Evidence
11 evidence entries recorded; each entry has a stable permalink (#ev-1 … #ev-11).
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[1]research packet 1035-packet.md (3 sources cited) [museum_official]
- Finding type
- vessel_history
- Finding
- Identity packet verdict: VERIFIED
- Verification
- verified
- Role
- supporting
- Documentation level
- ship_specific
- Evidence ID
- uss-yms-163-yms163-pkt-1035-packet-md
-
[2]NavSource Online: Mine Warfare Vessel Photo Archive, YMS-163 - build/commission/decommission/strike timeline, specifications, commanding officers, merchant phase, loss (verified live 2026-10-04) [other_primary]
- Locator
- NavSource 11/19163.htm header timeline, specifications block, commanding-officers table, and photo caption
- Finding type
- vessel_history
- Finding
- NavSource timeline for this hull: laid down 23 April 1942 by the Dachel-Carter (page spells 'Daschel-Carter') Shipbuilding Corp., Benton Harbor, MI; launched 27 October 1942; commissioned USS YMS-163 3 March 1943; completed 8 March 1943; decommissioned 23 May 1946; struck from the Naval Register 2 February 1947; transferred to the War Shipping Administration February 1948; sold 1949 to Michelle Shipping Co. of Martinez, CA for use as a fishing boat and named Michelle Eve; sold 1954 to Malaspina Fisheries Co. of Seattle, WA; sold 1963 to Aleutian Seafoods, Inc. of King Cove, AK and renamed Aleutian Reefer; sold 1964 to Roy Furfiord and Harry Furford dba Polar Fisheries, Inc. of Seattle; 'Caught fire 29 May 1967 at Homer, AK; towed out of the harbor and sank.' Spec block: 270 t., 136', beam 24'6", draft 8', 15 kts, complement 32, one 3"/50 DP mount + two 20 mm + two depth-charge projectors, two 880 bhp GM 8-268A diesels with Snow and Knobstedt single reduction gear, two shafts. CO list: LT Allen F. Edwards, Jr., USNR (3 Mar 1943); LT P. B. Nicks, USNR (1945); LT John Thomas Hughes, USNR (1946). Page states 'There is no DANFS History currently available for YMS-163.'
- Verification
- verified
- Role
- context
- Documentation level
- ship_specific
- Accessed
- 2026-10-04
- Study period
- 1942-1967
- Population
- Dachel-Carter construction trades (1942-43); crew (1943-46); merchant crews 1949-67
- Limitations
- NavSource is a volunteer secondary compilation, not a primary registry; its milestone dates generally track official records (strike date corroborated by uboat.net; CO Nicks corroborated by the NHHC 1 May 1945 fleet organization). The '29 May 1967' loss date conflicts with contemporaneous Homer News reporting of 22 March 1967 - see ev-uss-yms-163-09 (correction). Yard-name spelling 'Daschel-Carter' is a typo - NHHC spells the yard 'Dachel-Carter' (ev-uss-yms-163-05). Contains no asbestos content.
- Atlas source
- true
- Evidence ID
- ev-uss-yms-163-01
-
[3]NARA, Special List 44 - List of Logbooks of U.S. Navy Ships, Stations, and Miscellaneous Units, 1801-1947, ship-number sort (PDF page 115); cross-checked against the archives.gov digitized deck-log index [other_primary]
- Locator
- sl-44-ship-number.pdf page 115, row 'YMS-163 3/26/1943 - 1/31/1946'; archives.gov/research/military/logbooks/navy-online index
- Finding type
- historical_record
- Finding
- NARA's Special List 44 records US Navy deck logs for YMS-163 covering 3/26/1943 - 1/31/1946 - i.e., the hull's log coverage runs from commissioning into the immediate postwar period. The finding aid documents that these logs exist in NARA holdings. YMS-163 does not appear on the archives.gov list of deck logs digitized in the National Archives Catalog (the digitized YMS entries are all later named AMS conversions).
- Verification
- verified
- Role
- archival_lead
- Documentation level
- ship_specific
- Accessed
- 2026-10-04
- Study period
- 1943-1946 (log coverage)
- Population
- Crew of YMS-163 (1943-46)
- Limitations
- The Special List 44 dates are LOG COVERAGE, not commissioning/decommissioning dates - they bound the period the logs document, nothing more. The logs themselves were not reviewed and are not publicly digitized; their contents (operations, availabilities, yards visited, any material references) are undocumented here. Absence from the digitized index was checked against the archives.gov navy-online page on 2026-10-04.
- Atlas source
- true
- Evidence ID
- ev-uss-yms-163-02
-
[4]NHHC, United States Pacific Fleet Organization, 1 May 1945 (Navy Department Library transcription) [nhhc_danfs]
- Locator
- NHHC online reading room transcription, Minecraft Pacific Fleet section, Mine Squadron TWENTY / Mine Division SIXTY YMS table, row 'YMS 163 | Lt. P. B. Nicks (USNR)'
- Finding type
- historical_record
- Finding
- Official Navy documentation places this hull in the Pacific Fleet mine force late in the war: the 1 May 1945 Pacific Fleet organization lists 'YMS 163' under Mine Division SIXTY (ComMinDiv 60, Comdr. M. D. Matthews), Mine Squadron TWENTY (Capt. R. A. Larkin), under Commander Minecraft, Pacific Fleet (R. Adm. A. Sharp), with Lt. P. B. Nicks (USNR) in command - matching the NavSource commanding-officer list.
- Verification
- verified
- Role
- context
- Documentation level
- ship_specific
- Accessed
- 2026-10-04
- Study period
- 1945
- Population
- Crew under Lt. P. B. Nicks (May 1945)
- Limitations
- Establishes fleet assignment and commanding officer on one date (1 May 1945); says nothing about specific operations, locations swept, or material condition. The transcription preserves an annotation marker '94' beside the YMS-163 row whose footnote key was not transcribed on the page - its meaning is unresolved. No asbestos content.
- Atlas source
- true
- Evidence ID
- ev-uss-yms-163-03
-
[5]American Battle Monuments Commission, World War II Registry - honoree entry for Earl E. Patterson, U.S. Navy [other_primary]
- Locator
- ABMC WWII Registry honoree plaque 2066302 (Earl E. Patterson, Oklahoma City, OK)
- Finding type
- historical_record
- Finding
- A WWII-era crew member's registry biography states: 'He was a V-12 student at Oklahoma University and graduated with a degree in chemical engineering. Attended classes in steam and diesel engines at Cornell University. Reported to YMS-163 at Guam to sweep mines off the coast of Japan and South China Seas. Remained in the Naval Reserve and retired with rank of Lieutenant Commander in 1965.' - placing this hull at Guam on post-surrender minesweeping duty off Japan and in the South China Sea.
- Verification
- partial
- Role
- context
- Documentation level
- ship_specific
- Accessed
- 2026-10-04
- Study period
- 1945-1946
- Population
- Earl E. Patterson; YMS-163 crew on post-surrender sweeps (1945-46)
- Limitations
- Family-submitted veteran biography hosted on an official US government site (ABMC); ABMC does not independently verify submissions - corroborates, does not itself prove, the Guam/post-surrender-sweeping assignment. Establishes that a named individual served aboard; it is NOT an exposure record - this record makes no asbestos claim for Patterson or any individual. No asbestos content.
- Atlas source
- true
- Evidence ID
- ev-uss-yms-163-04
-
[6]DANFS, Bunting II (YMS-170) - sister hull built at the same Benton Harbor yard; YMS-1 class spec block (verified live 2026-10-04) [nhhc_danfs]
- Locator
- DANFS Bunting II (YMS-170) entry - spec block and service narrative
- Finding type
- vessel_history
- Finding
- NHHC documents the class and builder context for this hull's immediate sister: 'YMS-170 was laid down on 1 October 1942 at Benton Harbor, Mich., by the Dachel-Carter Shipbuilding Corp.; launched on 29 May 1943; and commissioned on 23 July 1943 at Algiers, La.' The entry's class spec block reads: 'YMS-170: displacement 320 (full load); length 136'0"; beam 24'6"; draft 6'1"; speed 12.0 knots; complement 33; armament 1 3-inch, 2 20-millimeter; class YMS-1' - and shows the class's typical wartime employment (shakedown in the Eighth Naval District, Caribbean minesweeping/escort/ASW patrols, then postwar Pacific duty, with redesignation to AMS and a name in February 1947 for surviving sisters). Establishes the official spelling 'Dachel-Carter' (NavSource's 'Daschel-Carter' is a typo).
- Verification
- verified
- Role
- context
- Documentation level
- class_or_era
- Accessed
- 2026-10-04
- Study period
- 1942-1960 (entry coverage)
- Population
- Class context only
- Limitations
- Sister-hull and class documentation, not this hull's record: YMS-170's own career (Caribbean service, AMS-3 redesignation, name Bunting) does not apply to YMS-163, which was never renamed. The class spec block differs slightly from YMS-163's own NavSource block (320 t. full load vs 270 t.; 12 kts vs 15; draft 6'1" vs 8'; cpl 33 vs 32) - conflicts carried in gaps, not harmonized. No asbestos content.
- Atlas source
- true
- Evidence ID
- ev-uss-yms-163-05
-
[7]Era inference built on: NavSource YMS-163 spec block (2 x GM 8-268A diesels, 880 bhp, twin screw; no steam plant); NavSource YMS class index ('wood-hulled YMS'; 481 units built at 35 yacht yards incl. four Great Lakes yards); DANFS Bunting II class block; GAO HRD-80-2 (see ev-uss-yms-163-07) [other_primary]
- Locator
- NavSource 11/19163 spec block; NavSource 11/19idx class index; DANFS Bunting II class block
- Finding type
- asbestos_application
- Finding
- A wood-hulled, diesel-powered yard minesweeper completed March 1943 sits inside the Navy's documented asbestos-use era. Era-standard asbestos applications aboard a small diesel craft of this type and period were diesel-exhaust lagging, machinery-space gaskets, valve and flange packing, and electrical/cable insulation. The wood hull and absence of any steam plant remove the boiler/turbine/piping lagging pathway that dominates steam-vessel asbestos inventories - the plausible asbestos footprint aboard this type is materially smaller than aboard a steel steam vessel of the era.
- Verification
- inferred
- Role
- supporting
- Documentation level
- class_or_era
- Accessed
- 2026-10-04
- Study period
- 1942-1967
- Population
- Dachel-Carter construction trades (1942-43); engine-room and deck crews (1943-46); merchant crews on original fittings (1949-67, extent undocumented)
- Limitations
- Class/era inference only - no hull-specific insulation survey, material list, work package, or deck-log review was located for YMS-163. Names era-standard applications, not confirmed installed materials; no quantity; no manufacturer attribution. The small, wood-hulled, diesel-driven character of the type cuts both ways: less installed asbestos AND confined-space exposure for machinery crews. Does not establish individual exposure or present-day presence (hull destroyed 1967).
- Atlas source
- true
- Evidence ID
- ev-uss-yms-163-06
-
[8]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 this hull's entire construction (1942-43) and service era (1943-46), as well as her merchant years on original-era fittings (1949-67).
- Verification
- verified
- Role
- context
- Documentation level
- class_or_era
- Accessed
- 2026-10-04
- 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 or type. Full text not retrieved (gao.gov blocks automated fetch, HTTP 403, confirmed 2026-10-04) - content via product-page description, same access state as Batch 98.
- Atlas source
- true
- Evidence ID
- ev-uss-yms-163-07
-
[9]Nauticapedia vessel database, Aleutian Reefer (ex-USS YMS-163) - merchant ownership chain and loss; shipbuildinghistory.com Dachel-Carter yard table (official no. 257597); uboat.net allied-warships entry [other_primary]
- Locator
- nauticapedia.ca vessel 81216; shipbuildinghistory.com/shipyards/small/dachelcarter.htm (YMS 163 row: ON 257597); uboat.net/allies/warships/ship/9583.html
- Finding type
- vessel_history
- Finding
- Merchant-registry compilations corroborate the post-Navy phase: Nauticapedia's ownership sequence matches NavSource (US Navy 1943-46; War Shipping Administration 1948-49; Michelle Shipping Co., Martinez CA 1949-54; Malaspina Fisheries Co., Seattle 1954-63; Aleutian Seafoods Inc., King Cove AK 1963-64; Roy Furfiord and Harry Furfiord, Polar Fisheries Inc., Seattle 1964-67) and states 'this vessel was destroyed by fire at Homer AK USA... towed out of the harbor and sank.' The Dachel-Carter yard table at shipbuildinghistory.com gives her merchant documentation official number 257597, design 278d, delivered 8 March 1943. Uboat.net corroborates ordered 14 March 1942, laid down 23 April 1942, launched 27 October 1942, and stricken 2 February 1947.
- Verification
- verified
- Role
- context
- Documentation level
- ship_specific
- Accessed
- 2026-10-04
- Study period
- 1946-1967
- Population
- Merchant crews 1949-67
- Limitations
- Secondary compilations, not primary registry documents. Nauticapedia repeats the '29 May 1967' loss date that conflicts with contemporaneous press (see ev-uss-yms-163-09) and mis-tags the hull material 'Steel' - the YMS-1 class was wood-hulled and contemporaneous coverage calls her 'the wood hull boat.' The shipbuildinghistory table's 'struck 1946' conflates decommissioning with the documented 2 February 1947 strike. No asbestos content; merchant-phase refits are undocumented.
- Atlas source
- true
- Evidence ID
- ev-uss-yms-163-08
-
[10]Homer News, 'Years Ago' retrospective quoting its issue of March 30, 1967 - contemporaneous report of the Aleutian Reefer fire [reputable_press]
- Locator
- homernews.com 'Years Ago' 2017-03-30, quoting the issue of 30 March 1967
- Finding type
- historical_record
- Finding
- CORRECTION: contemporaneous reporting dates the loss fire to 22 March 1967, not '29 May 1967' as carried by NavSource and Nauticapedia. The Homer News retrospective quotes its 30 March 1967 issue verbatim: 'A fire that started in the engine room burned the 130-foot F/V Aleutian Reefer on March 22. Tugs towed the wood hull boat out of the harbor while firefighters pumped water on the burning boat until it could be boarded and anchored. At high tide, bulldozers pulled the still burning boat onto the beach.' A photo caption elsewhere dates the burning 29 March 1967; the day (22 vs 29) is unresolved, but contemporaneous sourcing fixes the month as March 1967. The report also documents that the hull was towed out AND pulled onto the beach while burning - a more precise disposition than 'sank in the harbor approaches.'
- Verification
- verified
- Role
- correction
- Documentation level
- ship_specific
- Accessed
- 2026-10-04
- Study period
- 1967
- Population
- Polar Fisheries crew and Homer firefighters/harbor tugs (March 1967)
- Limitations
- Corrects a circulating loss-date error and refines the final disposition; not a material/asbestos claim. The exact day remains conflicted (22 March contemporaneous report vs 29 March photo caption vs 29 May secondary compilations). The wreck's removal or present state at the beach site is undocumented.
- Atlas source
- true
- Evidence ID
- ev-uss-yms-163-09
-
[11]Batch-8831 search ledger (this record): NavSource; NARA Special List 44 + digitized-log index; NHHC Pacific Fleet organization 1 May 1945; DANFS Bunting II; ABMC WWII Registry; uboat.net; Nauticapedia; shipbuildinghistory.com; Homer News; GAO product page (blocked); wrecksite (captcha-blocked); NHHC DANFS YMS-163 page (404); Naval Vessel Register; CourtListener API v4 name/hull queries; secondary web litigation sweep [other_primary]
- Locator
- search_ledger rows sl-uss-yms-163-01 through sl-uss-yms-163-13
- Finding type
- historical_record
- Finding
- No qualifying ship-specific asbestos record located: no asbestos survey, abatement contract, hazmat disclosure, museum/museum-ship material (none - hull destroyed 1967), or qualifying litigation naming USS YMS-163 / YMS-163 was found in the public sources searched. CourtListener returned zero results on every completed name and hull query (opinion and docket indexes). The secondary web sweep surfaced no law-firm or listicle 'asbestos aboard' claims for this hull - unusual but real; there is nothing marketing-side to exclude. No DANFS entry exists; NVR covers post-1987 dispositions only.
- Verification
- verified
- Role
- negative_finding
- Documentation level
- ship_specific
- Accessed
- 2026-10-04
- Study period
- 2026-10-04
- Limitations
- Absence of a located public record does not prove absence of asbestos aboard - era inference stands on its own terms. Deck logs (SL44-documented, undigitized), builder work packages, and merchant-era refit records are unexplored leads. Does not establish or defeat any claim of exposure or legal eligibility.
- Atlas source
- true
- Evidence ID
- ev-uss-yms-163-10