Evidence
11 evidence entries recorded; each entry has a stable permalink (#ev-1 … #ev-11).
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[1]research packet 1065-packet.md (3 sources cited) [other_primary]
- Finding type
- vessel_history
- Finding
- Identity packet verdict: VERIFIED. The shipyard roster records YMS-
- Verification
- verified
- Role
- supporting
- Documentation level
- ship_specific
- Evidence ID
- uss-yms-404-yms404-pkt-1065-packet-md
-
[2]NavSource Online: Mine Warfare Vessel Photo Archive, YMS-404 page - construction timeline, specifications, disposal, post-sale beaching, photo captions [other_primary]
- Locator
- NavSource 11/19404.htm header block, specifications block, photo captions, beaching note
- Finding type
- vessel_history
- Finding
- Documented for this hull: laid down 10 August 1942 by Henry B. Nevins, Inc., City Island, NY; launched 26 May 1943; completed and commissioned USS YMS-404, 6 August 1943; struck from the Naval Register 25 February 1947; transferred to the War Shipping Administration 3 December 1947 and sold. Post-sale: reported beached in the early 1950s in a cove on Hood Canal near Hoodsport, WA, where she deteriorated - no longer visible per a local account. Call sign Nan-Peter-Baker-Queen. Specifications: 270 t.; 136' x 24'6" x 8'; 15 kts.; complement 32; one 3"/50 dual-purpose mount, two 20mm mounts, two depth-charge projectors; two 880-bhp General Motors 8-268A diesels, Snow-Knobstedt single reduction gear, two shafts. Photos held include her launching (City Island Nautical Museum) and NHHC photo NH 84986 showing her moored to YMS-458 in San Francisco Bay, c. 1945. Page states there is no DANFS history for YMS-404.
- Verification
- verified
- Role
- context
- Documentation level
- ship_specific
- Accessed
- 2026-10-04
- Study period
- 1942-c.1953
- Population
- Nevins construction trades (1942-43); crew (1943-46); WSA buyer and any salvage/abandonment trades (1947-early 1950s)
- Limitations
- NavSource is a volunteer secondary compilation, not a primary registry - its milestone dates track official sources but each would ideally confirm against a primary document; the NARA Special List 44 row (ev-03) and muster-roll file unit (ev-04) independently confirm in-service custody dates. Contains no asbestos or material content. The Hood Canal beaching is a contributor-relayed local account, not a surveyed wreck record.
- Atlas source
- true
- Evidence ID
- ev-uss-yms-404-01
-
[3]NavSource Online: Auxiliary Motor Minesweeper (YMS) / BYMS index - class history and characteristics [other_primary]
- Locator
- NavSource 11/19idx.htm 'Auxiliary Motor Minesweepers (YMS)' narrative
- Finding type
- vessel_history
- Finding
- Class context for YMS-404: the YMS (Yard-class Motor Minesweeper) type was designed by the Henry B. Nevins, Inc. yard of City Island, NY - keel of class prototype YMS-1 laid there 4 March 1941, launched 10 January 1942, completed 25 March 1942. The type was wooden-hulled; 481 U.S. Navy YMS were built at 35 yacht yards (12 East Coast, 19 West Coast, four Great Lakes) rather than major shipyards. YMS-1 through YMS-134 carried two stacks; YMS-135 through YMS-445, 480, and 481 (the block containing YMS-404) carried one, while YMS-446 through YMS-479 had none. YMS were used for inshore sweeping; U.S. boats swept enemy mines off Jacksonville, FL and Charleston, SC as early as 1942.
- Verification
- verified
- Role
- context
- Documentation level
- class_or_era
- Accessed
- 2026-10-04
- Study period
- 1941-1945 (construction era)
- Population
- YMS-class construction trades at 35 yacht yards (1941-45); YMS-class crews
- Limitations
- Class-level background only - does not establish any fact specific to this hull beyond class membership. NavSource class text adapts standard reference works; figures (481 built, 35 yards) are class-level, not hull-level. No asbestos content.
- Atlas source
- true
- Evidence ID
- ev-uss-yms-404-02
-
[4]National Archives, Special List 44: List of Logbooks of U.S. Navy Ships, Stations, and Miscellaneous Units, 1801-1947 (1978), printed p. 522 - YMS-404 entry; digitized as NARA NAID 178406296 (RG 64, Publications of the National Archives); page image verified via ACPL Genealogy Center scan (narasl44/554.jpg) [other_primary]
- Locator
- Special List 44, printed p. 522 (Ships with Symbol and Number Designations, T-Y section); ACPL mirror scan image 554; NARA NAID 178406296
- Finding type
- historical_record
- Finding
- Special List 44 inventories U.S. Navy deck logs for YMS-404 covering 7 August 1943 through 31 December 1945 - six logbooks. The entry was read directly on the scan image this session: 'YMS-404 - Aug. 7, 1943-Dec. 31, 1945 - 6'. This documents the official log coverage of her wartime service and provides the primary archival handle for ship-day detail (movements, moorings, maintenance notations) for the hull.
- Verification
- verified
- Role
- archival_lead
- Documentation level
- ship_specific
- Accessed
- 2026-10-04
- Study period
- 1943-08-07 to 1945-12-31
- Population
- Crew (1943-45), as documented in the logs
- Limitations
- An inventory entry, not the logs themselves: establishes that six logbooks exist in NARA custody and their date span, not their content. The batch intake date range (8/7/1943-12/31/1945) is log coverage, not asserted commissioning/decommissioning dates - coverage opens the day after NavSource's 6 August 1943 commissioning. Deck logs for this hull were not located as a separately digitized catalog file unit; the companion digitized unit is her muster rolls (ev-04), which run one year past the deck-log coverage.
- Atlas source
- true
- Evidence ID
- ev-uss-yms-404-03
-
[5]NARA catalog file unit 'YMS-404, 8/7/43-12/1/46', NAID 193222604 - RG 24 (Records of the Bureau of Naval Personnel), series Muster Rolls of U.S. Navy Ships, Stations, and Other Naval Activities (NAID 594996); 196 images online; container Roll 9187 [other_primary]
- Locator
- catalog.archives.gov/id/193222604 - file-unit title, series placement, image count, Roll 9187
- Finding type
- historical_record
- Finding
- YMS-404's muster rolls are digitized in the National Archives catalog: 196 images covering 7 August 1943 through 1 December 1946 - the complete crew-by-name record of the hull's complement from commissioning through postwar service, ending about three months before the Naval Register strike date.
- Verification
- verified
- Role
- archival_lead
- Documentation level
- ship_specific
- Accessed
- 2026-10-04
- Study period
- 1943-08-07 to 1946-12-01
- Population
- All hands aboard, 1943-46 (named individuals on the rolls)
- Limitations
- Muster rolls document personnel aboard by name and rating; they contain no asbestos, material, or exposure information. The unit's 12/1/46 end date versus SL44's 12/31/45 logbook end reflects the differing record types and coverage, not a discrepancy of service. Source is the scanned record itself (Ancestry-provided images on the catalog).
- Atlas source
- true
- Evidence ID
- ev-uss-yms-404-04
-
[6]NARA catalog: WWII War Diaries series (RG 38, 'World War II War Diaries, Other Operational Records and Histories', NAID 4697018) - full-text query 'YMS-404' returns ~68 war-diary file units naming the hull; example file unit NAID 78279920 (COM NY GR ESF - War Diary, 8/1-31/43), her commissioning month [other_primary]
- Locator
- catalog.archives.gov q="YMS-404" - 134 file-unit results; war-diary series NAID 4697018; examples NAIDs 78279920, 78348337, 139914172, 633405721, 633438037, 140016227, 77617199
- Finding type
- historical_record
- Finding
- The National Archives catalog full-text index returns dozens of war-diary file units naming 'YMS-404' (134 file-unit hits overall, ~68 of them war diaries). The dominant pattern places her on the U.S. East Coast from commissioning through early 1945: Commander New York Group, Eastern Sea Frontier monthly diaries (8/43 through 2/45, including TG 02.3 and O2.3 subdivisions), COMEASTSEAFRON diaries (10/43-12/44), COMDESLANT and CINCLANT (9/43), plus COM CHESAPEAKE GR ESF (3/45) and COMGULFSEAFRON (2/45). Pacific-side command records begin in spring 1945: COMPASEAFRON (3/45), COM Minecraft Pacific Admin Com (4/45), COMSERFORPAC (4/45), and mine-squadron diaries COMINRON 101 (5/45), COMINRON 102 and 107 (12/45). Personnel-side muster rolls chart the same arc: Brooklyn and New York receiving stations (1942-44, commissioning crew assembly), St. Albans Naval Hospital and Tompkinsville berthing facility, then Pearl Harbor receiving station, West Loch Mine Assembly Base, Guam Fleet Replacement Pool and Saipan dispensary rolls (1945), and San Francisco/Oakland/San Diego hospital and Bremerton receiving station rolls (1946).
- Verification
- partial
- Role
- archival_lead
- Documentation level
- ship_specific
- Accessed
- 2026-10-04
- Study period
- 1943-1946
- Population
- YMS-404 crew on East Coast (1943-45) and Pacific (1945-46) stations; sector command staffs
- Limitations
- Full-text index hits, not individually inspected pages: the catalog's OCR matched 'YMS-404' within these file units; page-level content was not read this session, so whether a given diary lists her as an attached unit versus merely mentions her is undetermined. Station and hospital muster-roll hits document crewmember transfers to or from YMS-404, not the hull's own movements. Establishes presence/operations context and the Atlantic-to-Pacific assignment arc, not any material or asbestos fact.
- Atlas source
- true
- Evidence ID
- ev-uss-yms-404-05
-
[7]NARA catalog file units dedicated to this hull: NAID 175667657 'YMS-404' (RG 19 Bureau of Ships, Microfilm of Ship Engineering Drawings); NAID 2762375 'YMS-404' (RG 38 Office of the CNO, Material Inspection Reports and Related Documentation, container 171); NAID 472242946 'USS YMS-404' (RG 24 Bureau of Naval Personnel, Casualty Information Reports, container 99) - none digitized [other_primary]
- Locator
- catalog.archives.gov/id/175667657, /id/2762375, /id/472242946 - file-unit titles, series placements, container numbers
- Finding type
- historical_record
- Finding
- Three dedicated file units exist in NARA custody for this hull: her Bureau of Ships engineering drawings on microfilm, a CNO material inspection report, and a BUPERS casualty information report. The engineering drawings are the strongest located lead for ship-specific material/equipment detail; the material inspection report (a Board of Inspection and Survey-type record family) may document installed equipment condition; the casualty report indicates a personnel casualty event was filed under the hull.
- Verification
- partial
- Role
- archival_lead
- Documentation level
- ship_specific
- Accessed
- 2026-10-04
- Study period
- 1943-1947 (probable)
- Population
- YMS-404 crew; inspecting/drafting personnel
- Limitations
- Catalog metadata only - none of the three units is digitized and none was inspected at page level this session, so their content, dates, and any material detail are unverified. 'Material inspection' in the series title is a records-family label, not evidence of any asbestos finding. The casualty report's subject (death, injury, or routine filing) is unknown from metadata.
- Atlas source
- true
- Evidence ID
- ev-uss-yms-404-06
-
[8]E. E. Mouton, Commander, U.S. Navy, 'One Tour in a Mackerel Taxi - and How It Grew,' U.S. Naval Institute Proceedings, Vol. 90/4/734, April 1964 [reputable_press]
- Locator
- USNI Proceedings April 1964 issue, article text (usni.org)
- Finding type
- vessel_history
- Finding
- A firsthand postwar account: the author reported aboard USS YMS-404 anchored off Treasure Island, San Francisco Bay, in April 1946; within three months she was at San Diego, tied across the Fleet Sonar School dock from YMS-416. The article documents the postwar undermanning of the YMS fleet - wartime allowance of about 40 enlisted plus a lieutenant (j.g.) and ensigns reduced to about 20 men, with weekly single-watch underway periods to keep ships 'from sticking to the piers' - and the late-1946 mass decommissioning of YMS types at Bremerton, hulls towed to Lake Washington for mothballing.
- Verification
- verified
- Role
- context
- Documentation level
- ship_specific
- Accessed
- 2026-10-04
- Study period
- 1946
- Population
- YMS-404 crew, postwar 1946 (reduced complement era)
- Limitations
- A memoir published 18 years after the events; places the hull at Treasure Island (April 1946) and San Diego (mid-1946) but does not document her own decommissioning - the Bremerton decommissioning narrative concerns YMS-416 and companion sweepers after the author left YMS-404. Contains no asbestos or material information.
- Atlas source
- true
- Evidence ID
- ev-uss-yms-404-07
-
[9]Era inference built on: NavSource YMS-404 specifications (two GM 8-268A diesels, 880 bhp, two shafts; wooden hull per class text); NavSource YMS index (wooden-hulled class built at yacht yards); GAO HRD-80-2 Navy-wide asbestos-use documentation (see ev-09) [other_primary]
- Locator
- NavSource 11/19404.htm specifications; NavSource 11/19idx.htm class text; GAO HRD-80-2 product page
- Finding type
- asbestos_application
- Finding
- A 1942-43 wooden-hulled diesel minesweeper sits inside the Navy's documented asbestos-use era, but her type narrows the plausible exposure surface: no boilers, no steam plant, no boiler/turbine lagging pathway. Era-standard candidate applications aboard a small diesel craft of the period were diesel-exhaust lagging, machinery gaskets and packing, electrical insulation, and possible asbestos-cement or insulation board. These are era-standard possibilities for the type, not documented installations aboard this hull.
- Verification
- inferred
- Role
- supporting
- Documentation level
- class_or_era
- Accessed
- 2026-10-04
- Study period
- 1942-c.1953
- Population
- Nevins construction trades (1942-43); crew (1943-46); any yard/base trades at availabilities; 1947+ disposal, beaching, and deterioration-scene workers
- Limitations
- Class/era inference only - no hull-specific insulation survey, material list, work package, or crew account located for YMS-404. Names era-standard applications, not confirmed installed materials. No quantity. The wooden hull and diesel plant make the asbestos profile plausibly much thinner than steam-driven steel ships of the same era.
- Atlas source
- true
- Evidence ID
- ev-uss-yms-404-08
-
[10]GAO, Navy Efforts To Protect Workers From Asbestos Exposure, HRD-80-2 (Oct 18, 1979) [gao]
- Locator
- GAO product page HRD-80-2
- 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 - and the class's wooden diesel design bounds what 'extensive' could mean aboard her. Full text not retrieved (gao.gov blocks automated fetch, HTTP 403 per prior batch sessions) - content via product-page description.
- Atlas source
- true
- Evidence ID
- ev-uss-yms-404-09
-
[11]Batch-9042 search ledger (this record): NavSource hull page and YMS class index; NARA Special List 44 scan verification (printed p. 522, ACPL image 554); NARA catalog muster-roll, war-diary full-text, and three dedicated file-unit hits; NVR check; secondary build/disposal compilations; USNI Proceedings; CourtListener base queries (one completed - all collisions; three blocked - fleet pace budget); secondary web litigation sweep [other_primary]
- Locator
- search_ledger rows sl-uss-yms-404-01 through sl-uss-yms-404-13 (08b numbering)
- Finding type
- historical_record
- Finding
- No qualifying ship-specific asbestos record located: no asbestos survey, abatement contract, hazmat disclosure, or verified litigation naming YMS-404 was found in the public sources searched. The completed CourtListener opinion query for 'YMS-404' returned 78 hits of which none contain the literal string 'YMS' - all are tokenized-'404' collisions (criminal and contract cases); no opinion names the hull. CAVEAT: the three remaining base queries ('YMS-404' docket; 'USS YMS-404' opinion and docket) could not be completed this session - the fleet-paced request budget returned stand-down on repeated attempts; logged as blocked in the search ledger, not as a negative result. Secondary web sweeps surfaced no qualifying case; the only 'asbestos aboard' material is law-firm/listicle content asserting asbestos aboard WWII Navy vessels 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 - and the litigation repository search is a genuine open gap (partially blocked, not run to completion). The strongest undigitized leads are the six deck-log books (SL44 p. 522), the Bureau of Ships engineering drawings (NAID 175667657), the CNO material inspection report (NAID 2762375), and WSA disposal records. Does not establish or defeat any claim of exposure or legal eligibility.
- Atlas source
- true
- Evidence ID
- ev-uss-yms-404-10