Evidence
12 evidence entries recorded; each entry has a stable permalink (#ev-1 … #ev-12).
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[1]research packet 812-packet.md (1 sources cited) [other_primary]
- Finding type
- vessel_history
- Finding
- Identity packet verdict: VERIFIED
- Verification
- verified
- Role
- supporting
- Documentation level
- ship_specific
- Evidence ID
- uss-lci-l-546-lcil546-pkt-812-packet-md
-
[2]NavSource Online: Amphibious Photo Archive, USS LCI(G)-546 ex USS LCI(L)-546 - designation timeline, campaign table, awards, specifications, contributed photography [other_primary]
- Locator
- NavSource 10/15/150546.htm header block, campaign table, specifications block, and photo captions
- Finding type
- vessel_history
- Finding
- NavSource timeline for this hull: laid down 31 December 1943 at New Jersey Shipbuilding Corp., Barber, N.J.; launched 28 January 1944; commissioned USS LCI(L)-546, 3 February 1944. Asiatic-Pacific campaigns: Western New Guinea operations - Cape Sansapor operation 31 July and 1 August 1944, Morotai landings 15 September 1944; Leyte operation - Leyte landings 19 to 29 November 1944; Consolidation and capture of Southern Philippines - Visayan Island landings 18 March to 1 April 1945. Reclassified LCI(G)-546, 15 July 1945; reverted to LCI(L)-546, 10 September 1945; decommissioned date unknown; stricken 13 December 1946; transferred to Maritime Commission 5 November 1947; final disposition fate unknown; three battle stars. Awards: American Campaign Medal, Asiatic-Pacific Campaign Medal (3 stars), WWII Victory Medal, Philippine Presidential Unit Citation, Philippine Liberation Medal (2). Radio call sign November-Whiskey-Echo-Delta (NWED). Spec block: 216 t. light/234 t. landing/389 t. loaded; 158'5.5" x 23'3"; 16 kts max/14 continuous; LCI(L) complement 3+21, LCI(G) 5+65, troops 6+182; propulsion two sets of 4 GM diesels per shaft, 1,600 BHP, twin variable pitch propellers. Photographs: crew portrait; convoy en route Borneo 8 June 1945; landing view at Borneo June 1945 (contributed by Dean Bruce for grandfather Louis Adams Bruce SC/2c(T)); LCI(G)-546 moored in a nest of nine LCI(G)s plus LCI(L)-38 at Pearl Harbor, July 1945 (from LCI National Association newsletter 'The Elsie Item', June 1996). Page history source cited: 'USS LCI Landing Craft Infantry Vol. II', Turner Publishing 1995.
- Verification
- verified
- Role
- context
- Documentation level
- ship_specific
- Accessed
- 2026-09-30
- Study period
- 1943-1947
- Population
- NJSB construction trades (1943-44); crew (1944-46); embarked troops (1944-45); post-war MARCOM handlers (1946-47)
- Limitations
- NavSource is a volunteer secondary compilation, not a primary registry; its milestones are corroborated here by shipbuildinghistory.com (builder, Feb-44, struck 1946) and by NARA primary records (action reports, muster rolls). Decommissioned 'date unknown' is refined but not fixed by the muster-roll cover annotation (ev-04). Borneo June-1945 photographs are contemporaneous captions contributed by a crew member's family - ship-level primary content but not official records. Contains no asbestos content.
- Atlas source
- true
- Evidence ID
- ev-uss-lci-l-546-01
-
[3]National Archives, 'Special List #44, by Ship Numbers' (official finding aid to Navy logbooks in NARA custody) - deck-log inventory entry for LCI(L)-546 [other_primary]
- Locator
- sl-44-ship-number.pdf, PDF page 25, LCI(L) sequence; ACPL scan display page 369 ('Ships with Symbol and Number Designations', p.8)
- Finding type
- historical_record
- Finding
- The official NARA finding aid lists Navy deck logs for LCI(L)-546 covering 2/3/1944 - 12/31/1945 (PDF page 25): 'LCI(L)-546 2/3/1944 12/31/1945'. The companion scanned edition of Special List 44 (ACPL Genealogy Center scan of the 1978 printed volume, 'Ships with Symbol and Number Designations' p.8) lists the same span with 3 logbooks. This establishes that three deck logs for this hull exist in NARA custody (RG 24, Bureau of Naval Personnel logbooks), spanning her commissioned service February 1944 through end-1945.
- Verification
- verified
- Role
- supporting
- Documentation level
- ship_specific
- Accessed
- 2026-09-30
- Study period
- 1944-02-03 to 1945-12-31 (log coverage)
- Population
- crew (1944-45, period covered by logs)
- Limitations
- Log-COVERAGE dates are custody dates for existing logbooks, not assumed commissioning/decommissioning dates - commissioning 3 February 1944 is independently documented (ev-01), but the 12/31/1945 end is a coverage boundary only (her service continued into 1946 per the muster-roll 'Final' annotation, ev-04). Logs are archival holdings, not yet verified page-by-page; not digitized in the public catalog. No asbestos content in the finding aid itself.
- Atlas source
- true
- Evidence ID
- ev-uss-lci-l-546-02
-
[4]NARA Catalog, RG 38 (Records of the Office of the Chief of Naval Operations), series 'World War II War Diaries, Other Operational Records and Histories' (NAID 4697018) - four digitized ship-specific action reports: NAID 139773471 (Morotai), NAID 633406581 (Panay), NAID 101711198 (Brunei Bay AA), NAID 140077974 (Miri-Lutong) [other_primary]
- Locator
- catalog.archives.gov IDs 139773471, 633406581, 101711198, 140077974; images read: morotai report serial 99353 p.1; panay report serial 117509 p.1; AA report serial 129494 pp.1&3
- Finding type
- historical_record
- Finding
- Digitized primary action reports for this hull, image-verified: (1) 'USS LCI(L) 546' letterhead, 28 September 1944, CO's action report for the Morotai Island invasion - ship 'participated in the subject action as Flagship for LCI(L)s in the Right Flank Group'; underway from Maffin Bay 11 September 1944 under CTF 77 Operation Plan 8-44; D-day 15 September lay off the beach aiding LCI(L) waves, went alongside LCI(L)-747 assisting its retraction; returned via Cape Sansapor to Hollandia, anchored Jautefa Bay 22 September; no ammunition expended, no damage, no casualties; signed William B. Campbell, Commanding Officer. (2) 'USS LCI(L) 546' letterhead, 20 March 1945, Action Report - PANAY Operation: embarked General Shoe and aide at Lingayen Gulf 14-15 March; convoy station astern of LCI(R)-74; took LCM in tow 17 March; tow cast off 0712 18 March; at 0920 ordered to Red Beach to assist LCI(L)-663 in beaching; grounded on a sand bar off the beach 0937-0939, cleared and stood by; anchored off Red Beach 1525; no ammunition, damage, or casualties; signed H. K. Wells, Lieut.(jg), USNR. (3) 'SPECIAL ACTION REPORT', USS LCI(L) 546, 14 June 1945, Brunei Bay, Borneo: night AA action - single 'RUFE' floatplane spotted by eye in army searchlight beams; one 20mm gun, pointer control, visual spotting/ranging, manual firing, 50 rounds expended; aircraft 'hit the water and exploded' astern (diagram marks CRASH); signed H. K. Wells, Lt.(jg), USNR, Commanding Officer. (4) Report of operations in the Miri-Lutong Area, North Borneo, action 20 June 1945 (catalog date 22 June 1945; serial 4-45).
- Verification
- verified
- Role
- context
- Documentation level
- ship_specific
- Accessed
- 2026-09-30
- Study period
- 1944-09-11 to 1945-06-22
- Population
- ship's company incl. COs Lt.(jg) W.B. Campbell (1944) and Lt.(jg) H.K. Wells (1945); embarked Army personnel (Gen. Shoe party, Panay)
- Limitations
- Primary ship documents, cataloged at file-unit level under RG 38 series 4697018 with partner-digitized images (Fold3/Ancestry via NARA). Report texts verified at image level this session. The AA form's handwritten action date is ambiguous (reads June 14 or 24); the typed report-signature date and catalog title both give 14 June 1945. Borneo operations (Brunei Bay, Miri-Lutong) are not among the three battle-star campaigns listed by NavSource - the reports document participation, not star credit. No asbestos content.
- Atlas source
- true
- Evidence ID
- ev-uss-lci-l-546-03
-
[5]NARA Catalog, RG 24 (Records of the Bureau of Naval Personnel), series 'Muster Rolls of U.S. Navy Ships, Stations, and Other Naval Activities' (NAID 594996) - 'LCI(L) 546 - Muster Rolls', 112 digitized images [other_primary]
- Locator
- catalog.archives.gov/id/120192748 - cover sheet (NAVPERS 605b) annotated 'Com. 2-3-44 To 10-1-46 (Final)'; first roll dated 1944 February 03
- Finding type
- historical_record
- Finding
- The ship's muster rolls are digitized (112 scans via Ancestry partnership), beginning with the commissioning-day roll dated 3 February 1944. The file-unit cover sheet is annotated 'Com. 2-3-44 To 10-1-46 (Final)' - i.e., the roll series runs from commissioning (2-3-44) through a final roll dated 1 October 1946, which coincides with her administrative end of service (stricken 13 December 1946).
- Verification
- verified
- Role
- supporting
- Documentation level
- ship_specific
- Accessed
- 2026-09-30
- Study period
- 1944-02-03 to 1946-10-01
- Population
- ship's company, commissioned span 1944-1946
- Limitations
- The 'Final' 10-1-46 annotation documents the LAST muster roll, not an explicit decommissioning date - decommissioning remains 'date unknown' but is narrowed to on/around 1 October 1946. Individual roll pages were spot-checked at image level (cover and commissioning roll), not transcribed in full - named-crew and headcount data are available but not extracted here. No asbestos content.
- Atlas source
- true
- Evidence ID
- ev-uss-lci-l-546-04
-
[6]NARA Catalog file unit 'USS LCI (L) 546 - War Diary, 11/1-30/43' (RG 38, series 4697018) - CORRECTION: contents are USS LCI(L)-456's November 1943 war diary, not this hull's [other_primary]
- Locator
- catalog.archives.gov/id/139732985 - images 1053 (2 Nov, Solomons ATB), 1057 (5 Nov, Solomons ATB), 1083 (30 Nov, Key West); microfilm serial 61415 matches catalog note
- Finding type
- historical_record
- Finding
- CORRECTION: NARA file unit NAID 139732985 is cataloged as 'USS LCI (L) 546 - War Diary, 11/1-30/43', but its 31 digitized pages document USS LCI(L)-456. Each daily page is headed 'UNITED STATES SHIP ... LCI(L) 456' and records a commissioned, operating vessel: moored at Solomons Amphibious Training Base, Maryland, on 5 November 1943 (38 deg 20' N, 76 deg 27' W), alongside LCI(L)-466; then moored at Clyde Mallory Pier, Key West, Florida, on 30 November 1943 and underway in convoy at 8 knots. LCI(L)-546 was not laid down until 31 December 1943 - she did not exist in November 1943. LCI(L)-456 (same builder, commissioned 7 September 1943) matches the timeline exactly, and its own November 1943 daily pages are not found under its own catalog entries (NAIDs 135954539, 135964534, 78224058). The handwriting digit '4' vs '5' in '456' is the likely cataloging error source.
- Verification
- verified
- Role
- correction
- Documentation level
- ship_specific
- Accessed
- 2026-09-30
- Study period
- 1943-11-01 to 1943-11-30
- Population
- USS LCI(L)-456 crew (diary subject), Ens. Charles L. Myers USNR (diary officer), Lt.(jg) Wilbur M. Wilson USNR (approving CO)
- Limitations
- Established by direct reading of three digitized diary pages (images 1053, 1057, 1083) this session - page headers, positions, and movements are internally consistent with 456, not 546. NARA has not been formally notified; the miscataloging stands as of 2026-09-30. Researchers relying on catalog titles alone would mis-attribute 456's Solomons-Key West transit to 546. No asbestos content.
- Atlas source
- true
- Evidence ID
- ev-uss-lci-l-546-05
-
[7]National Park Service, National Register of Historic Places nomination for USS LCI-713 (NRIS 07000300, listed 2007-04-12, Clatsop County, OR) - official class-design and construction documentation for the sole surviving original-configuration LCI [nps]
- Locator
- NRHP 10-900a nomination, Section 8 'Engineering Significance' narrative and ENGINEERING section
- Finding type
- historical_record
- Finding
- Official documentation of the LCI(L) type's austere war-emergency design: about 30 days from concept to accepted blueprints; allocated to small shipyards (fishing-boat, yacht, or new emergency facilities) because regular yards were full; design kept to no more than five plate angles and plate thicknesses with no specialized equipment - 'the ships propulsion consisted of eight General Motors 6-71 truck diesel engines, hooked together to provide power to two propeller shafts. The cook stoves were also diesel-powered and of a type commercially available.' Engine exhaust used both above-water and underwater systems (underwater to lessen engine noise during landings). 1,051 LCI hulls were built mid-1942 through fall 1944 at ten shipyards. The full nomination text contains ZERO occurrences of 'asbestos', 'insulation', or 'lagging'.
- Verification
- verified
- Role
- context
- Documentation level
- class_or_era
- Accessed
- 2026-09-30
- Study period
- 1942-2007 (nomination coverage; design era 1942-45)
- Population
- LCI construction trades at ten yards (1942-44); LCI crews and embarked troops class-wide
- Limitations
- Class-level document about sistership LCI-713, not this hull; used for design/propulsion context only. Its silence on asbestos is a class-document negative, not proof this hull carried none - austere design implies a SMALLER asbestos load than steam combatants, not zero (exhaust lagging, gaskets, electrical insulation remained plausible era applications). Restoration-era condition of LCI-713 is not evidence of this hull's materials.
- Atlas source
- true
- Evidence ID
- ev-uss-lci-l-546-06
-
[8]Era inference built on: NavSource/NRHP specifications (diesel LCI, no steam plant); NPS NRHP LCI-713 class documentation (austere off-the-shelf design); GAO HRD-80-2 Navy asbestos-era program context (see ev-08) [other_primary]
- Locator
- NRHP LCI-713 nomination engineering narrative; NavSource specifications block; GAO HRD-80-2 product page
- Finding type
- asbestos_application
- Finding
- A diesel-powered welded-steel landing craft built December 1943 - February 1944 sits inside the Navy's documented asbestos-use era. Era-consistent applications aboard a small diesel combatant of this period were limited: exhaust-system lagging (including the underwater exhaust line used for quiet landings), gaskets and valve packing, and electrical insulation. As a diesel craft she carried no steam plant - the boiler/turbine lagging pathway of steam vessels does not apply, and the austere ≤5-plate-angle off-the-shelf design implies a materially smaller asbestos footprint than a steam warship.
- Verification
- inferred
- Role
- supporting
- Documentation level
- class_or_era
- Accessed
- 2026-09-30
- Study period
- 1943-1947
- Population
- NJSB construction trades (1943-44); ship's company (1944-46); embarked troops (1944-45); MARCOM-era handlers
- Limitations
- Class/era inference only - no hull-specific insulation survey, material list, or work package located for LCI(L)-546. Names era-standard applications, not confirmed installed materials; no quantity; no manufacturer attribution. The LCI-713 NRHP nomination's zero asbestos mentions is consistent with, but does not prove, a small-or-absent load.
- Atlas source
- true
- Evidence ID
- ev-uss-lci-l-546-07
-
[9]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, HTTP 403)
- 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 (1944-46).
- 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 this session - gao.gov blocks automated fetch (HTTP 403), content via product-page description.
- Atlas source
- true
- Evidence ID
- ev-uss-lci-l-546-08
-
[10]ShipbuildingHistory.com (T. Colton), 'New Jersey Shipbuilding, Barber NJ' yard history and hull table - builder corroboration and yard context [other_primary]
- Locator
- shipbuildinghistory.com New Jersey Shipbuilding page - yard description paragraph and hull table row for 546
- Finding type
- vessel_history
- Finding
- Yard table lists 'LCI(L) | 546 | US Navy | Landing Craft | Feb-44 | Struck 1946' - corroborating the builder and delivery/contract end dates. The yard history documents: New Jersey Shipbuilding was 'an assembly line for LCIs on Arthur Kill, in Barber, a community immediately to the east of Perth Amboy which was later absorbed into Perth Amboy and is now called Maurer. Management of the yard was taken over by Todd Shipyards in 1942, at the Navy's request, and was closed after the war.' The hull table lists 375 LCI(L)s built at this yard (runs 238-318, 423-657, 782-821, 866-884).
- Verification
- verified
- Role
- context
- Documentation level
- ship_specific
- Accessed
- 2026-09-30
- Study period
- 1942-1946
- Population
- New Jersey Shipbuilding trades (1942-45, Todd-managed)
- Limitations
- Secondary compilation (specialist reference), not a primary registry - used here for yard corroboration and builder context; milestone dates track NavSource. 'Feb-44' is the yard's delivery month notation, consistent with the 3 February 1944 commissioning. No asbestos content. The 375-hull count is derived by tabulating the page's own hull table this session.
- Atlas source
- true
- Evidence ID
- ev-uss-lci-l-546-09
-
[11]uboat.net Allied Warships of WWII, 'USS LCI(L)-546' - operation/task-organization detail and commanding-officer corroboration [other_primary]
- Locator
- uboat.net/allies/warships/ship/21611.html - ship data block and 'Notable events' (30 Jul 1944 Operation Globetrotter task organization)
- Finding type
- vessel_history
- Finding
- Confirms builder (New Jersey Shipbuilding Corp., Barber NJ), laid down 31 Dec 1943, launched 28 Jan 1944, commissioned 3 Feb 1944, LCI(G) reclassification 15 July 1945. Documents this hull at Operation Globetrotter (Cape Sansapor, 30 July 1944) inside Task Unit 77.2.5, the LCI Unit of TF 77's Main Body: 'USS LCI(L)-546 (Lt.(jg) W.B. Campbell, USNR with, COMLCIFLOT 8, T/Cdr. F.B.C. Martin, USN, on board)' - the ship carried the LCI(L) Flotilla 8 commander, consistent with her flagship role in the Morotai action report (ev-03).
- Verification
- verified
- Role
- context
- Documentation level
- ship_specific
- Accessed
- 2026-09-30
- Study period
- 1944
- Population
- Lt.(jg) W.B. Campbell USNR (CO, 1944); COMLCIFLOT 8 staff embarked
- Limitations
- Volunteer-compiled secondary operational reference built from action reports - authoritative for order-of-battle detail but secondary; the Campbell command attribution is independently corroborated by Campbell's own signature on the Morotai report (ev-03). No asbestos content.
- Atlas source
- true
- Evidence ID
- ev-uss-lci-l-546-10
-
[12]Batch-5267 search ledger (this record): NARA SL44 ship-number PDF (live); NARA Catalog file units incl. six ship-specific records; NavSource (live); shipbuildinghistory; uboat.net; NPS NRHP LCI-713; CourtListener exact-hull queries; NVR; secondary web sweep [other_primary]
- Locator
- search_ledger rows sl-uss-lci-l-546-01 through -13
- Finding type
- historical_record
- Finding
- No qualifying ship-specific asbestos record located: no asbestos survey, abatement contract, hazmat disclosure, or verified litigation naming USS LCI(L)-546 / LCI(G)-546 was found in the public sources searched. CourtListener (authenticated API v4) returned ZERO hits on all exact-hull queries run this session - opinions: "LCI(L)-546", "LCI-546", "LCI(G)-546", "LCI(L) 546", "LCI 546" asbestos, asbestos "LCI(L)"; dockets: "LCI(L)-546" - and a broad unquoted pass returned only name collisions (e.g., LCI International, unrelated numerals). Secondary web sweeps surfaced no law-firm/marketing asbestos claims for this hull at all (unlike many fleet-mates). Deck logs exist (3 logbooks, NARA custody) but are undigitized; muster rolls and four action reports are digitized and contain no asbestos references.
- 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 - the record base for a 158-ft landing craft is thin by nature. One query variant ("USS LCI-546", type=o) remained unrun when fleet-wide CourtListener pacing resumed; all other variants completed with zero hits. Deck-log full text, BuShips work packages, and the 1947 MARCOM disposal record are undigitized leads. Does not establish or defeat any claim of exposure or legal eligibility.
- Atlas source
- true
- Evidence ID
- ev-uss-lci-l-546-11