Evidence
9 evidence entries recorded; each entry has a stable permalink (#ev-1 … #ev-9).
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[1]research packet fk-packet.md (2 sources cited) [nhhc_danfs]
- Finding type
- vessel_history
- Finding
- Identity packet verdict: Queue: USS WATTS DD-567 → VERIFIED
- Verification
- verified
- Role
- supporting
- Documentation level
- ship_specific
- Evidence ID
- uss-watts-dd567-pkt-fk-packet-md
-
[2]DANFS, 'Watts (DD-567)' entry, Naval History and Heritage Command (published 2016-04-05; live URL 404 - verbatim text verified via Wayback capture 2025-12-09; hazegray mirror dd567txt.htm corroborates with transcription year typos) [nhhc_danfs]
- Locator
- DANFS 'Watts (DD-567)' entry, specifications block + full service narrative; Wayback 20251209123404 capture of canonical NHHC URL; mirror https://hazegray.org/danfs/destroy/dd567txt.htm (via Wayback 2006-09-27)
- Finding type
- vessel_history
- Finding
- DANFS record for this hull: laid down 26 March 1943 at Seattle, Wash., by Seattle-Tacoma Shipbuilding Corp.; launched 31 December 1943, sponsored by Mrs. Judith Bundick Gardner; commissioned 29 April 1944, Comdr. Joseph B. Maher. Shakedown San Diego; post-shakedown availability Bremerton June-July 1944. DesDiv 113, North Pacific Force, Aleutians Aug 1944-Apr 1945: patrol/convoy-escort plus bombardments of Matsuwa To (night 23-24 Nov 1944) and Paramushiro's Suribachi and Kurabi Zaki areas (5 Jan and 18 Feb 1945). Okinawa radar picket duty from 21 May 1945 - six attackers downed, one kamikaze splashed 10 yards off the port bow. TF 38 screen from Leyte Gulf 17 June 1945; Chichi Jima bombardment 23 July; in Japanese waters at the 15 August 1945 capitulation; Tokyo Bay occupation duty from 10 September. Philadelphia Naval Shipyard inactivation overhaul from 23 December 1945; out of commission at Charleston Naval Shipyard 12 April 1946. Recommissioned 6 July 1951 (Korean-era reactivation), Comdr. George L. Block; Destroyer Force Atlantic, first 6th Fleet deployment Jan-May 1953, Hunter/Killer Force ASW, Norfolk Naval Shipyard overhaul 12 Apr-7 Jul 1954. Cruiser-Destroyer Force Pacific, homeport Long Beach from 28 Jan 1955; three 7th Fleet deployments (TF 77 escort, Taiwan Strait patrol) through Dec 1957. Long Beach Naval Shipyard Dec 1957; reprieved June 1958 to Naval Reserve training ship duty as flagship of ResCortRon 1, Seattle-Tacoma; Berlin-crisis activation Dec 1961-Jan 1962 with a final 7th Fleet tour; reserve training to December 1964, when she decommissioned and entered reserve at Bremerton. Stricken 1 February 1974; sold 5 September 1974 to General Metals Co., Tacoma, for scrapping. Three WWII battle stars. Namesake: John Watts, merchant captain of Planter (Quasi-War action 10 July 1799); never served in the U.S. Navy.
- Verification
- verified
- Role
- supporting
- Documentation level
- ship_specific
- Accessed
- 2026-09-27
- Study period
- 1943-1974
- Population
- Seattle-Tacoma Shipbuilding construction trades 1943-44; wartime and postwar crews (DANFS complement 329); reserve-training crews 1958-64; yard workers at Bremerton, Philadelphia, Charleston, Norfolk, and Long Beach naval shipyards
- Limitations
- DANFS documents construction, service history, and disposal - not materials or asbestos content. Mirror-site transcription typos in hazegray's copy ('6 July 1961' for the 1951 recommissioning; 'December 1967' for the Dec 1957 yard entry; '16 August 1946' for the 1945 capitulation; '26 November' for 25 Nov; 'the 16th'/'6 May' for the 15th/5 May departures) resolved against the canonical NHHC text via Wayback 2025-12-09 capture. Decommissioning/sale-date conflicts with NavSource are carried in gaps, not reconciled silently.
- Atlas source
- true
- Evidence ID
- ev-uss-watts-dd567-01
-
[3]NavSource Naval History, Destroyer Photo Index DD-567 USS Watts (operational/building data block, commanding-officer roster compiled by W. Hechler & R. Reeves; via Wayback capture 2025-02-07) [other_primary]
- Locator
- NavSource DD-567 page, 'Operational and Building Data' block + commanding-officers table
- Finding type
- vessel_history
- Finding
- Secondary compilation for this hull corroborating DANFS: laid down Seattle-Tacoma Shipbuilding 26 Mar 1943; launched 31 Dec 1943; commissioned 29 Apr 1944; decommissioned 12 Apr 1946; recommissioned 6 Jul 1951; stricken 1 Feb 1974; sold to General Metals, Tacoma, and broken up. Adds radio call sign NIMU and tactical voice call 'BOOM TOWN' (c.1968), a commanding-officer roster (last CO CDR William D. Robertson Jr., Sep 1964-Jan 1965), and machinery summary '60,000 SHP; General Electric Geared Turbines, 2 screws'.
- Verification
- verified
- Role
- supporting
- Documentation level
- ship_specific
- Accessed
- 2026-09-27
- Study period
- 1943-1974; page captured 2025-02-07
- Population
- Commanding officers and crew, 1944-1965
- Limitations
- Secondary compilation, not a primary source - used to corroborate DANFS and surface date conflicts, never to override it. Conflicts documented rather than resolved: NavSource reads final decommissioning 'September 26 1969' (DANFS: December 1964) and sale 'August 16 1974' (DANFS: 5 September 1974); its CO roster shows CDR Richard Holden taking command at the 6 Jul 1951 recommissioning while DANFS names Comdr. George L. Block. No asbestos information present on the page.
- Atlas source
- true
- Evidence ID
- ev-uss-watts-dd567-02
-
[4]Fletcher-class design data (navypedia class block; BuShips Ships' Data 1945 Vol. I) + builder-yard context: Seattle-Tacoma Shipbuilding Corp. (Todd Dry Dock & Construction wartime operation, Harbor Island, Seattle) documented at yard level in Washington asbestos litigation - Gorman v. Garlock, Inc., 155 Wn.2d 198, 118 P.3d 311 (2005) (Todd Shipyards boilermaker/shipscaler asbestos claims, LHWCA exclusivity) and Wineland v. Air & Liquid Systems Corp., No. C19-0793RSL (W.D. Wash. 2021) (1974 Todd Shipyards exposure allegations incl. USS Tuscaloosa overhaul) [other_primary]
- Locator
- navypedia us_dd_fletcher.htm specs block; BuShips SDB1945v1.pdf DD section (shipscribe.com scan); Gorman v. Garlock (Wn. App. 2005) and Wineland v. Air & Liquid (W.D. Wash. 2021) opinion texts
- Finding type
- asbestos_application
- Finding
- Era/yard inference: a WWII Fletcher-class destroyer built 1943-44 with a four-boiler/60,000-shp steam plant would have carried period-standard asbestos boiler and steam-line insulation, turbine lagging, gaskets, packing, fireproofing, and deck coverings. The builder yard is documented at yard level in Washington asbestos litigation under its Todd Shipyards corporate succession (see citation) - published appellate and district records describe shipscaler/boilermaker asbestos exposure at Todd's Seattle yard in periods overlapping this hull's construction and her 1950s-60s Puget Sound-area operations.
- Verification
- inferred
- Role
- supporting
- Documentation level
- class_or_era
- Accessed
- 2026-09-27
- Study period
- 1943-1964 construction and service; yard litigation record 2003-2021
- Population
- Seattle-Tacoma/Todd construction trades 1943-44; crew 1944-64; reserve-trainee cohort 1958-64
- Limitations
- Class/era and builder-yard inference only - NOT a hull-specific finding. The yard litigation documents conditions at the Seattle/Tacoma yards generally, not materials installed aboard DD-567; no published case reviewed names this hull. Seattle-Tacoma Shipbuilding Corp. is not an Atlas shipyards.json entry - carried in gaps. Does not quantify material or establish any individual's exposure.
- Atlas source
- true
- Evidence ID
- ev-uss-watts-dd567-03
-
[5]GAO, Navy Efforts To Protect Workers From Asbestos Exposure, HRD-80-2 (Oct 18, 1979) [gao]
- Locator
- gao.gov product page, HRD-80-2
- 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 - placing DD-567's construction (1943-44) and her entire commissioned service (1944-1964) inside the documented asbestos-use era.
- Verification
- verified
- Role
- context
- Documentation level
- class_or_era
- Accessed
- 2026-09-27
- Study period
- report 1979; era documented 1940s-1970s
- Population
- Navy ship crews and shipyard workers, WWII-1970s (program context)
- Limitations
- Program-level documentation; supports era context only, not any fact specific to this hull. Full report text not retrieved (gao.gov blocks automated fetch, HTTP 403 - standing) - content via product-page description.
- Atlas source
- true
- Evidence ID
- ev-uss-watts-dd567-04
-
[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 U.S. Maritime Commission-commissioned 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 type.
- Verification
- verified
- Role
- context
- Documentation level
- class_or_era
- Accessed
- 2026-09-27
- 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; does not name this vessel, class, or builder yard (whether Seattle-Tacoma was among the surveyed contract yards is unverified) and 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-watts-dd567-05
-
[7]CourtListener API v4 exact-name sweep + indexed-web review: 'USS Watts' type=o opinion search; Watts v. 84 Lumber Co., No. 14-cv-327-SMY-DGW (S.D. Ill., orders of Jan 28 and Feb 12, 2016); Cox v. Foster Wheeler LLC (E.D. Pa. 2025) [court_record]
- Locator
- CourtListener API v4 search, '"USS Watts"' type=o (count 0); Bloomberg Law summary 2016 BL 24986; vLex case records 892801805/891066702; Cox v. Foster Wheeler summary
- Finding type
- litigation_documented
- Finding
- CourtListener exact-name opinion search returned zero hits for 'USS Watts'. Indexed 'Watts' asbestos litigation resolves as name collisions, none naming this hull: (a) Watts v. 84 Lumber Co. (S.D. Ill. 14-cv-00327) - a genuine asbestos suit in which 'Watts' is plaintiff Steven Watts, a Navy veteran who alleged gasket/packing exposure while serving aboard USS Surfbird (ADG-383) and USS Hector (AR-7) c.1970-73 - neither is this hull, and his window postdates DD-567's December 1964 decommissioning regardless; (b) Cox v. Foster Wheeler (E.D. Pa.) - 'Watts' is defendant Watts Technologies and 'Watts'-branded steam traps/valves, a manufacturer, not the ship.
- Verification
- verified
- Role
- correction
- Documentation level
- ship_specific
- Accessed
- 2026-09-27
- Study period
- 2014-2025 litigation landscape; sweep 2026-09-27
- Limitations
- Sweep is partial: the 'USS Watts' type=o opinion query completed clean at count 0; the RECAP docket query and 'DD-567' hull-number queries were quota-blocked by the fleet-wide CourtListener pacing limiter during the session - logged in search_ledger. The Watts v. 84 Lumber collision is confirmed by case summaries naming his actual ships (USS Surfbird, USS Hector) and the impossible service-window overlap; identified via reputable legal-press and opinion summaries (Bloomberg Law; vLex; mesothelioma.com case note; Ferraro firm note), not from CourtListener full text.
- Atlas source
- true
- Evidence ID
- ev-uss-watts-dd567-06
-
[8]Batch-3538 search ledger (this record): NHHC DANFS via Wayback + hazegray mirror; NavSource DD-567; CourtListener API v4 exact-name sweep; independent litigation web search; VA BVA decisions index; GAO HRD-80-2; NARA record-group guides [other_primary]
- Locator
- search_ledger rows sl-uss-watts-dd567-01 through sl-uss-watts-dd567-10
- Finding type
- historical_record
- Finding
- No qualifying ship-specific asbestos record located for DD-567: no asbestos survey, abatement contract, materials inventory, hazmat disclosure, court finding, or docketed asbestos case naming USS Watts / DD-567 was found in the public sources searched (see search_ledger). The ship was scrapped in 1974 - before asbestos documentation was routine - and never became a museum, so the disclosure channel that produced records for preserved hulls is absent.
- Verification
- verified
- Role
- negative_finding
- Documentation level
- ship_specific
- Accessed
- 2026-09-27
- Study period
- 2026-09-27
- Limitations
- Absence of a located public record does not prove absence of asbestos aboard - era-standard applications are documented at class/era level and the hull's 1943-44 construction sits squarely inside the documented asbestos-use era. Does not establish or defeat any claim of exposure or legal eligibility.
- Atlas source
- true
- Evidence ID
- ev-uss-watts-dd567-07
-
[9]NARA Guide to Federal Records: RG 24 (Records of the Bureau of Naval Personnel - Navy deck logs) and RG 19 (Records of the Bureau of Ships - incl. per-vessel General Information Books) [other_primary]
- Locator
- https://www.archives.gov/research/guide-fed-records/groups/024.html ; /groups/019.html
- Finding type
- historical_record
- Finding
- Archival leads (not retrieved - require research-room or reproduction order; no spend authorized): Navy deck logs for USS Watts (RG 24, NARA College Park) covering 1944-46, 1951-64 commissioned periods; BuShips records incl. the Fletcher (DD-445) class Booklet of General Plans and per-vessel General Information Books (RG 19) - the most promising source for hull-level material/insulation specifications; Navy property-disposal records for the 1974 sale to General Metals Co., Tacoma - the disposal-era documentation path most likely to carry any hazmat language.
- Verification
- unverified
- Role
- archival_lead
- Documentation level
- context_only
- Accessed
- 2026-09-27
- Study period
- 1943-1974 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-watts-dd567-08