USS LCI(L)-398

Evidence

14 evidence entries recorded; each entry has a stable permalink (#ev-1 … #ev-14).

1. [1]NARA, Special List 44 'List of Logbooks of U.S. Navy Ships, Stations, and Miscellaneous Units, 1801-1947' - ship-number list PDF (archives.gov) [other_primary]

   Locator

   sl-44-ship-number.pdf, PDF page 23 (verified via pdftotext 2026-09-30)

   Finding type

   historical_record

   Finding

   Special List 44 inventories Navy deck logs for LCI(L)-398 covering 12/27/1943 to 6/30/1945 (PDF page 23, 'LCI(L)-398 12/27/1943 6/30/1945'). These are log-coverage dates, not commissioning/decommissioning dates. The logs are physical holdings (RG 24, Entry 118 lineage; post-1941 logs at National Archives College Park) and are not digitized in the NARA Catalog.

   Verification

   verified

   Role

   archival_lead

   Documentation level

   ship_specific

   Accessed

   2026-09-30

   Study period

   1943-1945

   Population

   crew (Dec 1943 - Jun 1945)

   Limitations

   An inventory entry, not the records themselves - establishes that deck logs exist and their coverage span, not their content. Log-coverage start coincides with the documented commissioning date (27 Dec 1943) but is not itself a commissioning record. Logs are the open lead for the undigitized Nov 1944-Jun 1945 window (Atlantic->Pacific transit, conversion).

   Atlas source

   true

   Evidence ID

   ev-uss-lci-l-398-01

2. [2]NavSource Online: Amphibious Photo Archive, USS LCI(G)-398 ex USS LCI(L)-398 (10/15/150398) - construction timeline, reclassification, disposal, specifications (source: USS LCI 'Landing Craft Infantry' Vol. II, Turner Publishing 1995) [other_primary]

   Locator

   NavSource 10/15/150398.htm header block, chronology, specifications

   Finding type

   vessel_history

   Finding

   NavSource timeline for this hull: laid down 13 December 1943 at George Lawley & Sons Shipbuilding Corp., Neponset, MA; launched 20 December 1943; commissioned USS LCI(L)-398 on 30 December 1943; reclassified Landing Craft Infantry (Gunboat) LCI(G)-398 on 15 July 1944; assigned Asiatic-Pacific Theater; decommissioned date unknown; struck from the Naval Register 1946; transferred to the State Department 20 March 1947; final disposition unknown. Awards: American Campaign Medal, Asiatic-Pacific Campaign Medal, World War II Victory Medal. Specs: 246 t. light / 419 t. loaded, 158' 5-1/2", 8 GM diesels (4 per shaft) twin variable-pitch propellers; LCI(G) armament 2x40mm, 4x20mm, 6x.50cal, 10 Mk 7 rocket launchers.

   Verification

   verified

   Role

   context

   Documentation level

   ship_specific

   Accessed

   2026-09-30

   Study period

   1943-1947

   Population

   Lawley construction trades (Dec 1943); crew (1943-1946)

   Limitations

   NavSource is a volunteer secondary compilation - its commissioning date (30 Dec) and reclassification date (15 Jul 1944) conflict with the ship's own records and muster-roll titles (see ev-14). 'State Department transfer' denotes the foreign-liquidation disposal channel; fate unknown per this source. No asbestos content.

   Atlas source

   true

   Evidence ID

   ev-uss-lci-l-398-02

3. [3]NARA, USS LCI(L) 398 - War Diary, 3/1-31/44 (NAID 78350258, RG 38 WWII War Diaries; serial 031, micro serial 68206, submitted 1 April 1944, signed G.V. Cate) [other_primary]

   Locator

   War Diary 3/1-31/44, serial 031, Item 1 summary + daily entries (catalog.archives.gov digital objects A_0878 images 0355-0357)

   Finding type

   vessel_history

   Finding

   Ship's own war diary states: 'The LCI (L) 398 was built by George Lawleys & Sons Corporation, Neponset, Mass. Was Commissioned on Dec. 27, 1943, reported to Amphibious Training Command, U.S. Atlantic Fleet on 14 January 1944. Completed shakedown on 22 Jan. 1944 Ship was assigned as Flag ship Flotilla Nine, Group 26, for duty.' March 1944 operations: Solomons MD <-> Little Creek VA runs carrying Flotilla Nine commander Lt. Cmdr. R.E. Wagstaff and staff; three beachings at Virginia Beach with Group 25 (10 Mar); Chesapeake & Delaware Canal transit (12 Mar); Cove Point beaching exercises filmed for an NBC program (15 Mar); led a 15-LCI(L) formation to the U.S. Naval Academy, Annapolis, for midshipmen tactical exercises (17-18 Mar); 238 rounds of 20mm fired (22 Mar); and a 28-29 Mar labor-incentive cruise to Little Creek carrying Donald Nelson, Chairman of the War Production Board, Captains V.C. Barringer and R. Morgan Watt USN, and ~35 labor-management representatives.

   Verification

   verified

   Role

   context

   Documentation level

   ship_specific

   Accessed

   2026-09-30

   Study period

   1944-03

   Population

   crew; Flotilla Nine staff embarked (Lt. Cmdr. R.E. Wagstaff); civilian labor-incentive passengers incl. WPB Chairman Donald Nelson (28-29 Mar 1944)

   Limitations

   Primary ship document; history and operations only - no asbestos or material content. Confirms 27 Dec 1943 commissioning against NavSource's 30 Dec variant. Diary coverage ends; later movements documented by group/flotilla diaries and muster rolls.

   Atlas source

   true

   Evidence ID

   ev-uss-lci-l-398-03

4. [4]NARA, USS LCI(L) 398 - War Diary, 4/1-30/44 (NAID 78413870, RG 38 WWII War Diaries; serial 044, micro serial 71757, submitted 1 May 1944, signed G.V. Cate Lt.(jg) USNR Commanding) [other_primary]

   Locator

   War Diary 4/1-30/44, serial 044, Item 1 + daily entries (catalog.archives.gov digital objects A_0942 images 0660-0662)

   Finding type

   vessel_history

   Finding

   April 1944 operations in Chesapeake Bay training: Cambridge MD run with Commander Bailey embarked; tactical maneuvers with the shakedown group; two Virginia Beach beachings (8 Apr); 300 rounds 20mm at a surface target and 473 rounds at a towed sleeve; St. Marys/Pt. Lookout beachings (10 Apr); labor-incentive passengers firing 199 rounds of 20mm (12 Apr); reported to LSD-12 for docking duty 15 Apr - 'attempts to dock inside LSD unsuccessful' - then 'undergoing repairs to damage inflicted working with LSD on 15th April' 16-17 Apr; detached to Quantico VA, reporting to the Commanding General of the Post (19-22 Apr); smoke-screen and signal-rocket exercises (25-27 Apr); embarked a draft of 54 men + 4 officers for transport to Little Creek (30 Apr).

   Verification

   verified

   Role

   context

   Documentation level

   ship_specific

   Accessed

   2026-09-30

   Study period

   1944-04

   Population

   crew; civilian labor-incentive passengers (12, 25-26 Apr); embarked draft of 54 men + 4 officers (30 Apr); yard/repair personnel at Little Creek (16-17 Apr)

   Limitations

   Primary ship document. This diary's Item 1 summary gives 'Commissioned December 28, 1943' - a one-day internal discrepancy with the March diary's 'Dec. 27, 1943' (see ev-14). The 15 April LSD-12 docking damage and 16-17 April repairs are a documented damage/repair event aboard this hull - scope of repairs not stated. No asbestos content.

   Atlas source

   true

   Evidence ID

   ev-uss-lci-l-398-04

5. [5]NARA, COM LCI(L) GR 26 - War Diary, 10/1-31/44 (NAID 78653095, RG 38 WWII War Diaries; serial 071, micro serial 93231, submitted 1 November 1944 by W.A. Dodson Jr.) [other_primary]

   Locator

   COM LCI(L) GR 26 War Diary 10/44, cover (serial 071) + organization/narrative pages (catalog.archives.gov digital objects A_1233 images 0109-0117)

   Finding type

   vessel_history

   Finding

   The October 1944 Commander LCI(L) Group 26 war diary lists the group as LCI(L)s 367, 368(GF), 369, 370, 398(FF), 399, 402, 484, 485, 486, 503 and 504, and states 'LCI(L) 398 was operating directly under Commander LCI(L) Flotilla NINE as flotilla flagship' - still carrying the LCI(L) designation and still in the Amphibious Training Command, U.S. Atlantic Fleet, at U.S. Naval Amphibious Training Base Solomons, MD (Task Unit 20.6.2, running two-week afloat training cruises for prospective LCI(L)/LCS(L)(3) crews plus weekly Navy Incentive League cruises to Little Creek; the 398 made the 3-4 October cruise).

   Verification

   verified

   Role

   context

   Documentation level

   ship_specific

   Accessed

   2026-09-30

   Study period

   1944-10

   Population

   crew; flotilla staff; trainee officers and crews under instruction (Oct 1944)

   Limitations

   Primary group-level document naming this hull. Establishes she was still designated LCI(L) and still flotilla flagship at Solomons MD as of October 1944 - contradicting the 15 July 1944 reclassification date carried by NavSource (see ev-14). No asbestos content.

   Atlas source

   true

   Evidence ID

   ev-uss-lci-l-398-05

6. [6]NARA, LCI(L) 398 - Muster Rolls (NAID 120184698, 27 Dec 1943 - 31 Mar 1945, 56 images, Ancestry-partnership scans) and LCI(G) 398 - Muster Rolls (NAID 120184755, 30 Apr 1945 - 1 May 1946, 51 images) [other_primary]

   Locator

   catalog.archives.gov/id/120184698 (objects 32860_244690-00005 through -00082) and /id/120184755 (objects -00083 through -00133); recap sheet -00081; NRB San Diego forwarding block -00083

   Finding type

   historical_record

   Finding

   The ship's complete digitized muster-roll series brackets her designations: rolls titled 'U.S.S. LCI(L) 398' run from the first roll dated 27 December 1943 (approved by CO G.V. Cate, XO Ens. R.E. Belser; forwarded from Boston Section Base, Pier #1, East Boston) through the quarter ending 31 March 1945 (recapitulation: 29 enlisted aboard, no turnover); rolls titled 'U.S.S. LCI(G) 398' run 30 April 1945 through 1 May 1946. The June 1945 quarterly LCI(G) roll was forwarded 5 July 1945 from 'N.R.B., SAN DIEGO, California' - placing the hull at Naval Repair Base San Diego during the gunboat conversion window. Officers on the March 1945 roll include Cate (CO), Belser, Brooks, and Van Horn.

   Verification

   verified

   Role

   context

   Documentation level

   ship_specific

   Accessed

   2026-09-30

   Study period

   1943-12-27 - 1946-05-01

   Population

   ship's company, Dec 1943 - May 1946 (29 enlisted + officers, Q1 1945; officers: Lt.(jg) G.V. Cate CO, R.E. Belser XO, Brooks, Van Horn)

   Limitations

   Personnel records; no asbestos or material content. Roll titles track the LCI(L)->LCI(G) designation change between the 31 Mar and 30 Apr 1945 reporting dates; the last roll (1 May 1946) bounds the decommissioning window but does not itself fix a decommissioning date. 29 enlisted is the Q1-1945 figure (flagship staff); LCI(G) wartime complement was higher.

   Atlas source

   true

   Evidence ID

   ev-uss-lci-l-398-06

7. [7]NARA, LCI(G)-398 - War Diary, 9/1-30/45 (NAID 77517205, RG 38 WWII War Diaries; serial 01, micro serial 144555, submitted 1 October 1945, signed G.V. Cate) [other_primary]

   Locator

   War Diary 9/1-30/45, serial 01 (catalog.archives.gov digital objects A_1901 images 0572-0573)

   Finding type

   vessel_history

   Finding

   The ship's September 1945 war diary (submitted under CINCPAC wartime-reporting instruction PacFlt Conf Ltr 1CL-45; copies to COM LCI(G) GRP 7 and COM LCI(G) FLOT 3) records her at Pearl Harbor: moored Buoy 9, West Loch, 1-7 September undergoing minor repairs and readying for sea; routine cleaning and painting at anchor through 21 September; then moored Berth T-12 'daily routine cleaning, painting, AWAITING AVAILABILITY PERIOD FOR RECONVERSION TO LCI(L) TYPE' 21-30 September.

   Verification

   verified

   Role

   context

   Documentation level

   ship_specific

   Accessed

   2026-09-30

   Study period

   1945-09

   Population

   crew; Pearl Harbor yard/base personnel pending the reconversion availability (Sep 1945)

   Limitations

   Primary ship document placing the hull at Pearl Harbor in September 1945 attached to LCI(G) Group 7 / Flotilla 3, awaiting a planned reconversion availability - a second documented industrial availability after the San Diego gunboat conversion. Whether the reconversion was performed is not stated here. No asbestos content; the availability scope (what material would have been disturbed) is undocumented.

   Atlas source

   true

   Evidence ID

   ev-uss-lci-l-398-07

8. [8]Robin L. Rielly, 'American Amphibious Gunboats in World War II: A History of LCI and LCS(L) Ships in the Pacific' (McFarland, 2013), Appendix II 'Building and Conversion Locations' (mirrored text, erenow.org) [other_primary]

   Locator

   Appendix II, 'San Diego, Naval Repair Base, CA' entry listing '398'

   Finding type

   historical_record

   Finding

   Rielly's Appendix II lists LCI(G)-398 among the gunboat conversions performed at 'San Diego, Naval Repair Base, CA' (alongside 404-407, 417-421 and others) - a hull-specific conversion-location assignment consistent with the ship's own records (LCI(G) muster roll forwarded from 'N.R.B., SAN DIEGO' 5 July 1945).

   Verification

   partial

   Role

   context

   Documentation level

   ship_specific

   Accessed

   2026-09-30

   Study period

   1944-45 - 1945-06

   Population

   NRB San Diego conversion trades (1945); crew during availability

   Limitations

   Scholarly secondary source (McFarland) read via a text mirror, not the Navy's own conversion directive - the ship-specific corroboration is the muster-roll origin. No conversion dates or work scope given; no asbestos content. erenow.org is a reproduction - pagination verified against the book's appendix structure, not the print original.

   Atlas source

   true

   Evidence ID

   ev-uss-lci-l-398-08

9. [9]U.S. Naval War College Archives, George A. Van Horn papers, MSC-322 (collection record indexed; live catalog behind JS challenge at access time) [museum_official]

   Locator

   USNWC Archives, Manuscript Collection MSC-322, 'George A. Van Horn papers'

   Finding type

   historical_record

   Finding

   The Van Horn collection includes 'a scrapbook of letters and photographs of USS LCI (G) 398, crew members, scenes of the Philippines and Van Horn, 1945-1946,' plus a diary, reports, and typed accounts of his Philippines service, and photographs of Hawaii, Guam, the Philippine Islands and Truk, 1945-1946. Van Horn appears as an officer on this hull's 31 March 1945 muster roll - the collection documents post-conversion LCI(G)-398 service in the Western Pacific (Philippines/Guam/Truk) during 1945-46.

   Verification

   partial

   Role

   archival_lead

   Documentation level

   ship_specific

   Accessed

   2026-09-30

   Study period

   1945-1946

   Population

   Ens./Lt.(jg) George A. Van Horn and crew (1945-46)

   Limitations

   Archival lead only - collection-level catalog description, not the contents themselves. Live usnwcarchives.org returned a JS challenge/404 to automated fetch on 2026-09-30; description transcribed from the site's indexed catalog record. Establishes ship presence and a crew-member archive, not work scope or materials. No asbestos content.

   Atlas source

   true

   Evidence ID

   ev-uss-lci-l-398-09

10. [10]NARA record 2677813: '23764 - Landing Craft, Infantry (Gunboat) - LCI(G)420 (also applies to LCI(G)398, 417-419, 421, 516, 542, 563, 948) - 8/4/1945' [other_primary]

    Locator

    NARA Catalog NAID 2677813 (title as indexed)

    Finding type

    historical_record

    Finding

    A dated (4 August 1945) record - apparently a Bureau of Ships plan or instruction applying to the LCI(G) conversion batch - explicitly names this hull among nine gunboats: LCI(G) 398, 417-419, 421, 516, 542, 563, 948, anchored to LCI(G) 420 as reference design.

    Verification

    partial

    Role

    archival_lead

    Documentation level

    ship_specific

    Accessed

    2026-09-30

    Study period

    1945-08

    Population

    conversion-yard personnel, NRB San Diego (1945)

    Limitations

    Catalog metadata only - the record itself was not retrieved (title-level verification via NARA Catalog search API). Its nature (plan, spec, or photo series) and content are unexamined; likely the gunboat-conversion drawing set or related instruction for this conversion batch. No asbestos content evident from the title.

    Atlas source

    true

    Evidence ID

    ev-uss-lci-l-398-10

11. [11]Era inference built on: NavSource/uboat.net spec blocks (8 GM diesels, twin variable-pitch screws - no steam plant); GAO HRD-80-2 Navy asbestos-use era (see ev-12); LCI-351 class construction context (Lawley Neponset design yard, Dec 1943 steel amphibious hull) [other_primary]

    Locator

    NavSource specifications; GAO HRD-80-2 product page; Lawley/LCI-351 construction context

    Finding type

    asbestos_application

    Finding

    A diesel amphibious landing craft built December 1943 sits inside the Navy's documented asbestos-use era; era-standard applications aboard a vessel of this type and period were diesel exhaust/muffler lagging, machinery-space insulation, gaskets, valve packing, electrical insulation, joiner bulkhead panels, galley fireproofing, winch/windlass brake linings, and deck coverings in the confined hull. As a diesel craft she carried no steam plant - the boiler/turbine lagging pathway of steam vessels does not apply, but the small-ship confined-space exposure dynamic does.

    Verification

    inferred

    Role

    supporting

    Documentation level

    class_or_era

    Accessed

    2026-09-30

    Study period

    1943-1947

    Population

    Lawley construction trades (Dec 1943); crew (1943-46); NRB San Diego conversion trades (1945); Pearl Harbor availability personnel (1945); foreign-liquidation/disposal personnel (1946-47)

    Limitations

    Class/era inference only - no hull-specific insulation survey, material list, or conversion work package located for LCI(L)-398/LCI(G)-398. Names era-standard applications, not confirmed installed materials. No quantity; no manufacturer attribution for this hull.

    Atlas source

    true

    Evidence ID

    ev-uss-lci-l-398-11

12. [12]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 construction (December 1943), gunboat conversion (1945), and entire service life.

    Verification

    verified

    Role

    context

    Documentation level

    class_or_era

    Accessed

    2026-09-30

    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) - content via product-page description; same standing access defect as prior batches.

    Atlas source

    true

    Evidence ID

    ev-uss-lci-l-398-12

13. [13]Batch-5108 search ledger (this record): NARA SL44 + Catalog (war diaries, muster rolls, group diaries, NAID 2677813); NavSource; uboat.net; Rielly via erenow; USNWC Van Horn papers; MIT Museum Lawley collection; shipbuildinghistory (Wayback/navalmarinearchive); CourtListener API v4 (5 opinion queries clean; 1 docket query = name collision; 1 docket variant fleet-paced); secondary web litigation sweep [other_primary]

    Locator

    search_ledger rows sl-uss-lci-l-398-01 through -15

    Finding type

    historical_record

    Finding

    No qualifying ship-specific asbestos record located: no asbestos survey, abatement contract, hazmat disclosure, or adjudicated case naming LCI(L)-398/LCI(G)-398 was found in the public sources searched. CourtListener opinion index returned zero hits across five name/hull variants ('LCI(L)-398', 'LCI-398', 'LCI(G)-398', 'LCI 398', 'LCI(L) 398'); the docket index returned one name collision (Fordham v. Fleismann, D.S.C. prisoner civil-rights case - 'LCI' = Lee Correctional Institution, SC; not the vessel). One spaced-form docket query remained fleet-paced at session end. Secondary web sweeps surfaced no qualifying case; generic 'LCI asbestos' content is law-firm marketing material (bellucklaw.com, mesotheliomaveterans.org, navyshipexposure.com) asserting asbestos aboard landing craft without primary sourcing - excluded by source policy.

    Verification

    verified

    Role

    negative_finding

    Documentation level

    ship_specific

    Accessed

    2026-09-30

    Study period

    2026-09-30

    Limitations

    Absence of a located public record does not prove absence of asbestos aboard. Litigation coverage is near-complete but not exhaustive: the spaced-form docket query ('LCI 398') was not run before the fleet pacing cap; PACER state-level and VA claims are outside this sweep. Undigitized deck logs (SL44 coverage to 6/30/45), NRB San Diego conversion work packages, and Pearl Harbor availability records remain open leads. Does not establish or defeat any claim of exposure or legal eligibility.

    Atlas source

    true

    Evidence ID

    ev-uss-lci-l-398-13

14. [14]Designation/date cross-check: ship's own war diaries and muster rolls (NARA NAIDs 78350258, 78413870, 78653095, 120184698, 120184755); NavSource 150398; uboat.net ship/21440; NARA SL44 ship-number list [other_primary]

    Locator

    War diaries 3/44, 4/44, 10/44 (group), 9/45; muster-roll title transition 31 Mar -> 30 Apr 1945; SL44 p.23

    Finding type

    historical_record

    Finding

    CORRECTION - three date conflicts resolved toward primary sources. (1) Commissioning: ship's March 1944 war diary says 'Dec. 27, 1943', the first muster roll is dated 27 December 1943, and SL44 log coverage begins 12/27/1943 - the April 1944 diary's 'December 28, 1943' and NavSource's '30 December 1943' are carried as variants. (2) Reclassification to LCI(G): NavSource says 15 July 1944 and uboat.net says 15 July 1945, but the ship was still 'LCI(L) 398(FF)', flotilla flagship at Solomons MD, per the October 1944 Group 26 war diary, and her quarterly muster roll was still titled LCI(L) on 31 March 1945 with the first LCI(G)-titled roll dated 30 April 1945 - so neither secondary date matches the ship's own records; the effective change falls between late 1944 and April 1945, coincident with the San Diego NRB conversion. (3) 'Asiatic-Pacific Theater' assignment (NavSource) is consistent with September 1945 Pearl Harbor service and 1945-46 Philippines activity, not earlier - she spent 1944 in the Atlantic training command.

    Verification

    verified

    Role

    correction

    Documentation level

    ship_specific

    Accessed

    2026-09-30

    Study period

    1943-1945

    Limitations

    Corrects circulating secondary-source dates against the hull's own records. The exact administrative reclassification date remains unlocated - the letter/date itself was not found in any consulted source. No asbestos content.

    Atlas source

    true

    Evidence ID

    ev-uss-lci-l-398-14