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Did you serve aboard the USS California? This Navy ship carried asbestos in nearly every compartment. Here is where it was, and who is responsible. The USS California was a Navy ship. Public naval references list this equipment aboard the USS California — insulated and sealed with asbestos. Exposure was worst in the engineering spaces, where the snipes worked — but asbestos lined the whole ship, so all hands were exposed. The companies that made the asbestos equipment aboard — not the Navy — are who asbestos claims are brought against. According to asbestos litigation records, the equipment aboard the USS California from makers such as Babcock and Wilcox, Combustion Engineers, General Electric Co., and General Motors allegedly contained asbestos. If you served aboard the USS California and were later diagnosed with mesothelioma, asbestosis, or another asbestos-related disease, you may have a legal claim against the companies that made the asbestos products used aboard your ship. This is educational information from an independent publisher — not a law firm — and is not legal advice.
USS California is a documented U.S. Navy vessel with asbestos-exposure evidence in the public litigation record. The equipment manifest below was assembled from depositions, expert reports, and manufacturer interrogatory responses filed in U.S. asbestos litigation that reference equipment installed aboard this vessel.
Equipment Manifest
| Equipment | Manufacturer | Qty | Notes |
|---|---|---|---|
| Boilers | Babcock & Wilcox | Main boilers installed aboard USS California BB-44 | |
| Spare Boiler - 8 Divided furnace / Superheated water tube design drum boilers | Combustion Engineers | 8 | Spare boiler installation |
| Blowers | F B Sturtevant | Turbine driven blowers | |
| Main Propulsion | General Electric | Main propulsion system | |
| Main Propulsion - Ten Stage Single Flow Impulse Stage Type | Curtis Co. | Impulse stage propulsion component | |
| Air Compressor - High Pressure | Herdie Tynes Manufacturing | High pressure air compressor | |
| Air Compressor - Medium Pressure | Ingersoll Rand Co. | Medium pressure air compressor | |
| Main Condensers | C H Wheeler | Main condenser system | |
| Auxiliary Condensers | Foster Wheelers | 4 | Four auxiliary condenser units |
| Main Distilling Apparatus | Griscom Russell | 2 | Main distilling apparatus installation |
| Emergency Distilling Apparatus | Griscom Russell | 1 | Emergency distilling apparatus |
| Ships Service Turbine drive Generators | General Electric Co. | Turbine-driven generator system | |
| Main Condenser pump drive | Terry Turbine Co. | Main condenser pump turbine drive | |
| Emergency Diesel Generators | Westinghouse | Emergency diesel generator system | |
| Emergency Diesel Generators | General Motors | Emergency diesel generator system | |
| Vacuum Pump for Emergency Generator Unit | Nash Pump Co. | pp186 | |
| Submersible Pump | Dean Steam Pump | pp108 | |
| Oil Purifier Pump | DeLaval | pp320 | |
| Fire & Bilge Pump | Garden Denver | pp276 | |
| Fresh Water Pump | Morris Machine Co. | pp108 | |
| Fresh Water Booster Pump | Ramsey Pump | pp108 | |
| Sanitary Pump | Morris Machine Co. | pp108 | |
| Secondary Drainage Pump | Morris Machine Co. | pp108 | |
| Fuel Oil Service Pump | Northern Pump | pp317 | |
| Fuel Oil Transfer Pump | M T Davidson | pp317 | |
| High Pressure Valves, Steam Traps | Yarway Steam Valve | ||
| Steam Drains | Yarnall-Waring Co. | pp346 | |
| High Temperature Insulation | Johns Manville Sales Corp. | MIL Standard 1-2781/2819 | |
| Asbestos Cloth | Raybestos Co. | ||
| Asbestos Pipe Covering | Union Asbestos & Manufacturing Co. | ||
| Auxiliary Condensers | Foster Wheeler | 4 | Four auxiliary condenser units |
| Asbestos Tape 1 to 3 inch | Johns Manville |
Note: this manifest is derived from public asbestos litigation records (depositions, expert reports, manufacturer interrogatories) rather than primary BUSHIPS construction documents. Entries reflect what has been documented or alleged in publicly filed legal records.
The asbestos-containing products documented on U.S. Navy vessels and at shipyards are catalogued by manufacturer on AsbestosIndex. These records cross-reference which companies supplied which materials and to which facilities.
Navy Ratings Most Exposed to Asbestos Aboard California
The U.S. Department of Veterans Affairs and the public asbestos litigation record document that the following Navy ratings worked routinely in spaces where ACM was installed, maintained, ripped out, and replaced:
VA Disability Claims for Asbestos-Related Disease
The U.S. Department of Veterans Affairs evaluates asbestos claims individually. A veteran generally needs medical evidence of a current asbestos-related disease, service evidence supporting in-service asbestos exposure, and a medical opinion connecting the two. Ship assignments, Navy ratings, and equipment records can help document the exposure history but do not create automatic service connection.
Approved claims may provide monthly disability compensation and related benefits. Survivors may separately qualify for Dependency & Indemnity Compensation when the applicable requirements are met. Civil lawsuits and asbestos-trust claims use different standards; claimants should obtain individualized advice about how the processes interact.
How to file a VA disability claim: VA claims are filed directly with the U.S. Department of Veterans Affairs — not with a law firm. Start at VA.gov › Hazardous Materials Exposure, call 1‑800‑827‑1000, or get free help filing from a Veterans Service Organization: DAV, VFW, or American Legion.
VA Claims Guide on This Site › Compare: VA vs. Civil Lawsuit
Source notes: equipment-manifest entries (where shown) are sourced from public-record BUSHIPS (Bureau of Ships) documentation, NARA archives, and the public asbestos litigation record. Manufacturer attributions link to documented asbestos-product histories on AsbestosIndex.com where available. Nothing on this page constitutes medical or legal advice.
