Evidence
10 evidence entries recorded; each entry has a stable permalink (#ev-1 … #ev-10).
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[1]research packet 1039-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-216-yms216-pkt-1039-packet-md
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[2]NavSource Online: Mine Warfare Vessel Photo Archive, YMS-216 (page 11/19216) - construction, transfer, Soviet service, specifications, commanding officer [other_primary]
- Locator
- NavSource 11/19216.htm header block (dual-flag service line), chronology list, Specifications block, Commanding Officers table, 'no DANFS History' note
- Finding type
- vessel_history
- Finding
- Documented for this hull: YMS-1 Class Auxiliary Motor Minesweeper; laid down 16 June 1942 by 'J. N. Martinac' Shipbuilding Co., Tacoma, WA (a typo - the firm was J. M. Martinac Shipbuilding Corp.; see ev-05); launched 17 October 1942; completed 26 February 1943; transferred to the Soviet Union 19 July 1945 and reclassified T-596; assigned to the [Soviet] Pacific Fleet 1 August 1945; placed out of service 15 April 1955 and laid up; scrapped 7 October 1955. Specifications: displacement 270 t.; length 136'; beam 24' 6"; draft 8'; speed 15 kts.; complement 32; armament one 3"/50 dual-purpose gun mount, two 20mm mounts, two depth charge projectors; propulsion two 880bhp General Motors 8-268A diesel engines, Snow and Knobstedt single reduction gear, two shafts. Call sign NCCV (Nan-Charlie-Charlie-Victor). Commanding officer 1945: LTJG J. M. Fitzgerald, USNR. Page states outright: 'There is no DANFS History currently available for YMS-216.' Page notes she 'served the Navies of the United States and the Soviet Union'; no image of YMS-216 is archived.
- Verification
- verified
- Role
- context
- Documentation level
- ship_specific
- Accessed
- 2026-10-04
- Study period
- 1942-1955
- Population
- Martinac construction trades (1942-43); U.S. Navy crew, complement 32 (1943-45); Soviet crew (1945-55)
- Limitations
- NavSource is a volunteer secondary compilation, not a primary registry - milestone dates generally track official records and here agree with the NHHC transfer appendix and NARA log coverage, but the 'J. N. Martinac' builder attribution is a documented slip. Contains no asbestos content. The Soviet-era milestones (1 Aug 1945; 15 Apr 1955; 7 Oct 1955) rest on secondary compilation only - Soviet records were not consulted.
- Atlas source
- true
- Evidence ID
- ev-uss-yms-216-yms216-01
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[3]National Archives Special List 44, 'List of Logbooks of U.S. Navy Ships, Stations, and Miscellaneous Units, 1801-1947' (NARA, 1978), 'Ships with Symbol and Number Designations' section, p. 516 - YMS-216 logbook entry (Allen County Public Library Genealogy Center scan) [other_primary]
- Locator
- Special List 44 'Ships with Symbol and Number Designations', YMS subsection, printed page 516; ACPL scan image 548/594; entry line 'YMS-216 | Feb. 27, 1943-July 18, 1945 | 11'
- Finding type
- historical_record
- Finding
- NARA holds U.S. Navy deck logs for YMS-216 spanning 'Feb. 27, 1943-July 18, 1945' in 11 logbooks. The coverage begins the day after her recorded completion (26 February 1943) and ends the day before her documented Soviet transfer (19 July 1945) - the U.S. Navy log record closes exactly at the Project Hula transfer.
- Verification
- verified
- Role
- archival_lead
- Documentation level
- ship_specific
- Accessed
- 2026-10-04
- Study period
- 1943-02-27 to 1945-07-18
- Population
- U.S. Navy crew recorded in the logs (officers, assignments, transfers per deck-log conventions), 1943-45
- Limitations
- Log-coverage metadata only: establishes that 11 logbooks exist at NARA for this hull, not their content - deck logs were not digitized or read (digitization status unverified; catalog.archives.gov is JS-rendered and could not be queried this session). Coverage dates are logbook custody records, not commissioning/decommissioning certificates. Page cited is printed page 516 of the 1978 NARA publication (scan display page 548 of the ACPL image set).
- Atlas source
- true
- Evidence ID
- ev-uss-yms-216-yms216-02
-
[4]NHHC / Navy Department Library, 'United States Pacific Fleet Organization, 1 May 1945' - MINECRAFT, PACIFIC FLEET roster [other_primary]
- Locator
- MINECRAFT, PACIFIC FLEET section; vessel-type roster, YMS block, line 'YMS 216 | Lt. (jg) J. M. Fitzgerald (USNR)'
- Finding type
- vessel_history
- Finding
- As of 1 May 1945 YMS-216 was carried on the U.S. Pacific Fleet minecraft organization under Commander Minecraft, Pacific Fleet (R. Adm. A. Sharp): the roster line reads 'YMS 216 - Lt. (jg) J. M. Fitzgerald (USNR)' - the same commanding officer NavSource lists for 1945. This is a U.S. Pacific Fleet organizational listing roughly ten weeks before the Cold Bay transfer, corroborating that she remained an active U.S. Navy minecraft unit into mid-1945.
- Verification
- verified
- Role
- context
- Documentation level
- ship_specific
- Accessed
- 2026-10-04
- Study period
- 1945-05-01
- Population
- U.S. Navy crew (complement ~32), Lt. (jg) J. M. Fitzgerald commanding, as of 1 May 1945
- Limitations
- Organizational roster only: establishes fleet assignment and commanding officer as of 1 May 1945, not operating area, division attachment (the division column is blank for her line), or any material content. Page verified via Firecrawl extraction; plain curl returns 404 on this NHHC URL (UA-dependent fetch).
- Atlas source
- true
- Evidence ID
- ev-uss-yms-216-yms216-03
-
[5]Richard A. Russell, 'Project Hula: Secret Soviet-American Cooperation in the War Against Japan' (Naval Historical Center, Washington DC, 1997) - program narrative and Appendix, 'U.S. Navy Combatant Ships Transferred ... May-September 1945' (generalstaff.org transcription of the NHHC publication) [other_primary]
- Locator
- generalstaff.org Project HULA transcription, Appendix table (YMS block, line 'YMS 216 | T-596 | 19 Jul. | 1955-stricken'); program narrative (180-vessel plan incl. 36 YMS; Cold Bay transfer base)
- Finding type
- vessel_history
- Finding
- The NHHC-published official history of Project Hula lists this hull in its transfer appendix: 'YMS 216 | T-596 | 19 Jul. | 1955-stricken' - confirming the Soviet designation T-596, transfer date 19 July 1945, and 1955 stricken disposition. Program context from the same source: the Navy planned to transfer 180 vessels including 36 wooden-hulled motor minesweepers (YMS), with crew training and transfer at Cold Bay, Alaska, spring-summer 1945; transfers ran May-September 1945 and the program delivered 149 ships. YMS-216 transferred in the 19 July group alongside eleven other YMS (38, 42, 75, 139, 178, 184, 237, 241, 272, 273, 295) and six Admirable-class AMs (136, 137, 148, 149, 150, 151).
- Verification
- verified
- Role
- context
- Documentation level
- ship_specific
- Accessed
- 2026-10-04
- Study period
- 1945-07-19 (transfer); 1945-1955 (Soviet disposition)
- Population
- U.S. Navy crew at transfer (training cadre had departed); Soviet relief crew trained at Cold Bay; Soviet Pacific Fleet crew 1945-55
- Limitations
- The appendix is the authoritative U.S.-side transfer roster but its 'Disposition' column gives year-level resolution only ('1955-stricken'); NavSource supplies the finer Soviet-side dates (out of service 15 Apr 1955; scrapped 7 Oct 1955) from secondary compilation. The generalstaff.org page is a transcription of the NHHC publication - the NHHC-hosted copy was not locatable at a stable URL this session (404 on candidate URLs); content verified via Firecrawl extraction. Contains no asbestos content.
- Atlas source
- true
- Evidence ID
- ev-uss-yms-216-yms216-04
-
[6]ShipbuildingHistory (Tim Colton compilation), J. M. Martinac Shipbuilding yard page and U.S. Navy YMS build table (shipbuildinghistory.njscuba.net/us-navy-small/ym/) [other_primary]
- Locator
- shipbuildinghistory.com/shipyards/small/martinac.htm (yard header + YMS-216 table row); shipbuildinghistory.njscuba.net/us-navy-small/ym/ (YMS-216 row, class summary of 561 boats / 35 yards / Mk II single-stack group)
- Finding type
- historical_record
- Finding
- CORRECTION + corroboration: ShipbuildingHistory's YMS table lists 'YMS-216 | Martinac Shipbuilding | Tacoma WA | 136 | 320 | 26 Feb 1943 | to the USSR 1945' - corroborating builder, size, completion date, and Soviet transfer year. The Martinac yard page identifies the firm correctly as 'J. M. Martinac Shipbuilding Corp.' founded by Joseph M. Martinac in 1924 on the Thea Foss Waterway, Tacoma - correcting NavSource's 'J. N. Martinac' slip. CONFLICTING DATA: the same yard page prints YMS-216 'To USSR 1945 as T-587, scrapped 1956' - a designation that does not appear anywhere in the NHHC transfer appendix (the YMS T-block runs T-521-527 and T-588-611) and conflicts with both NHHC (T-596, 1955-stricken) and NavSource (T-596, scrapped 7 Oct 1955). NHHC designation carried.
- Verification
- partial
- Role
- correction
- Documentation level
- ship_specific
- Accessed
- 2026-10-04
- Study period
- 1942-1945 (build data); 1945-1956 (disputed disposition)
- Population
- Martinac construction trades, Tacoma (1942-43)
- Limitations
- Secondary compilation used for corroboration and error-flagging only. Its builder attribution is correct (matches the corporate name) but its Soviet designation for this hull is unsupported by the NHHC roster - carried as a flagged discrepancy, not as fact. Yard-page build-table detail '278d' (tons, likely full-load displacement variant) left uncarried.
- Atlas source
- true
- Evidence ID
- ev-uss-yms-216-yms216-05
-
[7]Era inference built on: NavSource specifications (2 x 880bhp GM 8-268A diesels, single reduction gear, 2 shafts; wooden YMS-1 hull); ShipbuildingHistory class summary (wooden-hulled, 136 ft); USNI 'Saga of a YMS' machinery description for a sister boat (see ev-08); GAO HRD-80-2 (see ev-07) [other_primary]
- Locator
- NavSource specifications block; ShipbuildingHistory YMS class summary; USNI Proceedings article machinery paragraph; GAO product page HRD-80-2
- Finding type
- asbestos_application
- Finding
- A wooden-hulled 270-ton motor minesweeper built 1942-43 sits inside the Navy's documented asbestos-use era. YMS-216 is one of 561 wooden-hulled minesweepers of essentially the same 136-foot design turned out by 35 boatyards between spring 1942 and spring 1945 (ShipbuildingHistory class summary); she falls in the single-stack Mk II group (YMS-135 through YMS-445). Era-standard small-craft applications aboard a craft of this type were limited to exhaust lagging on the diesel mains and generator sets, gaskets and valve packing in machinery and piping, and electrical insulation - in a small, tightly packed wooden hull volume. As a diesel-driven craft she carried no steam plant: the boiler/turbine lagging pathway of steam vessels does not apply, and her candidate asbestos inventory is materially smaller than a steel steam ship of the era.
- Verification
- inferred
- Role
- supporting
- Documentation level
- class_or_era
- Accessed
- 2026-10-04
- Study period
- 1942-1955
- Population
- Martinac construction trades (1942-43); U.S. Navy crew, complement 32 (1943-45); Soviet crew (1945-55); Soviet scrappers (1955)
- Limitations
- Class/era inference only - no hull-specific insulation survey, material list, or work package located for YMS-216. Names era-standard applications, not confirmed installed materials. No quantity, no manufacturer attribution for this hull. The wooden-hull/diesel combination narrows the plausible inventory relative to steam-powered steel vessels.
- Atlas source
- true
- Evidence ID
- ev-uss-yms-216-yms216-06
-
[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 construction (1942-43) and entire U.S. service era (1943-45).
- Verification
- verified
- Role
- context
- Documentation level
- class_or_era
- Accessed
- 2026-10-04
- Study period
- 1979 (report); covers use era through early 1970s
- Population
- Navy shipyard workers and shipboard crews; 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, consistent with prior batches' use of this source.
- Atlas source
- true
- Evidence ID
- ev-uss-yms-216-yms216-07
-
[9]U.S. Naval Institute Proceedings, 'Saga of a YMS' (January 1948, Vol. 74/1/539) - crewman's account of sister boat YMS-238 [other_primary]
- Locator
- USNI Proceedings Jan 1948 'Saga of a YMS', construction/machinery paragraphs and author bio block (Hughes, MoMM1c, YMS-238)
- Finding type
- historical_record
- Finding
- A primary-era description of the YMS type's construction and machinery arrangement by a Motor Machinist's Mate who served 23 months aboard sister boat YMS-238: 'a wooden one' (wooden hull), about 135 feet long with a 24-foot beam; 'two General Motors Diesels for main propulsion which were electro-pneumatically controlled from the bridge'; a separate diesel direct-connected to a generator for magnetic minesweeping; and 'two Hercules 30-KW Diesels' furnishing auxiliary power. Documents the all-diesel machinery arrangement of the class and the small scale of the engineering spaces.
- Verification
- verified
- Role
- context
- Documentation level
- class_or_era
- Accessed
- 2026-10-04
- Study period
- 1942-1945 (account); 1948 (publication)
- Population
- YMS-class crews generally (1942-45 era)
- Limitations
- Class-level color from a sister boat (YMS-238), not documentation of this hull - arrangements of the 561 boats varied in detail between builders. No asbestos content: it grounds the 'no steam plant' framing for the class only. Page verified via Firecrawl extraction; usni.org returns 403 to plain curl.
- Atlas source
- true
- Evidence ID
- ev-uss-yms-216-yms216-08
-
[10]Batch-8862 search ledger (this record): NavSource; NARA Special List 44 (ACPL scan); NHHC Pacific Fleet roster; NHHC Project Hula appendix (generalstaff.org transcription); ShipbuildingHistory; USNI Proceedings; GAO product page; CourtListener API v4; secondary web sweep [other_primary]
- Locator
- search_ledger rows sl-uss-yms-216-yms216-01 through -14
- Finding type
- historical_record
- Finding
- No qualifying ship-specific asbestos record located: no asbestos survey, abatement contract, hazmat disclosure, or verified litigation naming YMS-216 was found in the public sources searched. No DANFS entry exists for this hull (stated on the NavSource page; only NHHC hit is the fleet-roster line). CourtListener: 'USS YMS-216' opinion query returned 2 Texas appellate name-collision hits; 'USS YMS-216' docket query returned 857 loose-match dockets, returned page all name collisions (patent/securities/ERISA noise, no ship content); 'YMS-216' opinion query returned 58 loose-match opinions, returned page all name collisions. 'YMS-216' docket query pending against fleet pace limiter at write time - see search_ledger. Secondary web sweeps surfaced only generic law-firm boilerplate, none naming this hull - 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. The 11 NARA logbooks are unread (undigitized/JS-blocked catalog); Soviet-era records (1945-55) were outside U.S. archives and not searched; CourtListener docket-side results pending - a completed negative is narrower than the total record space. Does not establish or defeat any claim of exposure or legal eligibility.
- Atlas source
- true
- Evidence ID
- ev-uss-yms-216-yms216-09