Evidence
8 evidence entries recorded; each entry has a stable permalink (#ev-1 … #ev-8).
-
[1]research packet ko-packet.md (3 sources cited) [nhhc_danfs]
- Finding type
- vessel_history
- Finding
- Identity packet verdict: VERIFIED — real identity: USS Walter C. Wann · Hull: DE-412 · Designation: destroyer escort · Class: John C. Butler (see quirk note)
- Verification
- verified
- Role
- supporting
- Documentation level
- ship_specific
- Evidence ID
- uss-walter-c-wann-de412-pkt-ko-packet-md
-
[2]DANFS, Walter C. Wann (DE-412) (namesake, builder, dates, service narrative, decommission/reserve/striking/sale; verbatim transcription - live NHHC page serves 404; canonical page verified via Wayback capture 2025-12-09, https://www.history.navy.mil/research/histories/ship-histories/danfs/w/walter-c-wann.html) [nhhc_danfs]
- Locator
- DANFS entry, namesake paragraph + specifications block + service narrative (Walter C. Wann, DE-412)
- Finding type
- vessel_history
- Finding
- DANFS record for this hull: namesake Pharmacist's Mate 2d Class Walter Carl Wann, Jr. (b. Goldendale, Wash., 13 May 1921; enlisted Portland, Oreg., 14 December 1939), Silver Star for conspicuous gallantry crossing the Gavutu-Tanambogo causeway under fire on the night of 7 August 1942, killed in action in the Guadalcanal campaign 4 November 1942. Hull laid down 6 December 1943 at Houston, Tex., by Brown Shipbuilding Co.; launched 19 January 1944 (sponsor Mrs. Walter C. Wann, Sr.); commissioned 2 May 1944, Lt. Comdr. John W. Stedman, Jr., USNR. Caribbean shakedown 25 May-23 June; availability at Boston 24 June-5 July; Aruba tanker escort and Panama Sea Frontier ASW patrols (TU 05.3.2); rescue of all 40 survivors of a downed PBM Mariner with McCoy Reynolds (DE-440) 22 July; Pacific Fleet via Panama Canal; major engineering repairs incl. a new high-pressure turbine at San Diego 7 August-4 September; Pearl Harbor, Eniwetok, Seeadler Harbor; screen of TG 77.4 'Taffy Two' for the Leyte landings and the southern group at Samar 25 October; showered with debris 2,000 yards off Mount Hood (AE-10) when she exploded at Manus 10 November (minimal damage, no casualties); flag/control ship for the Lingayen Gulf landings under Capt. E. A. Seay (TG 79.6), January 1945; Okinawa screening from 1 April - two 'Val' suicide attacks driven off/crashed 20 feet off the port bow on 12 April; battle-damage repairs at Guam 19 April-6 May; Okinawa screening through June; TF 32 (Oldendorf) 4 July; at anchor in Buckner Bay at the surrender; Wakayama support and plane guard for Suwannee (CVE-27) off the Hiroshima-Kure occupation zone; departed Yokosuka 4 November 1945 for San Diego; out of commission, in reserve, at San Diego 31 May 1946 (19th Fleet/Pacific Reserve Fleet); reserve berthing San Diego 1951-58 with a brief Long Beach interlude June 1956, San Diego Reserve Group into 1960, then the Stockton Reserve Facility; struck from the Navy list 30 June 1968; acquired by National Metal and Steel Co., Terminal Island, Calif., June 1969; scrapped soon thereafter. Four battle stars for WWII service. Specs: 1,350 t, 306'0" oa, beam 36'8", draft 9'5", 24 kt, complement 186; spec block labeled 'cl. Rudderow' (a source error - see ev-02).
- Verification
- verified
- Role
- supporting
- Documentation level
- ship_specific
- Accessed
- 2026-09-28
- Study period
- 1943-1969
- Population
- Brown Shipbuilding construction trades 1943-44; wartime crew (DANFS complement 186); reserve-fleet caretakers 1946-68; scrapping-yard workers 1969
- Limitations
- DANFS documents service history and specifications, not materials or asbestos content. The spec block's class label ('cl. Rudderow') conflicts with every other authority and is corrected in ev-uss-walter-c-wann-de412-02. Mirror transcription cited because the live NHHC page returns 404; canonical URL verified via Wayback capture dated 2025-12-09 (content matches verbatim). Post-1946 berthing detail is DANFS's own qualified language ('records are sketchy').
- Atlas source
- true
- Evidence ID
- ev-uss-walter-c-wann-de412-01
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[3]DANFS DE-412 specifications block ('cl. Rudderow') vs. DANFS DE-413 Samuel B. Roberts specifications block ('cl. John C. Butler'); BuShips Ships' Data 1945 Vol. 1 design-group-6 table (shipscribe.com scan); Navypedia WGT member table [nhhc_danfs]
- Locator
- DANFS DE-412 spec block (ibiblio + NHHC Wayback); DANFS DE-413 spec block (ibiblio de413.html); BuShips SDB 1945 v1 group-6 row; navypedia us_de_tev_wgt member row DE412
- Finding type
- historical_record
- Finding
- The printed DANFS specifications block for DE-412 reads 'cl. Rudderow' - verified verbatim on the canonical NHHC page (Wayback capture 2025-12-09) and in the HyperWar transcription; this is a source error in DANFS itself, not a transcription slip. The adjacent Brown-built hull's DANFS entry (Samuel B. Roberts, DE-413, laid down the same day at the same yard) reads 'cl. John C. Butler'; the BuShips Ships' Data 1945 Vol. 1 design-group table places the Brown-built DE-402-424 block in design group 6 (WGT geared-turbine type = John C. Butler class); and Navypedia's WGT member table lists 'DE412 Walter C. Wann' identically. Rudderow-class hulls are the TEV turboelectric-drive DEs, a different plant. The DE-412 spec figures (1,350 t, 306'0", 36'8", 186 complement) are standard-load Butler-class figures.
- Verification
- verified
- Role
- correction
- Documentation level
- ship_specific
- Accessed
- 2026-09-28
- Study period
- 1944 (document); checked 2026-09-28
- Limitations
- Corrects the class label only; the rest of the DE-412 spec block is standard Butler-class data (DE-413's block carries full-load figures 1,745 t / 13'4" - a presentation difference, not a contradiction). Recorded so downstream citation consumers do not propagate the Rudderow label or map DE-412 to the turboelectric class.
- Atlas source
- true
- Evidence ID
- ev-uss-walter-c-wann-de412-02
-
[4]DANFS specifications block (24 kt, 1,350 t) + BuShips Ships' Data 1945 Vol. 1 design-group-6 row (shipscribe.com scan) + Navypedia WGT boiler-block map (Combustion Engineering boilers for DE-402-424) + class-level litigation record (Jack v. Borg-Warner Morse Tec, W.D. Wash. 2:17-cv-00537) [other_primary]
- Locator
- DANFS specifications block (via ev-01); BuShips SDB 1945 v1 group-6 row; navypedia us_de_tev_wgt boiler-block map (DE-412 in the CE-boiler block); CourtListener docket 6100500 (Jack v. Borg-Warner, class-level)
- Finding type
- asbestos_application
- Finding
- Era/design inference: DE-412 is a John C. Butler-class (BuShips design group 6, WGT geared-turbine type) destroyer escort built December 1943-May 1944 - peak asbestos-era construction - with a steam plant: per the class boiler-block map, DE-402 through DE-424 carried 2 Combustion Engineering 'D'-type express boilers (435 psi/750 deg F) with Westinghouse geared turbines, 12,000 shp, 2 shafts, 24.3 kt design speed. Steam ships of this era carried asbestos in boiler and machinery insulation, steam-line lagging, gaskets, packing, fireproofing, and deck coverings. Class-level litigation context: pretrial materials in Jack v. Borg-Warner Morse Tec (W.D. Wash., naming sister USS Brannon DE-446) recite the theory that evaporator/distiller insulation aboard this class was installed per Navy specifications in the asbestos era, and that docket's exhibit list identifies the controlling era insulation specifications (BuShips Manual ch.39 Thermal Insulation NAVSHIPS 250-000(39), 1945; Navy Dept spec 32F3a 'Felt, Insulating, Asbestos', 1945; BuEng ch.13/S39-1, 1933/39).
- Verification
- inferred
- Role
- supporting
- Documentation level
- class_or_era
- Accessed
- 2026-09-28
- Study period
- 1943-1969
- Population
- Brown Shipbuilding construction trades 1943-44; crew 1944-46; reserve caretakers 1946-68; scrapping-yard workers 1969
- Limitations
- Class/era and boiler-block inference only - NOT a hull-specific finding. No BuShips material schedule, GIB entry, deck log, or litigation record names DE-412's installed materials. The Jack materials are unadjudicated allegations concerning DE-446, not this hull. Does not quantify material or establish any individual's exposure.
- Atlas source
- true
- Evidence ID
- ev-uss-walter-c-wann-de412-03
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[5]Eric Pearson, 'The Brown Shipbuilding Company's Rise During World War II,' Naval History (USNI) 39:3 (June 2025) + Texas State Historical Association, Handbook of Texas Online, 'Shipbuilding' (Robert H. Peebles) [reputable_press]
- Locator
- USNI Naval History June 2025 feature (paragraphs on Greens Bayou site, production figures, DE class split); tshaonline.org/handbook/entries/shipbuilding (WWII expansion paragraph)
- Finding type
- historical_record
- Finding
- Builder context: Brown Shipbuilding Co. (established 1941 by George and Herman Brown of the Brown & Root construction firm) operated the Greens Bayou yard on the Houston Ship Channel - sideway-launch slips on a narrow waterway; second-largest Houston-area wartime employer, more than 25,000 workers at peak from late 1942. Brown built 12 PC-461-class submarine chasers and 61 destroyer escorts - 38 Edsall-class and 23 John C. Butler-class, DE-412 being one of the 23 - plus 32 LCIs and 254 LSMs; DE construction time compressed from ~30 to ~20 weeks at an average delivery of one ship per week at $3.3 million per vessel; Army-Navy 'E' production award December 1942. TSHA documents the Houston wartime yard complex and Brown's Navy escort-vessel contracts ($100 million plus $200 million supplemental, August 1942).
- Verification
- verified
- Role
- context
- Documentation level
- context_only
- Accessed
- 2026-09-28
- Study period
- 1941-1945
- Population
- Brown Shipbuilding workforce (>25,000 at peak, 1942-45)
- Limitations
- Yard-scale history only - neither source addresses asbestos use or industrial hygiene at Brown Shipbuilding, and no official yard-level asbestos record was located. Brown Shipbuilding is absent from the Atlas shipyards.json dataset (37 yard_ids checked) - carried in gaps. USNI article accessed via Wayback capture 2026-05-03; live page returns 403 to automated fetch.
- Atlas source
- true
- Evidence ID
- ev-uss-walter-c-wann-de412-04
-
[6]NavSource DE-412 page (navsource.net mirror; .org host unreachable - DNS) hosting the ship's official War History page-scan (RESTRICTED cover, signed by CO Lt. Comdr. John W. Stedman, Jr.) + NARA 'Navy Deck Logs Available in the National Archives Catalog' list (archives.gov) vs. series 'Logbooks of the U.S. Navy Ships and Stations, 1941-1978' (NAID 594258) [other_primary]
- Locator
- NavSource DE-412 page, 'Building and Operational Data' + CO table + 'War History' image link (06412wh.jpg); archives.gov/research/military/logbooks/navy-online W-section (no DE-412 entry)
- Finding type
- historical_record
- Finding
- Primary documents for this hull exist in two located archives: (a) the ship's official War History - the Navy Department war-history report submitted by the ship at war's end, cover marked RESTRICTED, signed by commissioning CO Lt. Comdr. John W. Stedman, Jr., USNR - hosted as a page scan on the NavSource DE-412 page; (b) WWII deck logs in NARA RG 24 series 'Logbooks of the U.S. Navy Ships and Stations, 1941-1978' (NAID 594258) - DE-412 is absent from NARA's published list of fully digitized deck logs (the W section was checked; sister-ship logs such as USS Walton DE-361 do appear), so the logs are retrievable only via textual reference request at Archives II. NavSource also contributes building/operational data (decommissioned 22 May 1946; inactivation completed 11 July 1946, Submarine Group Two, San Diego Group, Pacific Reserve Fleet; 'steamed 87,000 miles'; two COs: Stedman to 18 Aug 1945, then Lcdr. Arthur W. Cocroft) and a November 1967 photograph showing the hull laid up at Mare Island.
- Verification
- verified
- Role
- archival_lead
- Documentation level
- ship_specific
- Accessed
- 2026-09-28
- Study period
- 1944-1946 (documents' scope); searched 2026-09-28
- Population
- Ship's company 1944-46 (deck logs); CO Stedman papers scope
- Limitations
- Archival leads, not examined content: the War History scan is a low-resolution tiled image whose narrative parallels DANFS (DANFS was drafted from such reports); the deck logs' contents - which could document material work or casualties aboard - are unexamined and undigitized. Neither source has been verified to contain asbestos-relevant material information. NavSource operational details (22 May 1946 decommissioning) conflict with DANFS (31 May 1946) - conflict documented in gaps; DANFS carried.
- Atlas source
- true
- Evidence ID
- ev-uss-walter-c-wann-de412-05
-
[7]CourtListener API v4 sweep, 2026-09-28: exact-name and hull-number queries, opinion (type=o) and docket/RECAP (type=r) indexes [court_record]
- Locator
- search_ledger rows sl-uss-walter-c-wann-de412-03 through sl-uss-walter-c-wann-de412-08
- Finding type
- litigation_documented
- Finding
- CourtListener sweep completed for this hull; no qualifying asbestos litigation located. "Walter C. Wann" (opinions): 0 results. "Walter C. Wann" (dockets): 0 results. "USS Wann" (opinions): 0 results. "USS Wann" (dockets): 0 results. "DE-412" (opinions): 5 hits, all identifier collisions - 'DE 412' appears as a docket-entry cross-reference inside opinion text (Neumont v. Monroe County, S.D. Fla. 2004; In re Chiquita Brands, S.D. Fla. 2016; China National Arts v. United States, Ct. Intl. Trade 1991; United States v. Lane, 5th Cir. 1972; Silverii v. Kramer, 3d Cir. 1963) - none vessel-related, none asbestos. "DE-412" (dockets): 284 hits, all 'DE 412' = docket-entry-412 citations inside PACER docket text (e.g., 'Court GRANTS DE 412', 'STRICKEN BY DE [412]') - pure identifier noise, none vessel-related.
- Verification
- verified
- Role
- negative_finding
- Documentation level
- ship_specific
- Accessed
- 2026-09-28
- Study period
- 2026-09-28
- Limitations
- A negative sweep does not prove no litigation exists: CourtListener coverage is incomplete for state trial courts and settled/unreported matters, and MDL-875 complaints naming the hull could exist outside indexed text. 'DE-412' is a high-noise identifier (docket-entry numbering) and 'Wann' is a surname, so broad unquoted variants were not run - the quoted exact-name, short-name, and hull-number sweeps on both indexes all completed clean.
- Atlas source
- true
- Evidence ID
- ev-uss-walter-c-wann-de412-06
-
[8]Batch-4313 search ledger (this record): NHHC/DANFS (live 404; verified transcription + Wayback capture), NavSource DE-412 page and hosted War History scan, NARA digitized deck-log list check, CourtListener exact-name/hull-number sweep, Atlas shipyard dataset check, TSHA/USNI builder sources, NVR detail-page check [other_primary]
- Locator
- search_ledger rows sl-uss-walter-c-wann-de412-01 through sl-uss-walter-c-wann-de412-12
- Finding type
- historical_record
- Finding
- No qualifying ship-specific asbestos record located for DE-412: no hull ACM survey, no museum or NHL record exists (the hull was sold and scrapped at Terminal Island in 1969 - it cannot have the museum-documented findings of Slater, The Sullivans, or Laffey), no abatement contract or hazmat disclosure was located for the scrapping or for any yard period, and no qualifying asbestos case names the vessel. The only asbestos-marketing listings of DE-412 are law-firm/mesothelioma-site ship lists (asbestos-ships.com; mesotheliomabook.com; shepardlawfirm.com - excluded per sourcing rules).
- Verification
- verified
- Role
- negative_finding
- Documentation level
- ship_specific
- Accessed
- 2026-09-28
- Study period
- 2026-09-28
- Limitations
- Absence of a located public record does not prove absence of asbestos aboard - a 1944 steam-plant escort is a class/era presumption candidate, not a documented one. Material condition at the 1969 Terminal Island scrapping is undocumented. Does not establish or defeat any claim of exposure or legal eligibility.
- Atlas source
- true
- Evidence ID
- ev-uss-walter-c-wann-de412-07