Evidence
11 evidence entries recorded; each entry has a stable permalink (#ev-1 … #ev-11).
-
[1]research packet 1037-packet.md [other_primary]
- Finding type
- vessel_history
- Finding
- Identity packet verdict: VERIFIED
- Verification
- verified
- Role
- supporting
- Documentation level
- ship_specific
- Evidence ID
- uss-yms-19-yms19-pkt-1037-packet-md
-
[2]NavSource Online: Mine Warfare Vessel Photo Archive, YMS-19 (11/19019) - construction timeline, loss, spec block, photo captions [other_primary]
- Locator
- NavSource 11/19019.htm header block, specifications block, and photo captions
- Finding type
- vessel_history
- Finding
- Documented for this hull: 'YMS-1 Class Auxiliary Motor Minesweeper: Laid down 27 June 1941 by the Herreshoff Manufacturing Co., Bristol, RI; Launched 27 December 1941; Completed 20 June 1942; Sunk by a mine 24 September 1944 at 06 deg 53' N., 134 deg 10' E. in Palau Islands area, Caroline Islands; Struck from the Navy Register 11 December 1944.' Specifications: Displacement 270 t.; Length 136'; Beam 24' 6"; Draft 8'; Speed 15 kts; Complement 32; Armament one single 3"/50 gun mount, two 20mm, two dcp; Propulsion two 880bhp General Motors 8-268A diesel engines, Snow and Knobstedt single reduction gear, two shafts. Call sign Nan-Able-Zebra-How. Page states 'There is no DANFS history available for YMS-19.' Photo captions: launching 27 December 1941; acceptance trials 7 June 1942 (photo by T. P. Brightman, credited to the Herreshoff Marine Museum); 17 June 1942; and the ship at a Naval Base in Puerto Rico c. late 1943 or early 1944 (collection of Matthew Lombardi, PO 2/c, USN, Ret.).
- Verification
- verified
- Role
- context
- Documentation level
- ship_specific
- Accessed
- 2026-10-04
- Study period
- 1941-1944
- Population
- Herreshoff construction trades (1941-42); crew (1942-44)
- Limitations
- NavSource is a volunteer secondary compilation, not a primary registry; milestone dates track NVR/DANFS practice but commissioning is listed as 'date unknown.' Contains no asbestos content. The Puerto Rico caption dates are approximate ('c. late 1943 or early 1944').
- Atlas source
- true
- Evidence ID
- ev-uss-yms-19-yms19-01
-
[3]Naval History and Heritage Command, 'Casualties: Navy and Coast Guard Ships' (ship-loss list), Motor Mine sweepers (YMS) section [nhhc_danfs]
- Locator
- NHHC casualties page, 'Motor Mine sweepers (YMS)' subsection
- Finding type
- vessel_history
- Finding
- NHHC's official ship-casualties list records for this hull: 'USS YMS-19 sunk by a mine off Palau, Caroline Islands, 24 September 1944' - listed under 'Motor Mine sweepers (YMS)' alongside YMS-14, YMS-21, YMS-24, and YMS-30.
- Verification
- verified
- Role
- context
- Documentation level
- ship_specific
- Accessed
- 2026-10-04
- Study period
- 1944
- Population
- Crew aboard at loss (1944-09-24)
- Limitations
- Loss-list entry only: confirms date, agent (mine), and general location but gives no casualty figures, no tactical circumstances, and no material or hazmat content. No asbestos information.
- Atlas source
- true
- Evidence ID
- ev-uss-yms-19-yms19-02
-
[4]Robert J. Cressman, The Official Chronology of the U.S. Navy in World War II (Contemporary History Branch, Naval Historical Center, 1999), entry for 24 September 1944 (verbatim transcription via HyperWar/ibiblio) [other_primary]
- Locator
- USN-Chron-1944.html, '24 September, Sun.' Pacific entry
- Finding type
- historical_record
- Finding
- The NHHC official chronology records for 24 September 1944 (Pacific): 'Motor minesweeper YMS-19 is sunk by mine off southeast coast of Angaur, Palaus, 06 deg 53' N, 134 deg 10' E' - placing the loss within the Palau Islands operation of September 1944 (the Angaur assault had opened on 17 September). The entry does not state her task at the moment of loss; her duty off Angaur is documented only as a motor minesweeper sunk by a mine.
- Verification
- verified
- Role
- context
- Documentation level
- ship_specific
- Accessed
- 2026-10-04
- Study period
- 1944
- Population
- Crew aboard at loss (1944-09-24)
- Limitations
- One-line chronology entry: establishes date, cause, and position of loss, nothing more - no casualty figures, no unit assignment detail, no material content. Transcription of an official NHHC publication hosted on HyperWar (ibiblio), not the live NHHC page. No asbestos information.
- Atlas source
- true
- Evidence ID
- ev-uss-yms-19-yms19-03
-
[5]Herreshoff Catalogue Raisonné (Herreshoff Marine Museum-affiliated research database), HMCo #416p 'YMs 19' fact page - particulars from the HMCo Construction Record (scan linked: Rec089_P0401-0420), offset-booklet and drawing references in the Haffenreffer-Herreshoff Collection, MIT Museum [museum_official]
- Locator
- herreshoff.info Docs/P00416_YMs_19.htm - Particulars, Model 3017, Other Contemporary Text Sources (Bristol Phoenix), Other Modern Text Sources, Research Notes
- Finding type
- historical_record
- Finding
- The builder's own record set for this hull: HMCo hull #416p, type 'Power Yard Minesweeper,' designed by Nevins, launched 1941-12-27, construction wood, LOA 136' / LWL 130' / beam 24' 6" / draft 6' 4" / displacement 270 short tons, propellers 49 in. dia. x 48.5 in. pitch, 2 four-blade, built for U.S. Navy; construction-record note: '135' Minesweeper & Subchaser. Nevins Design. Govt Furnished Engines.' Final disposition per the record: 'Sunk by a mine 24 September 1944 at 06 deg N., 134 deg E. in Palau Islands area, Caroline Islands.' Herreshoff built exactly two YMS minesweepers: #415p YMS-18 and #416p YMS-19 (Model 3017). Bristol Phoenix, 30 December 1941, documents the 27 December 1941 launching sponsored by Mrs. H. T. Smith of Quincy, MA, wife of the Navy captain supervising naval construction in New England, and identifies her as the second 135-foot minesweeper built at Herreshoff's. A Bristol Phoenix item of 25 November 1941 documents wartime yard labor conditions (layoffs from shortages of Navy-supplied armor plate and tensile steel; 'two large crafts [YMs 19 and YMs 18] under construction' with orders for more).
- Verification
- verified
- Role
- context
- Documentation level
- ship_specific
- Accessed
- 2026-10-04
- Study period
- 1941-1944 (record coverage); page last revised 2026-02-21
- Population
- Herreshoff construction trades (1941-42)
- Limitations
- Museum-affiliated research compilation over the HMCo Construction Record - the underlying record is builder-primary but the page layers transcriptions and editor notes. The HCR propulsion field reads 'Gasoline, General Motors,' conflicting with NavSource's GM 8-268A diesel spec (see gaps); a van der Linde research note gives 'delivered 1942-09-24,' which conflicts with NavSource's 20 June 1942 completion (see gaps). No asbestos or materials-list content - the wood construction is documented fact, but nothing on the page speaks to insulation products.
- Atlas source
- true
- Evidence ID
- ev-uss-yms-19-yms19-04
-
[6]'Navy Lists 5 Ships as Pacific Losses,' New York Times, December 6, 1944, p. 13 (verbatim transcription in the Herreshoff Catalogue Raisonné) [reputable_press]
- Locator
- NYT 6 Dec 1944 p.13, transcribed at herreshoff.info Docs/P00416_YMs_19.htm, 'Other Contemporary Text Source(s)'
- Finding type
- historical_record
- Finding
- The Navy Department's 5 December 1944 loss announcement (reported NYT 6 December 1944): the YMS-19 'hit a Japanese mine and sank off Angaur Island in the Palaus,' one of five U.S. Central Pacific Force vessels announced lost, four by enemy action. Her commanding officer, Lieut. John Keys Mahaffey of Pittsburgh, described the sinking: 'It looked like an explosion in a lumber yard. The mine hit the stern and blew it off and the boat sank in two minutes. We got off two life rafts, but three men were killed outright. Five others and an officer were lost. I was lucky. All I got was some lacerations on the leg, so I was able to make it to one of the rafts.'
- Verification
- verified
- Role
- context
- Documentation level
- ship_specific
- Accessed
- 2026-10-04
- Study period
- 1944
- Population
- Crew aboard at loss - Lt. John Keys Mahaffey (CO) and ~31 shipmates (complement 32 per NavSource)
- Limitations
- Contemporary press announcement quoting the CO - casualty figures as announced in December 1944 (3 killed outright plus 5 men and an officer lost, per Mahaffey), not verified against Bureau of Naval Personnel casualty lists. Accessed via museum transcription; the NYT original sits behind the TimesMachine paywall. No asbestos content.
- Atlas source
- true
- Evidence ID
- ev-uss-yms-19-yms19-05
-
[7]National Archives and Records Administration, Special List No. 44 - List of Logbooks of U.S. Navy Ships, Stations, and Miscellaneous Units, 1801-1947 (ship-number sequence), p. 116 [other_primary]
- Locator
- sl-44-ship-number.pdf, p. 116 (YMS-19 line, extracted via pdftotext -layout); cross-checked against https://www.archives.gov/research/military/logbooks/navy-online
- Finding type
- historical_record
- Finding
- NARA's deck-log finding aid records logbook holdings for this hull: 'YMS-19 - 7/3/1942 to 9/30/1943' (PDF p. 116). NARA thus holds YMS-19 deck logs covering her completion and first ~15 months of service; the holdings end 30 September 1943, nearly a year before the ship was sunk, and YMS-19 does not appear in NARA's 'Navy Deck Logs Available in the National Archives Catalog' online list (that list carries only surviving, renamed ex-YMS hulls), so the paper logs are an undigitized in-person research lead.
- Verification
- verified
- Role
- archival_lead
- Documentation level
- ship_specific
- Accessed
- 2026-10-04
- Study period
- 1942-1943 (holdings); 1978 publication
- Population
- Crew, 1942-07-03 to 1943-09-30 (log coverage)
- Limitations
- Finding-aid entry only: documents that logs exist and their date span, not their contents - deck-log coverage is a holdings statement, not claimed commissioning/decommissioning dates. Logs after 30 September 1943 do not appear in Special List 44 for this hull (the ship sank with ~a year of service remaining; whether final-period logbooks survived or were archived is undocumented). No asbestos content.
- Atlas source
- true
- Evidence ID
- ev-uss-yms-19-yms19-06
-
[8]Era inference built on: NavSource YMS-19 spec block and YMS-1 class index (11/19idx.htm: class designed by Henry B. Nevins, Inc., City Island, NY; 561 built at 35 yacht yards; wood hull; GM 8-268A diesels); HMCo Construction Record via Herreshoff Catalogue Raisonné (wood construction, government-furnished engines); GAO HRD-80-2 (Navy asbestos-use era, see ev-08) [other_primary]
- Locator
- NavSource 11/19019.htm specifications + 11/19idx.htm class index; HCR #416p particulars; GAO HRD-80-2 product page
- Finding type
- asbestos_application
- Finding
- A wood-hulled, diesel-powered auxiliary motor minesweeper built in 1941-42 sits inside the Navy's documented asbestos-use era, but her material profile is materially thinner than a steam vessel's: era-standard applications aboard a small diesel combatant of this type and period were exhaust and muffler lagging, gaskets, valve and machinery packing, electrical insulation, brake linings on winch and windlass machinery, deck coverings, and possible thermal/fire insulation adjacent to machinery spaces. No steam plant exists aboard - the boiler/turbine lagging pathway does not apply. The wood hull is documented in the builder's construction record.
- Verification
- inferred
- Role
- supporting
- Documentation level
- class_or_era
- Accessed
- 2026-10-04
- Study period
- 1941-1944
- Population
- Herreshoff construction trades (1941-42); crew (1942-44)
- Limitations
- Class/era inference only - no hull-specific insulation survey, material list, work package, or logbook-derived materials record was located for YMS-19, and none is realistically expected for a hull sunk in action in 1944. Names era-standard applications for the type, not confirmed installed materials. No quantity, no manufacturer attribution.
- Atlas source
- true
- Evidence ID
- ev-uss-yms-19-yms19-07
-
[9]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 (1941-42) and service era (1942-44).
- 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 - standing defect since Batch 01); content via product-page description.
- Atlas source
- true
- Evidence ID
- ev-uss-yms-19-yms19-08
-
[10]Batch-8846 search ledger (this record): NARA Special List 44 ship-number PDF; NavSource hull page and YMS-1 class index; NHHC casualties list; Cressman Official Chronology (HyperWar transcription); Herreshoff Catalogue Raisonné; NYT loss announcement (transcription); NARA deck-logs-online list and catalog; NVR; CourtListener [other_primary]
- Locator
- search_ledger rows sl-uss-yms-19-yms19-01 through sl-uss-yms-19-yms19-13
- Finding type
- historical_record
- Finding
- No qualifying ship-specific asbestos record located: no asbestos survey, abatement contract, hazmat disclosure, or litigation naming USS YMS-19 was found in the public sources searched - and none is realistically extant for a hull sunk in action in 1944 (no postwar overhaul, museum, or scrapping pipeline exists to generate such records). All four CourtListener base queries ("YMS-19" and "USS YMS-19", opinion and docket) returned zero results - no opinions, dockets, or name collisions of any kind. Secondary web sweeps surfaced no qualifying case; the only 'asbestos aboard' material is law-firm marketing content asserting asbestos on YMS-class hulls without primary sourcing - excluded by source policy.
- 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 for a 1941-42 diesel combatant remains reasonable but unproven. Undigitized deck logs (7/3/1942-9/30/1943, NARA) and any surviving war-damage/loss report at NARA College Park are the open primary leads. Does not establish or defeat any claim of exposure or legal eligibility.
- Atlas source
- true
- Evidence ID
- ev-uss-yms-19-yms19-09
-
[11]Completion-date cross-check: NavSource 11/19018.htm (YMS-18: 'Completed 9 May 1942') vs NavSource 11/19019.htm (YMS-19: 'Completed 20 June 1942') vs usautoindustryworldwartwo.com Herreshoff page ('YMS-19 ... was completed on May 9, 1942') vs HCR research note ('delivered 1942-09-24') [other_primary]
- Locator
- NavSource 11/19018.htm and 11/19019.htm header blocks; usautoindustryworldwartwo.com/herreshoffmanufacturingcompany.htm; HCR P00416 research notes
- Finding type
- historical_record
- Finding
- CORRECTION: a circulating secondary source (usautoindustryworldwartwo.com, 'Herreshoff Manufacturing Company in World War Two') states 'YMS-19 was the second one and was completed on May 9, 1942' - but 9 May 1942 is the documented completion date of her sister YMS-18, the first of Herreshoff's two YMS hulls (NavSource 11/19018.htm). NavSource carries YMS-19's completion as 20 June 1942, consistent with NARA deck-log coverage beginning 3 July 1942; the Herreshoff Catalogue Raisonné separately notes 'delivered 1942-09-24' in a research note. The 9 May date is a sister-hull misattribution.
- Verification
- partial
- Role
- correction
- Documentation level
- ship_specific
- Accessed
- 2026-10-04
- Study period
- 1942
- Limitations
- Corrects a circulating date error, not a material claim. 'Completed' vs 'delivered' vs 'commissioned' may reflect distinct Navy acceptance milestones that secondary sources conflate; the 1942-09-24 'delivered' note is unresolved against the 20 June completion. No asbestos content.
- Atlas source
- true
- Evidence ID
- ev-uss-yms-19-yms19-10