Evidence
13 evidence entries recorded; each entry has a stable permalink (#ev-1 … #ev-13).
-
[1]research packet 451-packet.md (3 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-638-lcil638-pkt-451-packet-md
-
[2]Bureau of Ships, Ships' Data, U.S. Naval Vessels, Vol. II (NAVSHIPS 250-011, 15 April 1945), LCI(M) build roster and roster/index conversion lines (shipscribe.com scan) [other_primary]
- Locator
- SDB1945v2: LCI(M) build roster p.215 (keel/launch/commission row); index conversion lines under LCI(L) and LCI(G) rosters; LCI(L) 351-1098 and LCI(M) design tables pp.200-214
- Finding type
- vessel_history
- Finding
- The official BuShips roster carries the hull as 'LCI(M)638 (ex-LCI(L)638, ex-LCI(G)638)' built by New Jersey S.B. Corp., Barber: keel laid 24 May 44, launched 20 Jun 44, first commission 26 Jun 44. The volume's index lists the conversion chain twice: 'LCI(L)638 Now LCI(M)638' in the LCI(L) roster and 'LCI(G)638 Now LCI(M)638' in the LCI(G) roster.
- Verification
- verified
- Role
- supporting
- Documentation level
- ship_specific
- Accessed
- 2026-09-30
- Study period
- 1944-1945
- Population
- n/a
- Limitations
- Official 1945 roster data - authoritative for builder, dates, and the designation chain as of April 1945; predates all post-war events. The LCI(G) stage's reclassification date is not stated (rosters show conversions, not dates). Does not address materials or asbestos.
- Atlas source
- true
- Evidence ID
- ev-uss-lci-l-638-lcil638-01
-
[3]NavSource Online: Amphibious Photo Archive, USS LCI(M)-638 ex USS LCI(L)-638 (page history sourced to 'USS LCI Landing Craft Infantry' Vol. II, Turner Publishing, 1995) [other_primary]
- Locator
- NavSource 10/15/150638.htm - full page (timeline, campaign table, occupation/China dates, specifications block, photo captions)
- Finding type
- vessel_history
- Finding
- LCI(L)-351 class; laid down 24 May 1944 New Jersey Ship Building Corp., Barber, N.J.; launched 20 June 1944; commissioned USS LCI(L)-638, 26 June 1944, LTjg. K. L. Bush USNR in command; reclassified LCI(M)-638 30 April 1945; Asiatic-Pacific service with LCI Flotilla Twenty-One / Group Sixty-One / Division One Hundred Twenty-One; Iwo Jima operation (19-26 Feb 1945) and Okinawa Gunto operation (26 Mar-14 Jun 1945); occupation service 19 Nov 1945-21 Mar 1946 and 26 Mar-15 Apr 1946, China service 22-25 Mar 1946; reclassified LCI(L)-638 14 November 1949; decommissioned November 1953; laid up Atlantic Reserve Fleet, Green Cove Springs, FL; struck date unknown; final disposition unknown; two battle stars. Specifications include diesel propulsion (8 x GM 6051-series-71 diesels, 2 shafts, 2,320 shp) and LCI(M) armament of three 4.2-inch chemical mortars in well-deck sand-box mounts with No. 2 troop compartment converted to magazine.
- Verification
- verified
- Role
- supporting
- Documentation level
- ship_specific
- Accessed
- 2026-09-30
- Study period
- 1944-1953
- Population
- Ship's company 4 officers + 24 enlisted (LCI(L)) / 49 enlisted (LCI(M)); embarked troops 6 officers + 182 enlisted
- Limitations
- Secondary compilation (Turner Publishing 1995 LCI history) - the canonical per-hull amphibious reference but not itself a government source; build dates corroborated against BuShips official roster (ev-01). Omits the LCI(G) intermediate designation shown by BuShips; strike date and final disposition not recorded.
- Atlas source
- true
- Evidence ID
- ev-uss-lci-l-638-lcil638-02
-
[4]NARA, WWII War Diaries series (RG 38): LCI(M)-638 - Report of operations in the invasion of Iwo Jima, Bonin Islands, 2/19-26/45 (NAID 140073591; Roll A1690; micro serial 128068; 11 images, digitized) [other_primary]
- Locator
- catalog.archives.gov/id/140073591, image 1 (action-report cover letter); micro serial 128068
- Finding type
- historical_record
- Finding
- The ship's own action report, 'USS LCI (M) 638 ... Action Report, Invasion of Iwo-Jima, 19-26 February 1945' (CONFIDENTIAL cover letter, CO to Cominch, dated 8 March 1945): the ship sailed from Saipan 15 February 1945 in Mortar Support Unit One (TU 52.6.1 - LCI(M)s 630, 631(flag), 632, 638, 756, 1010), arrived off Iwo Jima 0500 on D-Day 19 February, took a firing position on the right flank of the boat lanes, delivered supporting fire H-35 to H+240 hours, then harassing fire and smoke screens until departure 26 February. The report is already styled 'LCI(M) 638' in March 1945.
- Verification
- verified
- Role
- supporting
- Documentation level
- ship_specific
- Accessed
- 2026-09-30
- Study period
- 1945-02 to 1945-03
- Population
- Ship's company during Iwo Jima operation (4 officers + 49 enlisted as LCI(M) per spec)
- Limitations
- Page 1 of the digitized report was read for this record; remaining pages (fire support record enclosures) not reviewed line-by-line. Establishes operations and the LCI(M) designation in use by March 1945 - predating NavSource's formal 30 April 1945 reclassification date (discrepancy in gaps). Operational document; contains no materials or asbestos information.
- Atlas source
- true
- Evidence ID
- ev-uss-lci-l-638-lcil638-03
-
[5]NARA, WWII War Diaries series (RG 38): four digitized action reports of LCI(M)-638 covering the Okinawa Gunto operation - NAID 101702490 (4/1-10/45, Roll A1702), NAID 101715602 (4/11-30/45, Roll A1715), NAID 77475815 (5/1-31/45, Roll A1801), NAID 140084972 (6/1-14/45, Roll A2010) [other_primary]
- Locator
- catalog.archives.gov/id/101702490 ; /id/101715602 ; /id/77475815 ; /id/140084972
- Finding type
- historical_record
- Finding
- Four ship-specific operational reports documenting LCI(M)-638's participation in the Okinawa Gunto operation across its full 26 March-14 June 1945 campaign window are cataloged and digitized in NARA's WWII War Diaries series. Secondary literature (Rielly, American Amphibious Gunboats in WWII, n.31) cites the 4/1-10 April report at p.7.
- Verification
- partial
- Role
- archival_lead
- Documentation level
- ship_specific
- Accessed
- 2026-09-30
- Study period
- 1945-04 to 1945-06
- Population
- Ship's company during Okinawa operation (4 officers + 49 enlisted as LCI(M) per spec)
- Limitations
- Catalog records verified; report contents not reviewed page-by-page this session (the Iwo Jima report, ev-03, was spot-read). These are operational records - they document combat service, not materials or asbestos conditions.
- Atlas source
- true
- Evidence ID
- ev-uss-lci-l-638-lcil638-04
-
[6]NARA, Muster Rolls of U.S. Navy Ships (RG 24, Bureau of Naval Personnel): 'LCI(L) 638 - Muster Rolls' (NAID 120195686; 164 images digitized via Ancestry partnership; first roll dated 30 June 1944 - commissioning week) [other_primary]
- Locator
- catalog.archives.gov/id/120195686
- Finding type
- historical_record
- Finding
- NARA holds and has digitized the muster rolls for LCI(L) 638 - name-by-name personnel records covering the hull's crew from the month of commissioning (June 1944). This is the primary ship-specific source for identifying individuals who served aboard.
- Verification
- verified
- Role
- archival_lead
- Documentation level
- ship_specific
- Accessed
- 2026-09-30
- Study period
- 1944-forward (muster rolls)
- Population
- Crew of LCI(L)/LCI(M)-638, 1944-forward (names and ratings)
- Limitations
- Catalog record verified; 164 images digitized but transcription not started (0/164) and rolls were not reviewed line-by-line. Muster rolls record names and ratings - they contain no asbestos, materials, or exposure information. Establishes personnel presence only.
- Atlas source
- true
- Evidence ID
- ev-uss-lci-l-638-lcil638-05
-
[7]National Park Service, National Register of Historic Places nomination, USS LCI-713 (NRIS 07000300, listed 12 April 2007) - Section 8 LCI program history and construction description [nps]
- Locator
- NRHP nomination continuation sheet, Section 8 pp.2-8 (program history, ten-yard table, hull/systems description)
- Finding type
- historical_record
- Finding
- The official NRHP nomination for sister hull LCI-713 documents the LCI(L)-351 class: approximately 1,051 LCIs built 1942-1944 across ten contract yards, including New Jersey Shipbuilding at Barber, NJ (36 LCIs); LCI design originated with the Bureau of Ships in May 1942; hulls were of all-welded steel plate (~1/4 inch) built for rapid assembly-line production, powered by eight GM 6-71 diesels in two banks of four. The nomination also records that a blueprint file for the LCI-351 class is maintained at the National Archives. The nomination contains no asbestos statement.
- Verification
- verified
- Role
- context
- Documentation level
- class_or_era
- Accessed
- 2026-09-30
- Study period
- 1942-2007
- Population
- LCI construction workforce (ten contract yards, 1942-44); LCI crews
- Limitations
- Class-level official documentation describing the type and the builder's program, not this hull. The nomination's construction survey is of LCI-713 (built George Lawley & Sons, Neponset MA) - yard latitude in construction means per-yard material detail may differ. No asbestos information appears in the document; it does not establish the presence or absence of asbestos aboard any hull.
- Atlas source
- true
- Evidence ID
- ev-uss-lci-l-638-lcil638-06
-
[8]Commander in Chief, U.S. Fleet, 'Capture of Iwo Jima' (Cominch P-0012), chapter on fire-support plan - 'LCI(M) Mortar Plan' section (HyperWar/ibiblio mirror) [other_primary]
- Locator
- Cominch P-0012, 'LCI(M) Mortar Plan' section
- Finding type
- historical_record
- Finding
- The official Cominch report on Iwo Jima describes the LCI(M) concept: after the Marianas operation the Navy developed a craft mounting three 4.2-inch chemical mortars able to proceed to the objective under its own power, for beach-preparation fire and deep support after H-Hour; 18 LCI(M)s were assigned designated firing positions at Iwo Jima with 12 more on call. This documents the weapon system this hull carried in the February 1945 operation and corroborates her own action report (ev-03).
- Verification
- verified
- Role
- context
- Documentation level
- class_or_era
- Accessed
- 2026-09-30
- Study period
- 1945
- Population
- n/a
- Limitations
- Doctrine/context document - describes the LCI(M) type's mission at Iwo Jima; does not name this hull and contains no materials or asbestos information. HyperWar is a transcription mirror of the official publication.
- Atlas source
- true
- Evidence ID
- ev-uss-lci-l-638-lcil638-07
-
[9]Era inference built on: BuShips SDB 1945 v2 LCI(L)/LCI(M) design tables (diesel plant - 8 x GM 6051-series-71, no steam plant); NPS NRHP documentation (all-welded steel construction); Navy/USMC 'Minimum Requirements for Safety and Industrial Health in Contract Shipyards' (1943, asbestos-dust standards applied to contract yards - see ev-10); Owens-Illinois 1944 industrial health survey at sister LCI-program yard Federal Shipbuilding, Kearny NJ (Johns-Manville Superex pipe covering, boiler insulation documented in use - shipyard-exposure-map dataset ev-federal-kearny-ihs-1944); GAO HRD-80-2 (see ev-11) [other_primary]
- Locator
- BuShips SDB1945v2 LCI design tables; NPS NRHP 07000300; shipyards.json federal-shipbuilding-kearny evidence; GAO HRD-80-2 product page
- Finding type
- asbestos_application
- Finding
- A diesel-powered landing craft built May-June 1944 at a wartime Navy contract yard sits inside the documented contract-shipyard asbestos-use era: Navy/USMC 1943 Minimum Requirements imposed asbestos-dust controls on contract yards, and a 1944 Owens-Illinois survey at a sister yard in the same ten-yard LCI program documented asbestos pipe covering and insulation products in use. As a diesel craft with no boilers or steam plant, the boiler/steam-lagging pathway does not apply; era-standard applications aboard a craft of this type were machinery and diesel-exhaust lagging, gaskets, packing, and electrical/accommodation insulation.
- Verification
- inferred
- Role
- supporting
- Documentation level
- class_or_era
- Accessed
- 2026-09-30
- Study period
- 1944-1956
- Population
- NJ Shipbuilding construction trades (1944); crew (1944-53); shipbreakers/reserve-fleet maintenance (1953-)
- Limitations
- Class/era inference only - no hull-specific insulation survey, material list, or build specification located for LCI(L)-638. Names era-standard applications, not confirmed installed materials. No quantity. The Federal Kearny survey documents a different yard than the builder (Barber NJ). Product names are normalized era terms; no manufacturer attribution for this hull.
- Atlas source
- true
- Evidence ID
- ev-uss-lci-l-638-lcil638-08
-
[10]Designation cross-check: BuShips SDB 1945 v2 (index lines 'LCI(L)638 Now LCI(M)638' and 'LCI(G)638 Now LCI(M)638'; build-roster entry 'LCI(M)638 (ex-LCI(L)638, ex-LCI(G)638)') vs HyperWar 'U.S. Navy Landing Ships/Craft 1940-1945' listing ('LCI(G)-638 ... 1944-45 ... Converted to LCI(M)') vs NavSource timeline (LCI(L) -> LCI(M) only) [other_primary]
- Locator
- SDB1945v2 roster/index lines; hyperwar ships-lc.html LCI(G) and LCI(M) tables; NavSource 150638.htm timeline
- Finding type
- vessel_history
- Finding
- The official BuShips April 1945 roster and the HyperWar USN landing-craft listing both record an LCI(G)-638 (gunboat) stage in this hull's designation chain, between LCI(L)-638 and LCI(M)-638. NavSource's published timeline omits the LCI(G) step. Separately, the ship's own 8 March 1945 action report already carries the LCI(M) designation while NavSource dates formal reclassification 30 April 1945 - the mortar conversion evidently preceded the administrative reclassification date.
- Verification
- verified
- Role
- correction
- Documentation level
- ship_specific
- Accessed
- 2026-09-30
- Study period
- 1944-1945
- Population
- n/a
- Limitations
- Correction is against the secondary (NavSource/Turner) timeline; the BuShips record is the primary source. The LCI(G) reclassification date itself is not stated in located sources - SDB rosters show the chain, not transition dates. Whether the hull was physically armed as a gunboat (vs. administrative conversion en route to LCI(M)) is not documented here.
- Atlas source
- true
- Evidence ID
- ev-uss-lci-l-638-lcil638-09
-
[11]Shuman v. United States, 765 F.2d 283 (1st Cir. 1985) - documenting the Navy/U.S. Maritime Commission 'Minimum Requirements for Safety and Industrial Health in Contract Shipyards' (approved Navy 20 Jan 1943, USMC 9 Feb 1943) [court_record]
- Locator
- 765 F.2d 283, background/findings section (Minimum Requirements paragraphs)
- Finding type
- regulatory
- Finding
- The First Circuit documented that in 1943 the Navy, jointly with the Maritime Commission, promulgated 'Minimum Requirements for Safety and Industrial Health in Contract Shipyards' - which 'included standards for the safe use of asbestos and the measurable airborne levels ... which would mandate the use of respirators and ventilation equipment' - and that the Secretary of the Navy expected 'full and complete compliance' at shipyards operating under Navy contracts as well as Navy yards. New Jersey Shipbuilding (Barber, NJ) was a Navy contract yard and built this hull May-June 1944, inside that documented regulatory regime. The court also recorded findings that upper-echelon Navy officials knew 'at least as early as 1940' that asbestos dust posed a significant health hazard.
- Verification
- verified
- Role
- context
- Documentation level
- class_or_era
- Accessed
- 2026-09-30
- Study period
- 1943-1945 (regime); 1985 (opinion)
- Population
- Contract-shipyard workers incl. Navy contract yards (1943-45)
- Limitations
- Regulatory context for the builder's environment during construction - does not name this hull or find asbestos conditions aboard any vessel. Litigation-stage note: the First Circuit REVERSED the district court's judgment for the plaintiff (no assumed duty / discretionary-function analysis); the opinion is cited for its documented account of the wartime standards regime, not as plaintiff-favorable precedent. Cited via Justia mirror - CourtListener opinion lookup was blocked by fleet pacing this session.
- Atlas source
- true
- Evidence ID
- ev-uss-lci-l-638-lcil638-10
-
[12]GAO, Navy Efforts To Protect Workers From Asbestos Exposure, HRD-80-2 (published Oct 18, 1979; released Oct 22, 1979) [gao]
- Locator
- GAO product page HRD-80-2 (full text blocked, HTTP 403)
- Finding type
- gov_survey
- Finding
- GAO reviewed Navy use of asbestos in ships and efforts to protect workers, documenting that asbestos insulation was used extensively aboard Navy ships and that substitution of alternative insulation materials did not begin until the early 1970s - spanning this hull's construction era (1944) and full service life (1944-53).
- 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 (GAO fieldwork centered on Long Beach and Norfolk Naval Shipyards); supports era context only, not any fact specific to this hull. Full report text blocked to direct fetch (HTTP 403, confirmed 2026-09-30); content via product-page description retrieved through Firecrawl.
- Atlas source
- true
- Evidence ID
- ev-uss-lci-l-638-lcil638-11
-
[13]Batch-5362 search ledger (this record): NavSource (live); BuShips SDB 1945 v2 full scan; NARA catalog (muster rolls + five action reports); NPS NRHP nomination LCI-713; Cominch P-0012 (HyperWar); GAO product page; 1st Cir. Shuman opinion (Justia); CourtListener API v4 type=o and type=r (0 results); secondary web sweep [other_primary]
- Locator
- search_ledger rows sl-uss-lci-l-638-lcil638-01 through -14
- Finding type
- historical_record
- Finding
- No qualifying ship-specific asbestos record located: no asbestos survey, abatement contract, hazmat disclosure, or litigation naming USS LCI(L)-638 / LCI(M)-638 / LCI-638 was found in the sources searched (see search_ledger). CourtListener returned zero opinion and zero docket hits across all designation variants - a verified negative for indexed litigation naming the hull, not proof no claim was ever filed.
- 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. Open leads: NARA action-report full text and RG 24 deck logs (not fully reviewed); NARA LCI-351-class blueprint file (referenced by the NPS nomination); builder-level CourtListener query blocked by fleet pacing this session; final disposition unknown, so post-service abatement/scrapping records cannot be ruled in or out. Does not establish or defeat any claim of exposure or legal eligibility.
- Atlas source
- true
- Evidence ID
- ev-uss-lci-l-638-lcil638-12