Evidence
8 evidence entries recorded; each entry has a stable permalink (#ev-1 … #ev-8).
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[1]research packet 452-packet.md (1 sources cited) [other_primary]
- Finding type
- vessel_history
- Finding
- Identity packet verdict: VERIFIED — real identity: USS LCI(L)-647 | Hull: 647 | Designation: LCI(L) |
- Verification
- verified
- Role
- supporting
- Documentation level
- ship_specific
- Evidence ID
- uss-lci-l-647-lcil647-pkt-452-packet-md
-
[2]NavSource Online: Amphibious Photo Archive, USS LCI(R)-647 ex USS LCI(L)-647 - construction, commissioning, reclassification, campaign record, occupation/China service, disposal, specifications (history sourced to USS LCI 'Landing Craft Infantry' Vol. II, Turner Publishing, 1995) [other_primary]
- Locator
- NavSource 10/15/150647.htm header block, campaign table, medal table, specifications block, photo captions (Tutuila alongside; TG 52.20 rocket-target chart)
- Finding type
- vessel_history
- Finding
- Documented for this hull: laid down 5 June 1944 at New Jersey Shipbuilding Corp., Barber, NJ; launched 5 July 1944; commissioned USS LCI(L)-647, 11 July 1944, ENS. W. T. Wilroy USN in command; reclassified Landing Craft Infantry (Rocket) LCI(R)-647, 15 March 1945. Assigned Asiatic-Pacific Theater: LCI Flotilla Sixteen (CDR C. E. Coffin USN), LCI Group Forty-Seven, LCI Division Ninety-Three. Campaign: Okinawa Gunto operation - assault and occupation of Okinawa Gunto, 26 March to 30 June 1945. A photo-captioned task-organization chart places 'USS LCI(R)-647' in Task Unit 52.20.4 (North Flank) of the LCI(R) rocket bombardment groups for L-Day of Operation Iceberg. Post-war: Navy Occupation Service 2-25 September 1945; China Service (extended) from September 1945 to 22 January 1946 (date cell garbled on page). Decommissioned and struck: dates unknown. Transferred to the Maritime Commission 26 May 1946 at San Pedro, CA for disposal (PDX-225, 27 September 1946); final disposition unknown. One battle star for WWII service. Specifications: 216 t light / 234 t landing / 389 t loaded; 158' 5.5" x 23' 3"; 16 kt max; two sets of four GM 6051-series-71 diesels (four per shaft), GM reduction gears, twin variable-pitch propellers, 2,320 shp; two diesel-drive 30 kW 120 V DC ship's-service generators. LCI(L) complement 3 officers + 21 enlisted; LCI(R) complement 3 + 31. Photo record: LCI(R)-647 alongside repair ship USS Tutuila (ARG-4) with LCI(R)-705, LCI(M)-802, LCI(M)-803 and LCT-1213, date and location unknown.
- Verification
- verified
- Role
- context
- Documentation level
- ship_specific
- Accessed
- 2026-09-30
- Study period
- 1944-1947
- Population
- New Jersey Shipbuilding construction trades (1944); crew (1944-46); embarked troops (up to 188 as LCI(L)); disposal workforce, San Pedro (1946-47)
- Limitations
- NavSource is a volunteer secondary compilation keyed here to Turner Publishing's LCI history, not a primary registry; its milestone dates generally track official sources but the page carries internal defects (occupation paragraph names 'USS LCI(M)-630' - a template carryover; China-service date cell garbled; the chart caption hyperlinks a 'LCI(R)-769' label to this hull's page while plain text lists 647 in TG 52.20.4 - see ev-07). Contains no asbestos or material content. Decommission and strike dates are explicitly 'date unknown'; post-transfer fate unknown.
- Atlas source
- true
- Evidence ID
- ev-uss-lci-l-647-lcil647-01
-
[3]NHHC, United States Pacific Fleet Organization, 1 May 1945 (republication of the official wartime administrative organization list) [other_primary]
- Locator
- NHHC online reading room, 'United States Pacific Fleet Organization 1 May 1945', LCI Flotilla Sixteen / LCI Group 47 / LCI Division 93 section
- Finding type
- historical_record
- Finding
- The official U.S. Pacific Fleet organization list of 1 May 1945 places 'LCI 647' under LCI Division 93 (marked '(RCM) (R)'), LCI Group 47 (ComLCIGrp 47: Lt. Cdr. H. T. McKnight, USNR), LCI Flotilla Sixteen (Comdr. C. E. Coffin, Jr.), with 'Ens. W. T. Wilroy (USN)' listed as her commanding officer. Division 93 listed six craft: LCI 647, 648 (GF), 706, 763, 764, 1070. This independently confirms the NavSource unit assignments, the LCI(R) conversion in service by 1 May 1945, and Wilroy's command.
- Verification
- verified
- Role
- context
- Documentation level
- ship_specific
- Accessed
- 2026-09-30
- Study period
- 1945-05-01
- Population
- Crew of LCI(R)-647 as of 1 May 1945 (3 officers + 31 enlisted per class spec)
- Limitations
- Organizational snapshot only - no operational narrative and no material content. Confirms administrative assignment on a single date (1 May 1945). The group commander's initials read 'H. T. McKnight' here vs 'G. T. McKnight' on NavSource - discrepancy unresolved (see gaps).
- Atlas source
- true
- Evidence ID
- ev-uss-lci-l-647-lcil647-02
-
[4]NARA Catalog: 'LCI-647 - Report of operations in the occupation of the Okinawa Gunto, Ryukyu Islands, 5/10/45-6/21/45' (NAID 77590722, RG 38 WWII War Diaries, micro serial 152507, Roll A1982, dated 6/29/1945); plus digitized muster rolls LCI(L) 647 (NAID 120196540) and LCI(R) 647 (NAID 120196562), RG 24; index container 'USS K-1 (SSK-1) to USS LCI(R)-651' (NAID 118967602); parent-unit war diaries COM LCI(L) GR 47 Dec 1944 (NAID 139812672), COM LCI(R) GR 47 Apr 1945 (NAID 140026851), COM LCI(R) GR 47 FLOT 16 May-Jun 1945 (NAID 83533736), and COM LCI(R) GR 47 Okinawa operations report 5/1-6/22/45 (NAID 101713706) [other_primary]
- Locator
- catalog.archives.gov NAIDs 77590722, 120196540, 120196562, 118967602, 139812672, 140026851, 83533736, 101713706
- Finding type
- historical_record
- Finding
- NARA holds and has digitized ship-authored and ship-covering records for this hull, all flagged 'Available to access online' in the catalog: (1) the ship's own action report covering her operations in the occupation of the Okinawa Gunto, 10 May - 21 June 1945; (2) muster rolls under both designations (LCI(L) 647 and LCI(R) 647) - quarterly personnel rosters; (3) a muster-roll index container spanning hulls through LCI(R)-651; (4) war diaries and an operations report of her parent unit, COM LCI(R) Group 47 / Flotilla 16, covering December 1944, April 1945 (the Okinawa assault month), and May-June 1945. These are the primary-document base for her service and crew population.
- Verification
- partial
- Role
- archival_lead
- Documentation level
- ship_specific
- Accessed
- 2026-09-30
- Study period
- 1944-1945 (record coverage)
- Population
- Crew named on the quarterly muster rolls (1944-46); personnel named in the ship's action report
- Limitations
- Archival lead: catalog-level metadata (titles, dates, serials, record groups, roll numbers) verified live in the catalog; page-image contents were not transcribed this session. These are operational and personnel records - not material surveys - and none is expected to state asbestos content. Deck logs for this hull were NOT located among NARA's digitized deck-log file units (muster rolls and reports surfaced instead).
- Atlas source
- true
- Evidence ID
- ev-uss-lci-l-647-lcil647-03
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[5]Era inference built on: NavSource specifications for this hull (LCI(L)-351 class; GM diesel plant, no steam); Naval Marine Archive yard-build list for New Jersey Shipbuilding, Barber NJ (hull 647, delivered Jul-44, 'Struck 1946'); GAO HRD-80-2 Navy asbestos program context (see ev-05) [other_primary]
- Locator
- NavSource specifications block; navalmarinearchive.com NJ Shipbuilding build list row for hull 647; GAO HRD-80-2 product page
- Finding type
- asbestos_application
- Finding
- A landing craft built June-July 1944 at a wartime emergency yard sits inside the Navy's documented asbestos era (substitution of alternative insulation did not begin until the early 1970s). Era-standard asbestos-relevant applications aboard a small diesel-powered amphibious craft of this period were machinery and diesel-exhaust lagging, gaskets, valve packing, thermal insulation in accommodation and magazine spaces, and electrical insulation - all within a 158-foot confined steel hull. She carried no steam plant, so the boiler/steam-line lagging pathway of steam vessels does not apply.
- Verification
- inferred
- Role
- supporting
- Documentation level
- class_or_era
- Accessed
- 2026-09-30
- Study period
- 1944-1947
- Population
- New Jersey Shipbuilding construction trades (1944); crew (1944-46); conversion trades at the unknown March 1945 conversion site; disposal workforce (1946-47)
- Limitations
- Class/era inference only - no hull-specific insulation survey, material list, or work package located for LCI(L)-647/LCI(R)-647. Names era-standard applications, not confirmed installed materials. No quantity. No manufacturer attribution for this hull. The March 1945 LCI(R) conversion (rocket launchers added) is an undocumented work event - location and extent of any yard work for the conversion are not in the public record located.
- Atlas source
- true
- Evidence ID
- ev-uss-lci-l-647-lcil647-04
-
[6]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 (June-July 1944) 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 (gao.gov blocks automated fetch, HTTP 403, confirmed 2026-09-30) - content via product-page description.
- Atlas source
- true
- Evidence ID
- ev-uss-lci-l-647-lcil647-05
-
[7]Batch-5372 search ledger (this record): NavSource hull page (live scrape); NHHC DANFS candidate URLs (404 - no DANFS entry exists); hazegray DANFS amphibious index (no LCIL-647 entry; only six LCIL hulls carry DANFS entries); NHHC Pacific Fleet Organization 1 May 1945; NARA catalog (digitized muster rolls, ship's own Okinawa action report, parent-unit war diaries); CourtListener API v4 authenticated searches (four queries, all zero); NVR (no entry - disposed 1946); Wikipedia (no article); usslci.org association site (no hull page); secondary web sweep (marketing listicles only) [other_primary]
- Locator
- search_ledger rows sl-uss-lci-l-647-lcil647-01 through sl-uss-lci-l-647-lcil647-11
- Finding type
- historical_record
- Finding
- No qualifying ship-specific asbestos record located: no asbestos survey, abatement contract, hazmat disclosure, or litigation naming LCI(L)-647/LCI(R)-647 was found in the public sources searched. CourtListener was searched with authentication: opinion queries '"LCI(L)-647" OR "LCI(R)-647" OR "LCI-647"' and 'asbestos "LCI(L)"' returned 0 hits; docket queries '"LCI(R)-647"' and '"LCI-647" OR "LCI 647"' returned 0 hits - a genuine negative result, not a block. The digitized NARA records for this hull are operational and personnel records, not materials documentation. NavSource's Turner-derived history contains no materials content. No law-firm or marketing page naming this hull was located in the web sweep.
- 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 - 1944 wartime construction sits squarely in the documented asbestos era. Undigitized leads remain: the ship's own action report and muster rolls (cataloged but not transcribed), the Maritime Commission disposal file (PDX-225) naming her buyer, and any BuShips conversion records for the March 1945 rocket refit. Does not establish or defeat any claim of exposure or legal eligibility.
- Atlas source
- true
- Evidence ID
- ev-uss-lci-l-647-lcil647-06
-
[8]Source-internal defect check on NavSource 10/15/150647.htm: occupation-service paragraph names 'USS LCI(M)-630'; China Service medal cell reads '22 to 30 September 1945 to 22 January 1946'; TG 52.20.3 chart caption hyperlinks a 'LCI(R)-769' label to this hull's page (150647.htm) while TG 52.20.4 plain text lists 'USS LCI(R)-647'; group commander printed 'G. T. McKnight' vs 'H. T. McKnight' in the official 1 May 1945 fleet organization [other_primary]
- Locator
- NavSource 10/15/150647.htm occupation-service paragraph, medal table, and TG 52.20 chart caption; NHHC Pacific Fleet Organization 1 May 1945
- Finding type
- historical_record
- Finding
- CORRECTION (source-internal): NavSource's occupation-service paragraph on this hull's page names 'USS LCI(M)-630' - a template carryover; the occupation/China medal dates and award ribbons on the page belong to this hull (the China Service Medal (extended) and Navy Occupation Medal (Asia clasp) both appear in the page's awards block). The China Service date cell is garbled ('22 to 30 September 1945 to 22 January 1946') - read as beginning 22 September 1945 and ending 22 January 1946. In the Operation Iceberg task chart, the plain-text entry 'USS LCI(R)-647' under TG 52.20.4 (North Flank) is the reliable datum; the adjacent 'LCI(R)-769' caption label hyperlinked to this page is a NavSource markup slip. Group-commander initials differ between sources (G. T. vs H. T. McKnight); the official document's 'H. T.' is carried.
- Verification
- partial
- Role
- correction
- Documentation level
- ship_specific
- Accessed
- 2026-09-30
- Study period
- 1945-1946 (corrected date window)
- Limitations
- Corrects transcription and markup defects so they are not propagated; none of the corrections changes the hull's operational record. The exact China Service end-date formatting and the TG 52.20.3 '769' label remain unresolved at source. No asbestos content.
- Atlas source
- true
- Evidence ID
- ev-uss-lci-l-647-lcil647-07