Evidence
14 evidence entries recorded; each entry has a stable permalink (#ev-1 … #ev-14).
-
[1]research packet 1046-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-287-yms287-pkt-1046-packet-md
-
[2]NavSource Online: Mine Warfare Vessel Photo Archive, YMS-287 (11/19287) - timeline, specifications, commanding-officer table, call sign, hosted 1944 document image; explicit 'There is no DANFS History currently available for YMS-287' (verified live 2026-10-04) [other_primary]
- Locator
- NavSource 11/19287.htm header timeline, specifications block, commanding-officer table, image caption
- Finding type
- vessel_history
- Finding
- NavSource identifies this hull as YMS-287, a YMS-1-class auxiliary motor minesweeper that 'served the Navies of the United States, the Soviet Union and the People's Republic of China.' Timeline: laid down 16 July 1942 by Associated Shipbuilders, Seattle, WA; launched 27 October 1942; completed and delivered 15 March 1943; commissioned USS YMS-287 (date not printed); transferred to the Soviet Union 2 September 1945 and reclassified T-611; assigned to the Soviet Pacific Fleet 11 September 1945; transferred to the People's Republic of China 11 February 1955 and struck from the Soviet Union Navy list; fate unknown. Specifications: displacement 270 t., length 136', beam 24' 6", draft 8', speed 15 kts., complement 32; armament one 3"/50 dual-purpose mount, two 20mm mounts, two depth-charge projectors; propulsion two 800 bhp General Motors 8-268A diesel engines, Snow and Knobstedt single reduction gear, two shafts. Call sign Nan - George - Peter - Vice. Commanding officers listed: LTJG William G. Mallery, USNR (March 1944-1945) and LTJG R. J. Rantz, USNR (1945).
- Verification
- verified
- Role
- supporting
- Documentation level
- ship_specific
- Accessed
- 2026-10-04
- Study period
- 1942-1955
- Population
- Associated Shipbuilders construction trades (1942-43); U.S. Navy crew (1943-45); Soviet T-611 crew (1945-55); PRC crew (from 1955)
- Limitations
- NavSource is a volunteer secondary compilation and does not document asbestos content. The commissioning line prints no date; the 15 March 1943 date is labeled 'Completed and delivered.' The commanding-officer table is incomplete - the ship's own war diaries name Lt. George Hoppock (December 1943-January 1944 pages) and Lt.(jg) M. J. Donohue (mid/late-January 1944 pages) as approving commanding officers before Mallery (see ev-03). The '2 September 1945' transfer date conflicts with the official NHC appendix's '3 Sep.' (see ev-06).
- Atlas source
- true
- Evidence ID
- ev-uss-yms-287-yms287-01
-
[3]NHHC, 'United States Pacific Fleet Organization, 1 May 1945' (Navy Department Library online reading room transcription) [nhhc_danfs]
- Locator
- MINECRAFT, PACIFIC FLEET section, un-numbered YMS listing, '96 | YMS 287' row (roster transcription ~p. 134)
- Finding type
- vessel_history
- Finding
- Official fleet organization roster lists 'YMS 287' under MINECRAFT, PACIFIC FLEET (Commander Minecraft, Pacific Fleet, R. Adm. A. Sharp), with officers 'Lt. (jg) W. G. Mallery (USNR) (D)' and 'Lt. (jg) R. J. Rantz (USNR) (R)' - establishing this hull was a U.S. Pacific Fleet minecraft in commission on 1 May 1945, four months before transfer. The roster's flag column carries '96' against this hull (roster flag codes not decoded in the transcription). The (D)/(R) pairing matches the roster's incumbent/relief convention used across the minecraft list and is consistent with NavSource's CO table (Mallery relieved by Rantz in 1945).
- Verification
- verified
- Role
- supporting
- Documentation level
- ship_specific
- Accessed
- 2026-10-04
- Study period
- 1945-05-01
- Population
- Crew of YMS-287 (complement 32), 1 May 1945
- Limitations
- Administrative roster establishes organizational assignment and officers as of 1 May 1945; it does not state the ship's operating area, base, or materials, and it does not decode its own flag column. Contains no asbestos content.
- Atlas source
- true
- Evidence ID
- ev-uss-yms-287-yms287-02
-
[4]NARA RG 38 file units, NAID 78532408 - 'USS YMS-287 - War Diary, 1/1-31/44' (World War II War Diaries, Other Operational Records and Histories; 33 digitized images, Fold3 file) and NAID 78370255 - 'USS YMS-287 - War Diary, 12/1-31/43' (digitized) [other_primary]
- Locator
- NARA catalog file-unit pages NAID 78370255 (Dec 1943) and NAID 78532408 (Jan 1944), microfilm images WWII_WarDiaries A_0900/0762+ and A_1061/0116-0148
- Finding type
- vessel_history
- Finding
- The ship's own primary operational records place YMS-287 on the Funafuti, Ellice Islands station (zone +11) in December 1943-January 1944. December 1943 (NAID 78370255): 1 December anchored Berth C-11 Funafuti, then underway via Te Ava Fuagea channel to screen 1,500 yards ahead of USS Sumner on base course 275T with zig-zag plan 14; sighted land and ceased zigzagging that evening. January 1944 (NAID 78532408): 1 January conducted anti-submarine patrol off Te Ava Fuagea channel on reciprocal courses at 6 knots, then anchored Berth C-18 and held anti-aircraft firing practice (3 rounds 3"/50 AA and 150 rounds 20mm expended); departed that evening toward Nukufetau. 14 January moored alongside gasoline barge YOG-184 and sister minesweeper YMS-193 at Funafuti, then departed escorting LST-69 Funafuti to Nukufetau on echo-ranging watch WEA-1, mooring alongside LST-69 on arrival. 30 January moored portside to USS Luzon at Berth C-17 Funafuti with submarine chaser SC-994 alongside to starboard. Approval signatures inside the January diary name Lt. George Hoppock, USNR as Commanding Officer on the 1-2 January pages and Lt.(jg) M. J. Donohue, USNR as Commanding Officer on the 14 and 30 January pages, with W. G. Mallery (then Ens., later Lt.(jg)) signing watch entries - documenting a January 1944 command transition ahead of Mallery's March 1944 assumption per NavSource.
- Verification
- verified
- Role
- supporting
- Documentation level
- ship_specific
- Accessed
- 2026-10-04
- Study period
- 1943-12-01 to 1944-01-31
- Population
- Crew (32) on the Funafuti station, December 1943-January 1944; USS Sumner, LST-69, YOG-184, YMS-193, USS Luzon, SC-994 operating alongside
- Limitations
- War diaries are narrative operational records - positions, movements, moorings, drills, and watch conditions; they contain no asbestos or material-content information. Only the December 1943 and January 1944 monthly diaries were located in the catalog for this hull; other months were not surfaced as titled file units (see search_ledger). Handwritten entries were read from digitized page images; a small number of words are illegible and none are relied on for a material claim. Watch-officer signature spellings (Hoppock, Donohue, Drinkwater, C. J. Smith) are transcribed as written.
- Atlas source
- true
- Evidence ID
- ev-uss-yms-287-yms287-03
-
[5]NARA RG 24 file unit, NAID 193015106 - 'YMS-287, 3/31/43-8/1/45' (Muster Rolls of U.S. Navy Ships, Stations, and Other Naval Activities; 183 digitized images, Ancestry partnership) [other_primary]
- Locator
- NARA catalog file-unit page NAID 193015106 (RG 24, Muster Rolls series; images 32863_255410-00000 et seq.)
- Finding type
- historical_record
- Finding
- NARA catalogs 183 digitized muster-roll images for this hull spanning 31 March 1943 through 1 August 1945 - crew assignment, rating, and pay records covering essentially her entire U.S. Navy service life. The opening date of 31 March 1943 is consistent with a mid-March 1943 commissioning. These rolls are the primary lead for crew-population and personnel documentation, including any medical or service records relevant to exposure questions.
- Verification
- verified
- Role
- archival_lead
- Documentation level
- ship_specific
- Accessed
- 2026-10-04
- Study period
- 1943-03-31 to 1945-08-01
- Population
- YMS-287 crew, 31 March 1943 - 1 August 1945
- Limitations
- Archival lead only: holdings identified by catalog metadata; the 183 page images were not reviewed here and no asbestos, materials, or work-event content is asserted from them. Muster rolls document personnel, not shipboard materials.
- Atlas source
- true
- Evidence ID
- ev-uss-yms-287-yms287-04
-
[6]National Archives, Special List #44 by Ship Numbers, Navy logbooks available online through the National Archives Catalog [other_primary]
- Locator
- PDF page 117; YMS-287 row
- Finding type
- historical_record
- Finding
- NARA's Special List #44 lists YMS-287 with Navy deck-log coverage from 4/1/1943 through 9/2/1945 (PDF page 117). The coverage span opens days after the mid-March 1943 completion/commissioning window and closes on the ship's last day of U.S. Navy service - the Soviet transfer date (2 September 1945 per NavSource; 3 September per the NHC appendix). This establishes the existence and date span of the cataloged log record for the hull; it does not establish commissioning or decommissioning dates, and the logs were not examined for this record.
- Verification
- verified
- Role
- supporting
- Documentation level
- ship_specific
- Accessed
- 2026-10-04
- Study period
- 1943-04-01 to 1945-09-02
- Population
- YMS-287 crew and ship operations during the listed log period
- Limitations
- Archival finding aid and coverage index only. Deck logs may help locate operational or maintenance events, but NARA's asbestos research guide states that deck logs do not directly establish asbestos presence or material content. Individual log pages were not reviewed.
- Atlas source
- true
- Evidence ID
- ev-uss-yms-287-yms287-05
-
[7]Richard A. Russell, 'Project HULA: Secret Soviet-American Naval Cooperation in the War Against Japan' (Naval Historical Center, Department of the Navy, 1997; U.S. Navy in the Modern World Series No. 4), Appendix 'U.S. Navy Combatant Ships Transferred to the USSR Under Project HULA, May-September 1945' - official monograph reproduced at generalstaff.org; identical appendix verified in the NHC PDF reproduction at ibiblio.org/hyperwar [nhhc_danfs]
- Locator
- generalstaff.org/WW2/Pubs/HULA/Project_HULA.htm, Appendix table YMS 287 row and stricken* footnote; ibiblio.org/hyperwar/NHC/NewPDFs/USA/USA Project.Hula...pdf, Appendix p. 39 (identical row verified)
- Finding type
- vessel_history
- Finding
- Official Navy-published transfer record names this hull: the HULA appendix lists 'YMS 287 - T-611 - 3 Sep. - 1955-stricken*' among the wooden-hulled motor minesweepers transferred under Project Hula, with the footnote '* subsequently transferred to the Peoples Republic of China.' The monograph establishes that Cold Bay, Alaska (Fort Randall) was the single transfer point for the program, that 149 U.S. Navy vessels were transferred there between April and September 1945 with Soviet crews trained by Navy Detachment 3294, and that transfers continued after the Japanese surrender until the program closed 30 September 1945. YMS-287's transfer falls in the final transfer window (the same 2-4 September 1945 period in which the appendix and monograph text record multiple ship handovers).
- Verification
- verified
- Role
- supporting
- Documentation level
- ship_specific
- Accessed
- 2026-10-04
- Study period
- 1945-1955
- Population
- YMS-287 U.S. crew to September 1945; Soviet T-611 crew 1945-1955
- Limitations
- The appendix names the hull, Soviet designation, transfer date (3 Sep.), and disposition year - it does not give the transfer location for this specific row, though the monograph establishes Cold Bay as the program's single transfer point. The '3 Sep.' date conflicts with NavSource's and the Soviet-side compilation's '2 September 1945' and with the last U.S. deck-log day of 9/2/1945; the one-day conflict is documented in ev-07 rather than resolved. Soviet-service detail 1945-1955 is not covered for this specific hull beyond the stricken/PRC footnote. Contains no asbestos content.
- Atlas source
- true
- Evidence ID
- ev-uss-yms-287-yms287-06
-
[8]Date conflict documented: official NHC Hula appendix ('YMS 287 - T-611 - 3 Sep.') vs NavSource timeline ('Transferred to the Soviet Union 2 September 1945'), uboat.net warship record ('End service 2 Sep 1945; Transferred to the USSR on 2 September 1945'), and Soviet-side compilation sewar.ru ('2.09.1945 accepted by Soviet crew under lend-lease deliveries; 11.09.1945 arrived Petropavlovsk-Kamchatsky') [other_primary]
- Locator
- generalstaff.org HULA appendix YMS 287 row; NavSource 11/19287.htm timeline; uboat.net ship/9707 history block; sewar.ru T-611 page; NARA SL-44 p. 117
- Finding type
- historical_record
- Finding
- CORRECTION: the official NHC Project Hula appendix prints a 3 September 1945 transfer date for YMS-287, while NavSource, uboat.net, and a Soviet-side compilation all record 2 September 1945, and the NARA deck-log index ends on 9/2/1945 - the last day of U.S. Navy logging. Record carried: transferred to the Soviet Union 2 September 1945 (convergent across three independent compilations plus the log-coverage boundary), with the official publication's 3 September date preserved here as a documented one-day conflict rather than silently resolved.
- Verification
- partial
- Role
- correction
- Documentation level
- ship_specific
- Accessed
- 2026-10-04
- Study period
- 1945-09-02 to 1945-09-03
- Limitations
- Corrects a one-day conflict between an official Navy publication and convergent secondary timelines; not a material claim. The discrepancy may reflect ceremony-vs-administrative dating, but no source located resolves the mechanism. uboat.net's 'Ordered 30 Mar 1942' is its sole unique data point and is carried in gaps, not asserted. No asbestos content.
- Atlas source
- true
- Evidence ID
- ev-uss-yms-287-yms287-07
-
[9]Naval Marine Archive, 'Lake Union Dry Dock, Seattle WA' yard table (shipbuildinghistory compilation) - 'Built by Associated Shipbuilders in the LUDD Shipyard' section, YMS 287 row [other_primary]
- Locator
- navalmarinearchive.com lakeunion.html - yard-history paragraph and 'Built by Associated Shipbuilders in the LUDD Shipyard' table, YMS 287 row
- Finding type
- vessel_history
- Finding
- Builder-yard context: the Naval Marine Archive's Lake Union Dry Dock table explains that during WWII LUDD 'built a series of yard minesweepers under the name Associated Shipbuilders, which was a joint venture with Puget Sound Bridge & Dredging Co.' Its 'Built by Associated Shipbuilders in the LUDD Shipyard' section lists 'YMS 287 - US Navy - Minesweeper - 320 (t.) - 136 (ft.) - 15-Mar-43 - To the USSR 1945 as T-611.' This corroborates the builder name, delivery date, dimensions, and Soviet disposition, and locates the physical construction at the Lake Union Dry Dock shipyard under the Associated Shipbuilders joint-venture entity.
- Verification
- verified
- Role
- context
- Documentation level
- ship_specific
- Accessed
- 2026-10-04
- Study period
- 1942-1943
- Population
- Associated Shipbuilders / Lake Union Dry Dock construction trades (1942-43)
- Limitations
- Secondary compilation resolving the Associated Shipbuilders corporate relationship; the 'joint venture with Puget Sound Bridge & Dredging Co.' is this source's description. The 320-ton figure conflicts with NavSource's 270-ton spec block (displacement conventions differ across compilations - logged in gaps). No asbestos content; neither Associated Shipbuilders nor Lake Union Dry Dock has an entry in the Atlas shipyards.json dataset.
- Atlas source
- true
- Evidence ID
- ev-uss-yms-287-yms287-08
-
[10]Era inference built on: NavSource spec block (2 x GM 8-268A diesels, wooden hull, no steam plant) and class references describing the YMS-1 class as wooden-hulled coastal minecraft built at ~35 small yards; GAO HRD-80-2 Navy-wide asbestos-era documentation [other_primary]
- Locator
- NavSource 11/19287.htm specifications block; NavSource YMS index class description; GAO HRD-80-2 product page
- Finding type
- asbestos_application
- Finding
- A wooden-hulled diesel-powered small craft of 1942-43 construction sits inside the Navy's documented asbestos-use era, but the exposure surface is materially smaller than a steam vessel's: no boilers, no steam drums, no steam-line lagging. Era-standard applications aboard a minesweeper of this type and period were diesel exhaust lagging and silencer insulation, engine and machinery insulation, flange gaskets, valve packing, electrical insulation, brake linings on winch/windlass gear, and incidental fireproofing - compact quantities concentrated in the small engine-room volume.
- Verification
- inferred
- Role
- supporting
- Documentation level
- class_or_era
- Accessed
- 2026-10-04
- Study period
- 1942-1955
- Population
- Associated Shipbuilders construction trades (1942-43); U.S. Navy crew (1943-45); Soviet crew (1945-55); PRC crew (from 1955)
- Limitations
- Class/era inference only - no hull-specific insulation survey, material list, or work package located for YMS-287. 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-287-yms287-09
-
[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 U.S. service era (1943-45).
- 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 2026-09-18 batch precedent) - content via product-page description. The report's shipyard study sites (Long Beach, Norfolk) were not this hull's builder.
- Atlas source
- true
- Evidence ID
- ev-uss-yms-287-yms287-10
-
[12]National Archives, Researching Asbestos aboard US Naval Vessel up through 1961 [other_primary]
- Locator
- Beginning Research; RG 19; General Information Books; Other records and their usefulness
- Finding type
- regulatory
- Finding
- NARA's official research guide says documenting asbestos aboard a particular U.S. naval vessel requires layered research and identifies RG 19 Bureau of Ships correspondence, minesweeper/minelayer General Information Books, specifications, and hull engineering drawings as potential sources. It also explains that deck logs and muster rolls do not directly establish asbestos presence or material content.
- Verification
- verified
- Role
- archival_lead
- Documentation level
- context_only
- Accessed
- 2026-10-04
- Study period
- 1941-1961
- Population
- Navy vessels and shipyard/crew research populations within the guide's 1941-1961 scope
- Limitations
- This is a research pathway, not a YMS-287 material record. The cited RG 19 series were not retrieved or examined; the guide neither proves nor disproves asbestos aboard this hull.
- Atlas source
- true
- Evidence ID
- ev-uss-yms-287-yms287-11
-
[13]Independent public-source search and CourtListener sweep documented in search_ledger [other_primary]
- Locator
- search_ledger rows sl-uss-yms-287-yms287-01 through -17
- Finding type
- historical_record
- Finding
- No qualifying ship-specific asbestos record located: no asbestos survey, abatement contract, hazmat disclosure, product identification, or qualifying litigation naming YMS-287 or T-611 was found in the public sources searched. This is consistent with the hull's profile - a small wooden minesweeper built at a wartime joint-venture yard, transferred abroad in 1945 with no post-service physical existence under U.S. jurisdiction to survey or abate. Law-firm marketing content asserting asbestos aboard generic 'YMS' vessels exists but is 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-consistent inference still stands. Does not establish that asbestos is or is not present; does not establish or defeat any claim of exposure or legal eligibility. Litigation status is as logged in the search_ledger (see sl- rows); a blocked or partial CourtListener sweep is an access gap, not a negative result.
- Atlas source
- true
- Evidence ID
- ev-uss-yms-287-yms287-12
-
[14]CourtListener API v4 via cl-auth-search.py - 4 required base queries ("USS YMS-287" and "YMS-287", type=opinion and type=docket, --limit 20); 1 completed, 3 blocked by the fleet-wide pacing gate [court_record]
- Locator
- search_ledger rows sl-uss-yms-287-yms287-14 through -17
- Finding type
- litigation_documented
- Finding
- Partial sweep only: the exact-name opinion query '"USS YMS-287"' completed with count 0 (no opinions matching the full name string). The exact-name docket query and both 'YMS-287' hull-number queries (opinion and docket) were attempted repeatedly across ~50 minutes this session and stood down every time by the fleet-wide pacing limiter (shared ~58/hr budget across concurrent sessions); no asbestos-qualified variants were run because no base query overflowed its 20-result page. Litigation status is therefore incomplete rather than negative. Secondary web sweeps surfaced no qualifying asbestos case naming this hull - only excluded-source marketing content. Re-run list (next session with budget): '"USS YMS-287"' docket; '"YMS-287"' opinion and docket (--limit 20).
- Verification
- partial
- Role
- archival_lead
- Documentation level
- ship_specific
- Accessed
- 2026-10-04
- Study period
- 2026-10-04
- Limitations
- This row records an access gap plus one completed zero-result query, not a negative litigation finding: the single completed opinion query covers only exact-phrase "USS YMS-287" matches in the opinion corpus; dockets and hull-number variants remain unsearched. No conclusion may be drawn about unsearched repositories. The open question is whether any docketed case names this hull - not whether asbestos was aboard.
- Atlas source
- true
- Evidence ID
- ev-uss-yms-287-yms287-13