Evidence
9 evidence entries recorded; each entry has a stable permalink (#ev-1 … #ev-9).
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[1]NavSource Online: Amphibious Photo Archive, USS LC(FF)-531 ex USS LCI(L)-531 - construction milestones, LC(FF) reclassification, theater assignment, specifications, disposal (history transcribed from USS LCI 'Landing Craft Infantry', Vol. II, Turner Publishing, 1995). Page verified live 2026-09-30 (HTTP 200). [other_primary]
- Locator
- NavSource 10/15/150531.htm header block, milestone list, specifications block, awards ribbon row
- Finding type
- vessel_history
- Finding
- Documented for this hull: laid down 7 December 1943 at New Jersey Shipbuilding Corp., Barber, N.J.; launched 1 January 1944; commissioned USS LCI(L)-531, 8 January 1944; reclassified Landing Craft Flotilla Flagship LC(FF)-531, 31 December 1944; assigned to the Asiatic-Pacific Theater in WWII; decommissioned date unknown; struck from the Naval Register date unknown; transferred to the Maritime Commission at Charleston, SC for disposal (PDX-225, 27 September 1946); final disposition fate unknown. Ribbons listed: American Campaign Medal, Asiatic-Pacific Campaign Medal, World War II Victory Medal - no battle stars credited, no named operations. Specification block: 246 t light / 264 t landing / 419 t loaded; 158'5.5" x 23'3"; 16 kts max; complement 4 officers/24 enlisted; troop capacity 6 officers/182 enlisted; five single 20mm guns; propulsion two sets of 4 GM diesels (4 per shaft), 1,600 BHP, twin variable-pitch propellers.
- Verification
- verified
- Role
- context
- Documentation level
- ship_specific
- Accessed
- 2026-09-30
- Study period
- 1943-1946
- Population
- New Jersey Shipbuilding construction trades (Dec 1943-Jan 1944); ship's company 4 officers/24 enlisted; embarked flag staff and troops
- Limitations
- NavSource is a volunteer secondary compilation, not a primary registry - milestone dates here are corroborated by uboat.net and the ONI-derived HyperWar roster. Contains no asbestos content. Decommissioned and stricken dates are unknown in this source. Absence of battle stars is negative evidence only for combat-campaign credit, not for theater presence.
- Atlas source
- true
- Evidence ID
- ev-uss-lci-l-531-lcil531-01
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[2]National Archives, Special List 44: List of Logbooks of U.S. Navy Ships, Stations, and Miscellaneous Units, 1801-1947 (1978) - ACPL Genealogy Center mirror scan, printed page 343 ('Ships with Symbol and Number Designations', F-LCI(L) section) [other_primary]
- Locator
- SL44 printed page 343, F-LCI(L) section, 'LCI(L)(FF)-531 ... Jan. 8, 1944-June 30, 1945 ... 3' (ACPL mirror image narasl44/369.jpg)
- Finding type
- historical_record
- Finding
- NARA Special List 44 lists Navy logbooks for LCI(L)(FF)-531 with a date span of Jan. 8, 1944-June 30, 1945, in 3 logbooks (entry verified directly on the scanned page). These are NARA-custody deck logs: the primary undigitized source for this hull's day-by-day movements, drills, and maintenance entries. The hull's logs do not appear on NARA's digitized deck-log index (only LCI hull listed there is Kestrel, AMCU/MHC-26/LCI-874).
- Verification
- verified
- Role
- archival_lead
- Documentation level
- ship_specific
- Accessed
- 2026-09-30
- Study period
- 1944-1945 (log coverage); 1978 (list compiled)
- Population
- Ship's company, Jan 1944-Jun 1945
- Limitations
- Archival finding aid only - establishes that deck logs exist for Jan 1944-Jun 1945, not their content. Log-coverage dates are not commissioning/decommissioning dates. Logs after June 1945 (e.g., the Dec 1945 Pearl Harbor period) are not in this listing. Scan is the ACPL mirror of the NARA publication; NARA's own hosted PDF was not located. No asbestos content.
- Atlas source
- true
- Evidence ID
- ev-uss-lci-l-531-lcil531-02
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[3]HyperWar/ibiblio transcription, 'US Navy Landing Ships/Craft, 1940-1945' (ONI-derived USN publication) - LC(FF) flotilla-flagship roster and class specification block [other_primary]
- Locator
- ships-lc.html 'LC(FF) -- Landing Craft, Flotilla Flagships' spec block and roster table (LC(FF)-531 row, no hyperlinked hull page)
- Finding type
- vessel_history
- Finding
- The official-source landing-craft roster lists LC(FF)-531 among the Navy's Landing Craft, Flotilla Flagships (commissioned 1943-44 column). The LC(FF) class block describes the type: 'Converted from Landing Craft, Infantry (Large) - LCI(L) to carry flag officers and crew'; 387 t, 160', 23'3" beam, 15.5 kts, 4 x 20mm, 8 GM diesel engines (4 per shaft), twin variable-pitch screws. Corroborates the LC(FF)-531 designation and the diesel (non-steam) plant.
- Verification
- verified
- Role
- context
- Documentation level
- ship_specific
- Accessed
- 2026-09-30
- Study period
- 1940-1945
- Population
- Ship's company plus embarked flotilla flag staff
- Limitations
- Roster-level confirmation only: lists the hull's designation and class specs, no service history and no materials content. The type's diesel plant means no boiler lagging pathway - but this source itself says nothing about asbestos or insulation material.
- Atlas source
- true
- Evidence ID
- ev-uss-lci-l-531-lcil531-03
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[4]U.S. Navy Memorial, Navy Log entry for Steward's Mate First Class William Arthur Brown, USNR (b. 1924-03-21 Goodview, VA; deceased 1945-12-04) [other_primary]
- Locator
- Navy Log entry, 'SIGNIFICANT DUTY STATIONS' field; 'Deceased 12/04/1945' header
- Finding type
- historical_record
- Finding
- The Navy Log entry lists Brown's significant duty station as 'LAND CRAFT FLOTILLA FLAGSHIP LC(FF)-531 - PEARL HARBOR, T.H.' and records that he was killed in service 4 December 1945 while on active duty at Pearl Harbor; buried National Memorial Cemetery of the Pacific. Places this hull at Pearl Harbor, T.H., in the post-war period (Dec 1945) - beyond the SL44 deck-log coverage end (June 1945).
- Verification
- verified
- Role
- context
- Documentation level
- ship_specific
- Accessed
- 2026-09-30
- Study period
- 1945
- Population
- STM1 William Arthur Brown; LC(FF)-531 crew at Pearl Harbor, late 1945
- Limitations
- Personnel/assignment record, not a work or materials record: documents a crew member assigned to the hull at Pearl Harbor; establishes presence, not any exposure event. The 'killed in service' circumstances are family-researched per the memorial text. No asbestos content.
- Atlas source
- true
- Evidence ID
- ev-uss-lci-l-531-lcil531-04
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[5]shipbuildinghistory.com (Colton), New Jersey Shipbuilding yard page, Barber NJ - yard history and per-hull delivery table [other_primary]
- Locator
- New Jersey Shipbuilding page, yard narrative and LCI(L) delivery table row for hull 531
- Finding type
- vessel_history
- Finding
- The yard table records LCI(L) hull 531 for the US Navy, delivered Jan-44, disposition 'Sold 1947'. The yard history documents that New Jersey Shipbuilding was an assembly line for LCIs on the Arthur Kill at Barber, that management was taken over by Todd Shipyards in 1942 at the Navy's request, and that the yard closed after the war. Corroborates builder identity and adds a post-disposal 'sold 1947' data point NavSource lacks.
- Verification
- partial
- Role
- context
- Documentation level
- ship_specific
- Accessed
- 2026-09-30
- Study period
- 1943-1947
- Population
- New Jersey Shipbuilding construction trades, Barber NJ (1943-44)
- Limitations
- Reputable secondary compilation (Tim Colton's shipbuilding-history reference), not a primary registry. 'Sold 1947' vs NavSource 'fate unknown' is an unresolved minor conflict - likely the Maritime Commission sale completing, but no disposal contract was located. No asbestos content.
- Atlas source
- true
- Evidence ID
- ev-uss-lci-l-531-lcil531-05
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[6]uboat.net Allied Warships entry, USS LCI(L)-531 (LCI(L)-531), LCI 351 class [other_primary]
- Locator
- uboat.net ship/21595.html data table
- Finding type
- vessel_history
- Finding
- Cross-check corroboration: uboat.net lists this hull as built by New Jersey Shipbuilding Corp. (Barber, NJ); ordered 22 March 1943; laid down 7 December 1943; launched 1 January 1944; commissioned 8 January 1944; reclassified LC(FF) Landing Craft Flotilla Flagship on 31 December 1944. Matches the NavSource milestone sequence and adds the contract/order date.
- Verification
- partial
- Role
- context
- Documentation level
- ship_specific
- Accessed
- 2026-09-30
- Study period
- 1943-1944
- Limitations
- Secondary compilation corroborating NavSource; the 'ordered 22 Mar 1943' date is not independently verified against a contract record. No service narrative beyond reclassification; no asbestos content.
- Atlas source
- true
- Evidence ID
- ev-uss-lci-l-531-lcil531-06
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[7]Era inference built on: NavSource specification block (two sets of 4 GM diesels, 1,600 BHP, twin screws - no steam plant); HyperWar ONI-derived LC(FF)/LCI(L)-351 class specs; shipbuildinghistory yard record (emergency LCI yard, Todd-managed); GAO HRD-80-2 program context (ev-08) [other_primary]
- Locator
- NavSource 10/15/150531.htm specifications; ibiblio ships-lc.html LCI(L)-351/LC(FF) spec blocks; shipbuildinghistory New Jersey Shipbuilding page
- Finding type
- asbestos_application
- Finding
- A diesel-powered landing craft built Dec 1943-Jan 1944 at an emergency LCI assembly yard sits inside the WWII-era asbestos-use window. Era-standard asbestos applications aboard small combatants of this period include diesel exhaust lagging, engine-room insulation, gaskets and valve packing, electrical wiring insulation, and interior fireproofing/deck coverings. The diesel plant carries no boilers or steam system - the boiler/turbine lagging pathway of larger combatants does not apply.
- Verification
- inferred
- Role
- supporting
- Documentation level
- class_or_era
- Accessed
- 2026-09-30
- Study period
- 1943-1947
- Population
- New Jersey Shipbuilding construction trades (Dec 1943-Jan 1944); ship's company and embarked troops/staff (1944-46); Maritime Commission disposal and any 1947 purchaser's breakers
- Limitations
- Class/era inference only - no hull-specific insulation survey, material list, work package, or builder specification was located for LCI(L)-531. Names era-standard applications, not confirmed installed materials. No quantity. Small craft of this type carried materially less insulation than steam combatants; no manufacturer attribution for this hull.
- Atlas source
- true
- Evidence ID
- ev-uss-lci-l-531-lcil531-07
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[8]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 to automated fetch)
- 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 (1943-44) and service era.
- 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 - confirmed for this product page in prior batches) - content via product-page description.
- Atlas source
- true
- Evidence ID
- ev-uss-lci-l-531-lcil531-08
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[9]Batch-5252 search ledger (this record): NavSource; NARA Special List 44 (ACPL mirror, printed p. 343); NARA digitized deck-log index; HyperWar ONI-derived roster; U.S. Navy Memorial Navy Log; shipbuildinghistory; uboat.net; NHHC/DANFS; NVR; CourtListener API v4 (opinion + docket, exact-phrase queries); secondary-web litigation sweep [other_primary]
- Locator
- search_ledger rows sl-uss-lci-l-531-lcil531-01 through -11
- Finding type
- historical_record
- Finding
- No qualifying ship-specific asbestos record located: no asbestos survey, abatement contract, hazmat disclosure, or docketed case naming LCI(L)-531, LC(FF)-531, or 'LCI 531' was found in the public sources searched (see search_ledger). CourtListener exact-phrase searches returned zero hits in opinions and zero in dockets for both designation forms; an unquoted fuzzy query returns only name-collisions (e.g., 'LCI International, Inc.', a telecom defendant). The secondary-web sweep surfaced no qualifying litigation and no law-firm listicle naming this hull.
- 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 - it establishes only that no public record was found. The NARA deck logs (3 logbooks, Jan 1944-Jun 1945) and any builder construction records are undigitized leads. Does not establish or defeat any claim of exposure or legal eligibility.
- Atlas source
- true
- Evidence ID
- ev-uss-lci-l-531-lcil531-09