Evidence
12 evidence entries recorded; each entry has a stable permalink (#ev-1 … #ev-12).
-
[1]research packet 1036-packet.md [other_primary]
- Finding type
- vessel_history
- Finding
- Identity packet verdict: VERIFIED (thin sourcing
- Verification
- verified
- Role
- supporting
- Documentation level
- ship_specific
- Limitations
- qualifier: VERIFIED (thin sourcing
- Evidence ID
- uss-yms-176-yms176-pkt-1036-packet-md
-
[2]NavSource Online: Mine Warfare Vessel Photo Archive, YMS-176 - construction timeline, specifications, commanding officer, call sign, disposal (verified live 2026-10-04); build/disposal corroborated by shipbuilding-history Henry C. Grebe & Company yard list [other_primary]
- Locator
- NavSource 11/19176.htm header block, specifications block, commanding-officer list
- Finding type
- vessel_history
- Finding
- Documented for this hull: laid down 4 July 1942 as Contract No. 510 by Henry C. Grebe and Co., Chicago, IL; launched 23 January 1943; starboard engine overheated during sea trials 3 July 1943, entered drydock for engine and shaft repairs; completed 10 July 1943; accepted 23 July 1943; delivered and commissioned 24 July 1943; completed shakedown and sound training 15 September 1943 and reported for duty with Commander Gulf Sea Frontier; assigned to the Pacific Fleet 9 May 1944; arrived San Diego, CA 28 June 1944; grounded in October 1945 at Buckner Bay, Okinawa during Typhoon Louise; reported to Commander Western Sea Frontier 18 February 1946; assigned 2 April 1946 to Commandant 11th Naval District, San Diego for disposal; decommissioned 6 May 1946 at San Diego; made available for disposal 5 September 1946; struck from the Naval Register 25 September 1946; transferred to the War Shipping Administration 14 February 1947 and scrapped. Call sign Nan-Yoke-Roger-Oboe. Specifications: 270 t.; length 136'; beam 24'6"; draft 8'; speed 13 kts.; complement 34; one 3"/50 dual-purpose mount, two 20mm mounts, two depth-charge projectors; two 880shp General Motors 8-268A diesel engines, Snow and Knobstedt single reduction gear, two shafts. Commanding officer listed: LT L. H. Countryman, USNR (1945). Page states no DANFS history exists for YMS-176.
- Verification
- verified
- Role
- context
- Documentation level
- ship_specific
- Accessed
- 2026-10-04
- Study period
- 1942-1947
- Population
- Grebe yard construction trades (1942-43); crew (1943-46)
- Limitations
- NavSource is a volunteer secondary compilation, not a primary registry - milestone dates generally track Navy records and the build/disposal milestones are corroborated by the shipbuilding-history Grebe yard list (delivered 10 Jul 1943, scrapped 1947). Contains no asbestos content. The October 1945 grounding is asserted here and in the crew memoir but the hull does not appear in the published CinCPac typhoon-damage table (see ev-06).
- Atlas source
- true
- Evidence ID
- ev-uss-yms-176-yms176-01
-
[3]NARA file unit 'YMS-176, 7/24/43-4/30/46', NAID 193048179, Container Roll 9019 - RG 24 Records of the Bureau of Naval Personnel, series Muster Rolls of U.S. Navy Ships, Stations, and Other Naval Activities (265 digitized images, Ancestry partnership scan) [other_primary]
- Locator
- NARA catalog file unit NAID 193048179 (https://catalog.archives.gov/id/193048179)
- Finding type
- historical_record
- Finding
- The National Archives catalogs a digitized RG 24 muster-roll file unit for this hull spanning 24 July 1943 - 30 April 1946 (265 images online) - Navy service is documented from commissioning day through postwar inactivation-era muster rolls.
- Verification
- verified
- Role
- context
- Documentation level
- ship_specific
- Accessed
- 2026-10-04
- Study period
- 1943-07-24 to 1946-04-30
- Population
- YMS-176 crew (1943-46)
- Limitations
- Establishes wartime Navy service and personnel documentation only; muster rolls contain no asbestos or material content. Individual roll pages were not transcribed or read - actual complements by date are verifiable there but not yet extracted.
- Atlas source
- true
- Evidence ID
- ev-uss-yms-176-yms176-02
-
[4]NARA Special List #44, 'List of Logbooks of U.S. Navy Ships, Stations, and Miscellaneous Units, 1801-1947' (ship-number edition, PDF page 116) - deck-log coverage for YMS-176 [other_primary]
- Locator
- sl-44-ship-number.pdf, PDF page 116 (YMS-176 row)
- Finding type
- historical_record
- Finding
- Special List 44 records U.S. Navy deck logs for YMS-176 covering 24 July 1943 - 30 June 1945 (PDF page 116, entry read directly: 'YMS-176 7/24/1943 6/30/1945'). The coverage window opens on her documented commissioning date and runs through the Okinawa campaign and the eve of the postwar return. The logs are NARA holdings in the Navy logbooks series; they are not part of the digitized muster-roll set.
- Verification
- verified
- Role
- archival_lead
- Documentation level
- ship_specific
- Accessed
- 2026-10-04
- Study period
- 1943-07-24 to 1945-06-30
- Population
- YMS-176 crew (1943-45)
- Limitations
- Archival lead only: SL44 is an item list of logbook holdings - the deck logs themselves are undigitized and were not read; they are the primary source by which day-by-day operations (Kerama Retto, Lingayen, Formosa-area sweep, typhoon) could be verified. Deck logs contain no asbestos or material content in any case. Post-June-1945 coverage (Jul 1945 - Apr 1946 decommissioning era) is not in the SL44 entry - whether later logs exist was not determined.
- Atlas source
- true
- Evidence ID
- ev-uss-yms-176-yms176-03
-
[5]NARA file unit 'USS YMS-176 - Form reps of AA acts off the Southern Coast of Ie Shima, Ryukyu Is, 4/6/45', NAID 139995789 - RG 38 Records of the Office of the Chief of Naval Operations, series World War II War Diaries, Other Operational Records and Histories (micro serial 120649, Roll A1584, 8 digitized images, Fold3 scan) [other_primary]
- Locator
- NARA catalog file unit NAID 139995789; full-text search 'YMS-176' file units listed in finding_value
- Finding type
- historical_record
- Finding
- A ship-titled operational record exists for this hull: NARA catalogs 'USS YMS-176 - Form reps of AA acts off the Southern Coast of Ie Shima, Ryukyu Is, 4/6/45' - an 8-page anti-aircraft action report off southern Ie Shima dated 6 April 1945, placing this hull in the Okinawa campaign's antiaircraft fight six days after the landings. The full-text catalog index also associates YMS-176 with NOB Key West war diaries September 1943 - May 1944 (NAIDs 78187886, 135983866, 136047582, 78325676, 78332813, 78387958, 78408459, 78450722 - consistent with her documented Commander Gulf Sea Frontier assignment) and with Leyte-operation reporting (COMTASK-Group 79.4 landing-ops report 10/20-24/44, NAID 633398697; COMDESRON 54 war diary and assault report 10/44, NAIDs 78685316, 78689137).
- Verification
- partial
- Role
- archival_lead
- Documentation level
- ship_specific
- Accessed
- 2026-10-04
- Study period
- 1943-1945
- Population
- YMS-176 crew during Key West/Gulf Sea Frontier assignment (1943-44) and Leyte/Okinawa operations (1944-45)
- Limitations
- Archival lead only: the action report is digitized but its 8 pages were not read this session - contents beyond the catalog title (targets engaged, ammunition expended, damage claims) are unverified. The war-diary associations rest on the catalog's OCR full-text index; the individual pages naming YMS-176 were not read, so each mention's context (assignment, transit, task-organization listing) is unverified. No asbestos content.
- Atlas source
- true
- Evidence ID
- ev-uss-yms-176-yms176-04
-
[6]NHHC, 'United States Pacific Fleet Organization, 1 May 1945' (online reading room transcription of the official fleet organization) - YMS-176 listed with commanding officer [nhhc_danfs]
- Locator
- NHHC Pacific Fleet Organization page, Mine Division Sixty table (YMS rows)
- Finding type
- historical_record
- Finding
- An official Navy document places this hull in the Pacific Fleet's minecraft order of battle on 1 May 1945: 'YMS 176' is listed in the Mine Division Sixty table (ComMinDiv 60, Comdr. M. D. Matthews) with commanding officer 'Lt. L. H. Countrymen (USNR)' - corroborating the NavSource commanding-officer entry and her Pacific Fleet assignment during the Okinawa campaign.
- Verification
- verified
- Role
- context
- Documentation level
- ship_specific
- Accessed
- 2026-10-04
- Study period
- 1945-05-01
- Population
- YMS-176 crew under Lt. L. H. Countryman/Countrymen (May 1945)
- Limitations
- Fleet-listing document only: establishes hull presence and commanding officer as of 1 May 1945, not day-by-day operations - the Okinawa detail (Kerama Retto sweep, Ie Shima AA actions) comes from the action-report lead (ev-04) and the crew memoir (ev-07). Spelling variant: NHHC prints 'Countrymen', NavSource 'Countryman' (see gaps). No asbestos content.
- Atlas source
- true
- Evidence ID
- ev-uss-yms-176-yms176-05
-
[7]NHHC, 'Pacific Typhoon October 1945 - Okinawa' (extract from the Commander in Chief, Pacific Fleet and Pacific Ocean Areas report on the Surrender and Occupation of Japan) - Typhoon Louise damage table [nhhc_danfs]
- Locator
- NHHC Pacific Typhoon October 1945 page, vessel damage table (YMS rows)
- Finding type
- historical_record
- Finding
- The official CinCPac report on the 9 October 1945 storm at Okinawa documents the event that damaged this hull: its damage table lists 17 YMS casualties - sunk (YMS 383, YMS 384), grounded beyond economical salvage (YMS 454, YMS 424), grounded with abandonment (YMS 146, YMS 151), grounded (YMS 148, YMS 348, YMS 590), refloated (YMS 90, YMS 99, YMS 292, YMS 308, YMS 442, two entries YMS 193), and damaged (YMS 86, YMS 381). YMS-176 does NOT appear in the table - consistent with a vessel that grounded but was recovered without reporting-level damage: NavSource and the crew memoir both record her grounding (with drive-shaft damage) and her subsequent return to California under her own power.
- Verification
- verified
- Role
- context
- Documentation level
- ship_specific
- Accessed
- 2026-10-04
- Study period
- 1945-10-09
- Population
- Okinawa-area minecraft crews, October 1945
- Limitations
- Documents the storm event and official casualty accounting, not this hull's individual record: YMS-176's grounding itself is established by the NavSource timeline and the Noonan memoir, and its absence from the damage table is a nuance (minor damage or incomplete reporting), not a contradiction resolved. The memoir's 'four of seven YMS lost' recollection is not directly reconcilable with the official table's specific hull list. No asbestos content.
- Atlas source
- true
- Evidence ID
- ev-uss-yms-176-yms176-06
-
[8]'YMS-176 Okinawa Campaign Recollections' by Robert J. Noonan, F1c, crew member (August 1994 memoir hosted on the NavSource YMS-176 page) [other_primary]
- Locator
- NavSource 11/19176.htm, 'YMS-176 Okinawa Campaign Recollections' memoir text
- Finding type
- historical_record
- Finding
- A named crew member's first-person memoir describes this hull's wartime service: underway late March 1945 toward Okinawa; tasked with close-inshore sweeping at Kerama Retto to clear the invasion anchorage days before the landing force arrived; battle station as sight setter on the 3-inch gun engaging shore targets including a 'pill box'; crew of 30 enlisted and 4 officers under 'Captain Countryman'; escorted cargo vessels; ran into the October 1945 typhoon (the fourth the crew experienced), recorded a 61-degree roll against a 59-degree design limit, took 12 hours to reach the leeward anchorage at Unten-Ko where the ship grounded and a drive shaft was damaged; joined the search for survivors of four lost sister YMS; visited Sasebo, Japan in November 1945; recalled participation in 'the invasions of Leyte Gulf, Lingayen Gulf, Okinawa, a major minesweeping operation near Taiwan, and four typhoons'; returned toward the States after Christmas 1945 via Guam and Pearl Harbor, losing one main engine a day out of Long Beach and the second coming alongside. A photo collage from Noonan's collection accompanies the page.
- Verification
- partial
- Role
- context
- Documentation level
- ship_specific
- Accessed
- 2026-10-04
- Study period
- 1944-1946 (recalled 1994)
- Population
- F1c Robert J. Noonan; YMS-176 crew (1944-46); LT L. H. Countryman USNR
- Limitations
- First-person recollection written ~49 years after the events (August 1994): core events (Kerama Retto sweep, typhoon grounding, shaft damage, Sasebo visit, California return) are consistent with the documented timeline, but specific figures ('four of seven YMS lost', '140 mph wind', '1,500 sailors lost') are recollection, not verified record. The campaign list (Leyte, Lingayen, Okinawa, Taiwan-area sweep) is memoir testimony. NOT an exposure record - no asbestos or material content is mentioned.
- Atlas source
- true
- Evidence ID
- ev-uss-yms-176-yms176-07
-
[9]Era inference built on: NavSource specifications (2 x GM 8-268A diesels, reduction gear, 2 shafts); YMS-1 class documented as wooden-hulled auxiliary motor minesweepers built to a common BuShips-type design across 35 yacht yards (secondary literature); GAO HRD-80-2 era finding (ev-10); NARA asbestos research guide archival pathway (ev-09) [other_primary]
- Locator
- NavSource specifications block; GAO HRD-80-2 product page; NARA asbestos guided-topic page
- Finding type
- asbestos_application
- Finding
- A diesel-driven wooden minesweeper completed in 1943 sits inside the Navy's documented asbestos-use era; era-standard applications aboard a diesel yard craft of this period were engine exhaust and muffler lagging, compressed-asbestos sheet gaskets, valve and machinery packing, electrical insulation, brake linings, and insulation board in machinery and accommodation spaces. As a diesel vessel she carried no steam plant - the boiler/turbine lagging pathway of steam vessels does not apply; the wooden hull reduces but does not eliminate the era application set (machinery, exhaust, joiner/insulation, electrical).
- Verification
- inferred
- Role
- supporting
- Documentation level
- class_or_era
- Accessed
- 2026-10-04
- Study period
- 1942-1947
- Population
- Grebe yard construction trades (1942-43); crew (1943-46); any yard/base trades during availabilities; unknown disposal-era handlers (1947)
- Limitations
- Class/era inference only - no hull-specific insulation survey, material list, work package, or plan was located for YMS-176. Names era-standard applications, not confirmed installed materials. No quantity. Product names are normalized era terms; no manufacturer attribution for this hull.
- Atlas source
- true
- Evidence ID
- ev-uss-yms-176-yms176-08
-
[10]National Archives, 'Researching Asbestos aboard US Naval Vessel up through 1961' - official research guide to the RG 19 Bureau of Ships records documenting asbestos in U.S. Navy materiel 1941-1961 [other_primary]
- Locator
- archives.gov guided-topic page; RG 19 entries A1 1266-A..P, UD 1001-1015, UD 1027 (S-18), PI-133 1273; RG 143 A1 90, A1 8 series
- Finding type
- regulatory
- Finding
- NARA's official guide states 'the use of asbestos in U.S. Navy materiel from 1941-1961 is a frequently requested topic' and documents the archival pathway for hull-level determination: RG 19 Bureau of Ships general/confidential/secret correspondence filed by hull designation (this hull: 'YMS176'; class: 'YMS1 Class'; type correspondence as last resort), Ship/General Information Books covering propulsion, auxiliary machinery, piping, ventilation, heating and air-conditioning systems, shipbuilding-yard QM correspondence files, specification files (RG 19 S-18/S-19 series; RG 143 specification indexes), and cartographic engineering drawings (19-Hull, 19-Micro) - i.e., the records by which this hull's material content could be proven exist in undigitized archival series.
- Verification
- verified
- Role
- archival_lead
- Documentation level
- context_only
- Accessed
- 2026-10-04
- Study period
- 1941-1961 (guide scope)
- Population
- Navy construction/maintenance trades 1941-1961 (research-scope population)
- Limitations
- Research-pathway documentation, not a hull record: the guide confirms that asbestos content is an archival research question answerable only via undigitized RG 19/RG 143 records - none of those series were consulted for this hull. Does not establish or negate materials aboard this hull.
- Atlas source
- true
- Evidence ID
- ev-uss-yms-176-yms176-09
-
[11]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 (1943-47).
- 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. Full text not retrieved (gao.gov blocks automated fetch, HTTP 403, confirmed 2026-10-04) - content via product-page description.
- Atlas source
- true
- Evidence ID
- ev-uss-yms-176-yms176-10
-
[12]Batch-8838 search ledger (this record): NavSource; NARA catalog (muster-roll file unit + SL44 deck-log listing + RG 38 action-report file unit + war-diary full-text associations); NHHC Pacific Fleet organization and Typhoon Louise damage table; crew memoir (NavSource); shipbuilding-history Grebe yard list; NARA asbestos research guide; GAO product page (blocked); NHHC/DANFS (no entry); secondary web litigation sweep; CourtListener via cl-auth-search.py helper [other_primary]
- Locator
- search_ledger rows sl-uss-yms-176-yms176-01 through -13
- Finding type
- historical_record
- Finding
- No qualifying ship-specific asbestos record located: no asbestos survey, abatement contract, hazmat disclosure, or docketed case naming YMS-176 was found in the public sources searched (see search_ledger). The hull's wooden construction and diesel plant bound the plausible era application set to machinery/exhaust lagging, gaskets, packing, electrical insulation, and joiner insulation - no boiler/turbine lagging pathway applies. A social-media anecdote surfaced in the secondary sweep (a purported veteran's Facebook recollection mentioning asbestos shingles and removing asbestos from pipes/ceilings aboard 'YMS-176') is excluded by source policy - unverifiable, non-authoritative, and unresolvable against the wooden-hulled YMS-1 design; it is logged here as a surfaced lead 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 - the NARA guide documents undigitized RG 19 series where hull-level material records could exist, and the deck logs/muster rolls do not address material content. Does not establish or defeat any claim of exposure or legal eligibility. CourtListener status per search_ledger at research time.
- Atlas source
- true
- Evidence ID
- ev-uss-yms-176-yms176-11