USS Wileman (DE-22)

Evidence

9 evidence entries recorded; each entry has a stable permalink (#ev-1 … #ev-9).

1. [1]DANFS, Wileman (DE-22) (1981, Vol. 8, pp. 304-305) - namesake biography, specifications, build/disposition, full service narrative; verbatim transcription via hazegray mirror at losthistory.net (live NHHC page serves 404) [nhhc_danfs]

   Locator

   DANFS entry 'Wileman' (DE-22), Vol. 8 pp. 304-305: namesake paragraph + specifications block + service narrative + disposition

   Finding type

   vessel_history

   Finding

   DANFS record for this hull: namesake William Wolfe Wileman, born Ventura County, Calif. 4 May 1917, UC Berkeley 1940, enlisted Naval Reserve 12 February 1941, commissioned ensign USNR 5 November 1941; VF-6 (Enterprise) per 1942 Navy Directory, definitely VF-2 (Yorktown) at the Battle of the Coral Sea where he earned the Navy Cross in the evening of 7 May 1942 (at least one, perhaps two Japanese fighters); later VF-5; died 13 September 1942 based ashore on Guadalcanal with the 'Cactus Air Force' at Henderson Field, presumed dead from enemy action defending the base from Japanese air raids. Specifications: dp. 1,150; l. 289'5"; b. 35'2"; dr. 11'; s. 19.5 k.; cpl. 156; a. 3 3", 4 1.1", 9 20mm, 8 dcp, 2 dct; cl. Evarts. Laid down 30 April 1942 at Mare Island Navy Yard as BDE-22, a destroyer escort allocated to the United Kingdom under lend-lease; launched 19 December 1942, sponsored by Mrs. Fred Yam; reallocated to the U.S. Navy and redesignated DE-22 25 January 1943; named Wileman 19 February 1943; commissioned 11 June 1943, Lt. Aaron F. Beyer, USNR, in command. Service: shakedown west coast; departed San Francisco 20 August 1943 with Fletcher (DD-445) and a three-ship convoy, Pearl Harbor 27 August; escorted Wharton (AP-7) to the South Pacific (Tutuila, Noumea, Suva); a month of patrol/escort duty in the Ellice Islands; Pearl Harbor 2 November; screen of the garrison convoy to the Gilberts, Makin 24 November - repelled a three-plane 'Betty' torpedo attack without damage; a month of convoy escort/patrol Gilberts-Phoenix-Ellice; Pearl Harbor 8 January 1944; Operation 'Flintlock' - departed Oahu 28 January in the screen of the convoy carrying the 16th Marine Defense Battalion and a Construction Battalion unit to Kwajalein, arrived 10 February, 18 days ASW patrol Kwajalein/Majuro; Pearl Harbor 8 March; departed 30 March in the Altamaha (CVE-18) hunter/killer group in the eastern Marshalls (15 April torpedo attack on the carrier evaded); continued patrol with Fanshaw Bay (CVE-70), joined by Kalinin Bay (CVE-68); patrol ended 6 May, Oahu 13 May; departed 27 May, Eniwetok 4 June, Majuro 15 June; Marianas - Saipan transport escort 18-22 June, Eniwetok screen 26-30 June, then two months escorting convoys and Fast Carrier Task Force replenishment oiler groups between the Marianas and Eniwetok; forward-area duty ended 15 September; San Francisco 6 November via Pearl Harbor; Pearl Harbor 21 November with a convoy of six LSMs and three merchant ships; sound/gunnery training, gunnery-officer school ship, and target/adversary for Pacific Fleet submarines; Majuro round trip 5-21 January 1945; overhaul Terminal Island 29 January-mid-April 1945; Pearl Harbor 25 April; escort/plane guard for Corregidor (CVE-58) and Tripoli (CVE-64) in June; Eniwetok 30 June as a unit of TG 96.3 (Marshalls and Gilberts Escort and Patrol Force); Eniwetok-Ulithi convoys and Marshalls ASW patrols; Kwajalein hunter/killer and air-sea rescue 2-3 August; at Kwajalein when word of Japanese capitulation received 14 August; quit the circuit 14 September; San Pedro 27 September; decommissioned Terminal Island 16 November 1945; struck from the Navy list 28 November 1945; sold to Pacific Bridge Co. in January 1947 and scrapped by that firm 23 June 1947. Four battle stars for World War II service.

   Verification

   verified

   Role

   supporting

   Documentation level

   ship_specific

   Accessed

   2026-09-28

   Study period

   1942-1947

   Population

   Mare Island Navy Yard construction trades 1942-43; wartime crew (DANFS design complement 156); yard workers at Terminal Island (1945 overhaul/inactivation)

   Limitations

   DANFS documents service history and specifications, not materials or asbestos content. Spec-block conflicts with NavSource class data (displacement 1,150 vs 1,140/1,430; beam 35'2" vs 35'0"; speed 19.5 vs 19/21 trial kt; complement 156 vs 15/183) and the first CO's rank/service ('Lt. Aaron F. Beyer, USNR' vs NavSource 'Lcdr. Aaron Frederick Beyer, USN, USNA 33') are carried in gaps. DANFS does not give the British name for BDE-22 (HMS Foley - NavSource photo captions and NavalCoverMuseum). The 15 September-6 November 1944 transit reads unusually long and is noted in gaps. Live NHHC DANFS page returns 404 (standing link-rot note from BATCH-01); verbatim losthistory.net/hazegray transcription cited.

   Atlas source

   true

   Evidence ID

   ev-uss-wileman-de22-01

2. [2]NavSource DE-22 page - building/operational data block, launch-photo captions (U.S. Navy photo nos. DE-22-7994-42, DE-22-7981-42 et seq.) recording the launch under British name HMS Foley (BDE-22), sponsor detail, commanding-officer list, awards line [other_primary]

   Locator

   NavSource DE-22 page 'Building and Operational Data' block; photo captions 0602202-0602205; commanding-officers table

   Finding type

   vessel_history

   Finding

   NavSource building and operational data for this hull: keel laid 30 April 1942 as BDE-22 by Mare Island Navy Yard, Vallejo; launched and christened 19 December 1942, sponsored by Mrs. Fred Yam; reallocated to the U.S. Navy and redesignated DE-22 25 January 1943; named Wileman 19 February 1943; commissioned 11 June 1943; decommissioned 16 November 1945 at Terminal Island, San Pedro, after 2 years and 5 months of service; struck from the NVR 28 November 1945; sold for scrapping 8 January 1947 to Pacific Bridge Co., San Francisco; scrapping completed 23 June 1947. Launch-photo captions (Navy photo DE-22-7994-42 et seq.) record sponsor Mrs. Emme Yam - a Mare Island helper electrician elected by her fellow Mare Island Chinese workers - with matron of honor Mrs. Lilly Ching and guest speaker Dr. Chin Tsing Feng, Consul General of China at San Francisco; a broadside view is captioned 'HMS Foley (BDE-22).' Commanding officers: Lcdr. Aaron Frederick Beyer, USN (Comm. CO, USNA '33) 11 June 1943-10 January 1944; Lcdr. Ralph Michael Tanner Jr., USNR, 10 January 1944-16 July 1945; Lcdr. Gilbert Boyle Valentine, USNR, 16 July 1945-30 September 1945 (Decomm. CO). Awards line: American Campaign Medal; Asiatic-Pacific Campaign Medal with 4 stars; WWII Victory Medal - consistent with DANFS's four battle stars.

   Verification

   verified

   Role

   supporting

   Documentation level

   ship_specific

   Accessed

   2026-09-28

   Study period

   1942-1947

   Population

   Mare Island Navy Yard construction trades 1942-43; wartime crew; CO list 1943-45

   Limitations

   NavSource is a private volunteer archive compiling official records, contributed data, and photo captions - not itself an official publication; the underlying photo captions cite Navy photo numbers, and the CO list is contributed by named researchers (W. Hechler & R. Reeves). All dated events concur with DANFS where DANFS speaks; NavSource supplies the struck-from-NVR wording, the day-level sale date (8 January 1947), and the British-name caption (HMS Foley) that DANFS lacks. No materials or asbestos content.

   Atlas source

   true

   Evidence ID

   ev-uss-wileman-de22-02

3. [3]Naval Historical Center, Online Library of Selected Images: 'USS Wileman (DE-22), 1943-1947' (official NHC page mirrored at ibiblio/HyperWar) + NARA-held photo 80-G-343608 [other_primary]

   Locator

   ibiblio Online Library page usnsh-w/de22.htm; photo catalog entry 80-G-343608

   Finding type

   historical_record

   Finding

   Official Naval Historical Center catalog page for this hull: 'a 1140-ton Evarts class escort ship, was built at the Mare Island Navy Yard, California. Commissioned in June 1943, her active service was mainly spent on escort and anti-submarine duties in the central Pacific. Wileman returned to the U.S. West Coast in September 1945 and was decommissioned in November. She was sold for scrapping in January 1947.' The page catalogs NARA-held photo 80-G-343608: crew members on USS Wileman (DE-22) celebrating Japan's acceptance of surrender terms, circa 15 August 1945, photographer from Naval Air Station, Ebeye Island, Kwajalein - independently placing the hull in the Marshalls at V-J Day, consistent with the DANFS narrative (at Kwajalein 14 August).

   Verification

   verified

   Role

   context

   Documentation level

   ship_specific

   Accessed

   2026-09-28

   Study period

   1943-1947

   Population

   Wartime crew at V-J Day (Kwajalein vicinity)

   Limitations

   Corroborating identity/history only - no materials, construction-detail, or asbestos content. ibiblio hosts a verbatim mirror of the Naval Historical Center page (dated 14 March 1999); the live NHHC presentation of this material was not located. The photo documents presence at Kwajalein, not conditions aboard.

   Atlas source

   true

   Evidence ID

   ev-uss-wileman-de22-03

4. [4]NHHC, 'United States Naval Aviation 1910-1995,' Appendix 12 - Ships Named for Naval Aviators: 'Wileman (DE 22 - ex-BDE 22)*** ENS William W. Wileman, USNR 11 Jun 1943' [nhhc_danfs]

   Locator

   Appendix 12 PDF, 'Wileman (DE 22 - ex-BDE 22)' entry

   Finding type

   historical_record

   Finding

   Official NHHC publication independently confirms the namesake and commissioning date for this hull: Wileman (DE-22, ex-BDE-22) was named for Ens. William W. Wileman, USNR, and commissioned 11 June 1943 - consistent with DANFS and NavSource.

   Verification

   verified

   Role

   context

   Documentation level

   ship_specific

   Accessed

   2026-09-28

   Study period

   1943

   Limitations

   Namesake/commissioning confirmation only - no construction, materials, or asbestos content. The namesake is unique to this hull (no later ship has carried the name), so 'USS Wileman' references are not subject to namesake-era collisions. The live NHHC PDF URL returned 404 on 2026-09-28; the entry text was confirmed via the search engine's index of this exact NHHC URL - the same Appendix 12 handling as the batch-4104 (DE-19) record the same day.

   Atlas source

   true

   Evidence ID

   ev-uss-wileman-de22-04

5. [5]NavSource DE-22 class/specification block + Evarts-class article (R. P. Sables) (GMT type: 'diesel-electric tandem motor drive, short hull'; propulsion '4 GM Model 16-278A diesel engines with electric drive, 6000 shp, 2 screws') + Fleischer WE, Viles FJ Jr, Gade RL, Drinker P., 'A health survey of pipe covering operations in constructing naval vessels,' J Ind Hyg Toxicol. 1946;28(1):9-16 [other_primary]

   Locator

   NavSource DE-22 specifications block; NavSource Evarts-class article 005a.htm; Fleischer et al. 1946 (bibliographic citation; digitized copy not fetched)

   Finding type

   asbestos_application

   Finding

   Era/class inference: this hull was an Evarts-class destroyer escort built 1942-43 with a diesel-electric plant (four GM 16-278A diesels with electric drive, 6,000 shp - no boilers or steam system). A WWII Navy diesel-electric escort would have carried era-standard asbestos applications appropriate to that plant type - exhaust insulation, gaskets and packing, electrical insulation, winch/windlass brake linings, and deck coverings - while the largest asbestos categories of steam ships (boiler and steam-line lagging) do not apply. The contemporaneous Fleischer/Viles/Gade/Drinker survey (WWII-era naval-vessel construction, published 1946) documented asbestos pipe-covering operations across Navy and contract yards as standard practice.

   Verification

   inferred

   Role

   supporting

   Documentation level

   class_or_era

   Accessed

   2026-09-28

   Study period

   1942-1945 (construction/operations); 1942-46 (era hygiene literature)

   Population

   Mare Island Navy Yard construction trades 1942-43; crew 1943-45 (DANFS design complement 156)

   Limitations

   Class/era inference only - NOT a hull-specific finding. Machinery specifics are class-design data (NavSource spec block and the Sables Evarts-class article; the DANFS spec block for this hull carries displacement, dimensions, speed, armament, and complement only). The 1946 survey anonymized its yards and does not name this hull; it establishes era practice, not installation aboard DE-22. Does not quantify asbestos, establish crew exposure, or speak to legal eligibility.

   Atlas source

   true

   Evidence ID

   ev-uss-wileman-de22-05

6. [6]Atlas shipyard dataset (shipyards.json): 'mare-island-naval-shipyard' (evidence tier 2), 'pearl-harbor-naval-shipyard' (tier 1); Terminal Island/San Pedro and Pacific Bridge Co. absent from the dataset [other_primary]

   Locator

   shipyards.json records 'mare-island-naval-shipyard', 'pearl-harbor-naval-shipyard'

   Finding type

   asbestos_application

   Finding

   Yard-level documentation for yards where this hull was built or worked on: builder Mare Island Navy Yard (Vallejo) is a tier-2 yard in the Atlas dataset; Pearl Harbor Naval Shipyard - repeated availabilities and base periods per DANFS (late 1943 through mid-1945: post-Gilberts return November 1943, pre/post-Flintlock January-March 1944, May 1944, November 1944-January 1945 school-ship periods, April-June 1945) - is tier-1. The January-mid-April 1945 overhaul yard (Terminal Island, San Pedro, per DANFS) and the scrapping purchaser (Pacific Bridge Co., San Francisco) are not Atlas dataset entries - carried in gaps. DE-22's construction and availabilities at these yards fall within the documented asbestos era for each.

   Verification

   inferred

   Role

   context

   Documentation level

   class_or_era

   Accessed

   2026-09-28

   Study period

   1942-1945

   Population

   Yard workers during 1942-43 construction, Pearl Harbor availabilities 1943-45, and the Terminal Island overhaul/inactivation 1945

   Limitations

   Yard-level findings only - no work order, specification, or survey ties yard asbestos products to this hull's specific construction, availabilities, or the 1945 Terminal Island overhaul; yard tier reflects the dataset's yard-level documentation, not conditions aboard DE-22. Establishes builder/overhaul context only.

   Atlas source

   true

   Evidence ID

   ev-uss-wileman-de22-06

7. [7]NARA holdings for this hull: photo 80-G-343608 (circa 15 August 1945, V-J Day celebration aboard, cataloged via the Naval Historical Center Online Library); Mare Island launch photographs (Navy photo nos. DE-22-7994-42, DE-22-7981-42 et seq., cited in NavSource captions); RG 24 deck logs for DE-22; RG 19 Bureau of Ships 'Booklet of General Plans' per-hull series; RG 38 WWII War Diaries entries; any Secretary of the Navy-filed war-end history submission for DE-22 [other_primary]

   Locator

   catalog.archives.gov (deck logs, RG 24); archives.gov/research/cartographic/ship-plans (RG 19 plans); NARA photo 80-G-343608 and launch series DE-22-7994-42/7981-42 (cited via ibiblio Online Library and NavSource captions)

   Finding type

   historical_record

   Finding

   Archival leads for hull-level material/work documentation: (a) DE-22 deck logs (RG 24, Logbooks of U.S. Navy Ships and Stations) document availabilities and yard periods including the January-mid-April 1945 Terminal Island overhaul; (b) NARA-held photographs document the 19 December 1942 Mare Island launch (DE-22-7994-42 series) and the V-J Day crew celebration (80-G-343608); (c) a per-hull Booklet of General Plans or Evarts-class engineering drawings in RG 19 would record machinery and insulation-spec callouts; (d) WWII War Diaries (RG 38) may hold additional unit entries; (e) a SecNav/Bureau-filed war-end history submission may exist for DE-22 - sister DE-19's submission is located in scan form via NavSource, but NavSource hosts no war-history scan for this hull (image URL 06022wh.jpg returns an error and the page lists none). NARA catalog search was inconclusive in-session; retrieval not performed.

   Verification

   verified

   Role

   archival_lead

   Documentation level

   ship_specific

   Accessed

   2026-09-28

   Study period

   1942-1945 records

   Limitations

   Leads only - deck logs log events and yard periods but rarely identify materials; plan-booklet existence for DE-22 specifically is unverified; whether a DE-22 war-history submission exists at NARA is unverified (none is hosted at NavSource, unlike sister DE-19). No asbestos content is asserted from these holdings.

   Atlas source

   true

   Evidence ID

   ev-uss-wileman-de22-07

8. [8]CourtListener API v4 (authenticated, fleet-paced helper cl-auth-search.py) - opinion (type=o) and RECAP docket (type=r) searches for '"Wileman"', '"USS Wileman"', and '"DE-22"' [court_record]

   Locator

   search_ledger rows sl-uss-wileman-de22-06 through -08

   Finding type

   litigation_documented

   Finding

   No qualifying litigation naming this hull located. CourtListener opinion index (type=o): '"USS Wileman"' = 0 hits; '"Wileman"' = 450 hits, all surname/company-name collisions on review of top results (Glickman v. Wileman Bros. & Elliott, Inc., U.S. Supreme Court 1996-97 and its Ninth Circuit predecessors - agricultural-marketing litigation; Dorothy A. Wileman v. Anthony M. Frank, Postmaster General, 4th Cir. 1992, and Wileman v. Frank, D. Md. 1991 - federal employment; Corcoran v. Wileman, Fla. DCA 2009; State of West Virginia v. Delbert Wileman, W. Va. 2014; Wileman v. Commonwealth, Va. App. 1997; Wileman v. Wade, Tex. App. 1983; Jackson v. Wileman, W.D. Ky. 1979) - none vessel-related, none asbestos. RECAP docket index (type=r): '"USS Wileman"' = 0; '"Wileman"' = 547 docket hits, all surname collisions on review of top results (consumer-bankruptcy filings for individuals surnamed Wileman; Wileman v. Boston Scientific Corp., S.D.W.Va. 2016 - medical-device litigation by a plaintiff surnamed Wileman, not vessel-related; Wileman Bros. & Elliott, Inc. v. Hertzler, E.D. Cal. 2013) - none vessel-related, none asbestos. Hull-number query '"DE-22"' on the docket index = 9,208 hits, all identifier collisions on review of top results (unrelated civil dockets and case-number/exhibit strings); the '"DE-22"' opinion-index query did not complete within fleet pacing - carried in search_ledger.

   Verification

   verified

   Role

   negative_finding

   Documentation level

   ship_specific

   Accessed

   2026-09-28

   Study period

   2026-09-28

   Limitations

   Sweep completed 2026-09-28 via the authenticated fleet-paced helper except the '"DE-22"' opinion-index query, which the saturated shared fleet budget (~114 req/hr token bucket) never released over ~2 hours of spaced attempts - it is logged as a coverage gap, not a finding; the '"DE-22"' identifier is a high-collision class (Puerto Rico 'De' case-number strings, exhibit labels) and the completed docket-index query for the same string returned 9,208 collision hits with no vessel-related result among reviewed top results. Not a trial-level finding for any vessel - it establishes only that no docketed opinion or RECAP docket surfaced naming Wileman or DE-22 as a vessel among completed queries. Absence of a docket hit does not prove no claim was ever asserted; asbestos lawsuits naming hulls are a small subset of filed cases. 'Wileman' is a moderate-collision surname (the Wileman Bros. & Elliott farm-marketing line accounts for many hits); not every hit in the 450/547/9,208 collision sets was individually reviewed.

   Atlas source

   true

   Evidence ID

   ev-uss-wileman-de22-08

9. [9]Batch-4138 search ledger (this record): NHHC DANFS (live 404; losthistory.net/hazegray transcription); NHHC Appendix 12 namesake publication (live PDF 404, content confirmed via search index); Naval Historical Center Online Library photo catalog (ibiblio mirror); NavSource building/specification data, launch-photo captions, CO list, and Evarts-class article; Atlas shipyards.json yard records; CourtListener sweep (see ledger); law-firm ship-list pages (excluded by source rule) [other_primary]

   Locator

   search_ledger rows sl-uss-wileman-de22-01 through -09

   Finding type

   historical_record

   Finding

   No qualifying ship-specific asbestos record located for DE-22: no hull ACM survey, abatement contract, materials inventory, or docketed litigation naming this hull was found in the public sources searched (see search_ledger; completed CourtListener queries returned zero qualifying hits, with the '"DE-22"' opinion-index query uncompleted - see ledger). The hull was sold for scrapping January 1947 and dismantled by 23 June 1947, so no museum-phase or layberth hazmat record can exist. Generic asbestos claims for 'USS Wileman' exist on law-firm marketing pages (asbestos-ships.com dedicated page; shepardlawfirm.com, elslaw.com, and mesotheliomahelp.org destroyer-escort lists) - all are boilerplate ship-list pages with no cited source and are excluded per source 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 - era materials are consistent with a 1942-43 diesel-electric escort, and the hull's 1947 destruction forecloses modern survey evidence. The litigation sweep does not prove no claim was ever asserted. Does not establish or defeat any claim of exposure or legal eligibility.

   Atlas source

   true

   Evidence ID

   ev-uss-wileman-de22-09