Dr. David T. DuBow to H. J. O'Brien on the Manville Plant "No Dust" List (1956)

A confidential memo of February 3, 1956, from Dr. David T. DuBow of the Medical Department at J-M's Manville, New Jersey, plant to H. J. O'Brien, with copies to M. F. Naylor and B. F. Stanton, followed by 23 pages of lists. It breaks down by building the plant's "No Dust" list of workers to be kept from dusty work, in two groups: those whose condition was "occupational in origin" and those listed as "preventive on a medical basis." The totals were 175 occupational and 145 preventive. The lists that follow name each worker with an employee number.

What it shows

Early in 1956 the Manville plant's medical department counted 175 workers whose health problems it considered occupational, and more listed as a precaution, spread across nearly every building. A year later DuBow asked management for studies of these workers' work areas.

In Johns-Manville's chronology

Johns-Manville's own chronology of what the company knew describes this document as follows:

In a memorandum dated 2/3/56, Dr. DuBow writes to H.J. O'Brien listing the employees in each building who are put on DuBow's "no dust list" for either an occupational health problem or for a preventive reason "on a medical basis." One hundred seventy-five employees are on the "occupational list"; 145 are on the preventive list. The individuals are listed by name.