations
- Absence of a located public record does not prove absence of asbestos aboard - a steam-plant harbor tug of this era is a type in which asbestos applications were standard. The litigation repository search is a genuine open gap (fleet-paced, not run). RG 19 'YT116' Bureau of Ships correspondence (ev-07), the RG 24 muster rolls (ev-05), and any Shanghai build records are unfetched leads. Does not establish or defeat any claim of exposure or legal eligibility.
- Atlas source
- true
- Evidence ID
- ev-uss-vaga-yt116-11
-
[13]NHHC Online Reading Room, 'Japanese Naval and Merchant Shipping Losses During World War II by All Causes' (JANAC-derived official loss list) - all TAIYO MARU entries checked [nhhc_danfs]
- Locator
- NHHC JANAC page, TAIYO MARU rows (sinking list and index); verified live 2026-10-05
- Finding type
- historical_record
- Finding
- CORRECTION-CHECK on the secondary salvage claim: the official JANAC-derived list contains two TAIYO MARU losses - a 14,457-ton transport sunk by U.S. submarine at 30-40N, 127-54E in May 1942, and a 4,168-ton cargo ship sunk by U.S. submarine at 19-04N, 120-36E on 26 October 1944 - and NO entry matching a small salvaged tug sunk by U.S. aircraft in the Borneo area about 15 January 1944. NavSource's salvage/rename/sinking narrative for this hull (ev-04) is therefore uncorroborated by the primary loss list and is carried as unverified secondary reporting only.
- Verification
- partial
- Role
- correction
- Documentation level
- ship_specific
- Accessed
- 2026-10-05
- Study period
- 1942-1944 (claim window)
- Limitations
- Absence from the JANAC list does not disprove the salvage claim: small captured auxiliaries and tugs are under-represented in JANAC coverage, which tracked naval and merchant shipping losses. The claim remains possible but is unverified by any located primary source.
- Atlas source
- true
- Evidence ID
- ev-uss-vaga-yt116-12