Evidence
11 evidence entries recorded; each entry has a stable permalink (#ev-1 … #ev-11).
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[1]research packet 464-packet.md (2 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-730-lcil730-pkt-464-packet-md
-
[2]NavSource Online: Amphibious Photo Archive, USS LCI(G)-730 ex USS LCI(L)-730 - construction, designation, assignment, campaign, disposition timeline and specifications [other_primary]
- Locator
- NavSource 10/15/150730.htm header block, campaign table, specifications block, photo caption (1015073001)
- Finding type
- vessel_history
- Finding
- NavSource timeline for this hull: LCI-351 class Landing Craft Infantry (Large); laid down 10 December 1943 at Commercial Iron Works, Portland, OR; launched 16 January 1944; commissioned USS LCI(L)-730, 26 January 1944, LT. W. M. Welsh, USNR, in command; reclassified Landing Craft Infantry (Gunboat) LCI(G)-730, 15 June 1944. Asiatic-Pacific Theater assignments per page: LCI Flotilla Three (1944); LCI Flotilla Six (1945), CDR. A.R. Montgomery USN; LCI Group Eighteen, LCDR. E.L. Yates; LCI Division Thirty-Five (May 1945). Campaign credit: Western Caroline Islands operation - capture and occupation of southern Palau Islands, 6 September to 14 October 1944; one battle star for WWII service. Decommissioned, date unknown; struck from the Naval Register 17 April 1946; transferred to the Maritime Commission 8 March 1948; final disposition fate unknown. Spec block: 246 t. light / 264 landing / 419 loaded; 158'5.5" x 23'3"; 16 kts max; complement LCI(L) 4+24, LCI(G) 5+65, troops 6+182; propulsion two sets of 4 GM 6051-series-71 diesels, 4 per shaft, 2,320 shp, twin variable-pitch propellers; LCI(G) armament 2x40mm, 4x20mm, 6x.50cal, 10x Mk7 rocket launchers. Page photo shows LCI(G)-730 moored near Koror, Malakal Harbor, Palau Islands, with Japanese personnel on shore surrendering to her crew.
- Verification
- verified
- Role
- context
- Documentation level
- ship_specific
- Accessed
- 2026-09-30
- Study period
- 1943-1948
- Population
- Commercial Iron Works construction trades (1943-44); crew (1944-c.1946); embarked troops
- Limitations
- NavSource is a volunteer secondary compilation, not a primary registry; its on-page history credit is USS LCI 'Landing Craft Infantry' Vol. II (Turner Publishing, 1995), not DANFS. The flotilla-assignment line (Flotilla Six 1945 / Group Eighteen / Division Thirty-Five) conflicts with war-diary-documented Flotilla Thirteen flagship service - see ev-10. Contains no asbestos content.
- Atlas source
- true
- Evidence ID
- ev-uss-lci-l-730-lcil730-01
-
[3]Robin L. Rielly, American Amphibious Gunboats in World War II: A History of LCI and LCS(L) Ships in the Pacific (McFarland, 2010) - Palau operations chapter, notes, and Appendix II (builder/conversion tables); text read via erenow.org mirror [reputable_press]
- Locator
- Palau operations chapter (Peleliu/Angaur and Schonian Harbor passages); Notes pp. footnotes 40, 46, 47; Appendix II builder and conversion-location tables
- Finding type
- vessel_history
- Finding
- Published war-diary/action-report-based history documents this hull in detail: at Peleliu, LCI(G)-730 was the (F) flagship of a nine-gunboat group under LCDR E. L. Yates (LCI(G)s 396, 397, 404, 405, 406, 727, 728, 729, 730); at the 17 September 1944 Angaur assault she was the (FF) flotilla flagship of Unit Baker under Commander Morrill attacking Blue Beach. Admiral Reeves made an inspection tour aboard LCI(G)-730 north of Peleliu. At ~0100 on 17 November 1944 the ship repelled a coordinated suicide-swimmer attack in Schonian Harbor (two waves of roughly fifty swimmers towing mines, explosive-laden bamboo rafts, ladders, and grappling hooks; one prisoner taken). On 18 January 1945, when LCI(G)-396 struck a mine exiting Yoo Passage (4 killed, 3 missing, 50 wounded), LCI(G)-730 joined LCI(G)s 728, 729, 732 in the response and made smoke and returned fire against enemy shore batteries during the tow. LCI(G)-730 is listed among gunboats present in the Palaus in August 1945 (with LCI(G)s 406, 566, 729); the formal Palau surrender took place aboard Amick (DE-168) 2 September 1945, and Flotilla Thirteen LCIs departed the Palaus for Pearl Harbor 18 November 1945. Appendix II lists LCI(L)-730 among Commercial Iron Works (Portland, OR) builds (LCI(L)s 725-730, 732, 739-742, 744-749, 751-757, 760, 762-767, 769-776) and lists hulls 727-730 among LCI(G) conversions performed at the Naval Repair Base, San Diego.
- Verification
- verified
- Role
- context
- Documentation level
- ship_specific
- Accessed
- 2026-09-30
- Study period
- 1944-1945
- Population
- LCI(G)-730 crew and Flotilla Thirteen staff (1944-45); flotilla commander LCDR/CDR John H. Morrill and successors
- Limitations
- Published secondary history built on primary war diaries and action reports (footnotes cite 'Commander LCI(L) Flotilla THIRTEEN (U.S.S. LCI(G) 730, Flagship), War Diary for April 1945' and the Flotilla Thirteen August 1945 war diary). Read via erenow.org mirror - the book itself is a McFarland publication. Documents combat operations, not materials; contains no asbestos content.
- Atlas source
- true
- Evidence ID
- ev-uss-lci-l-730-lcil730-02
-
[4]USS LCI National Association, Elsie Item No. 84 (December 2013), 'He Was Our Commodore And We Were His Men' - flagship service of LCI(G)-730 under LCDR John H. Morrill, drawing on Morrill's memoir The Cincinnati and interviews with crew (radar operators Dan Tolar, Russell Packard, Harry T. Wilhoit) [other_primary]
- Locator
- Elsie Item No. 84, pp. 13-18 (article 'He Was Our Commodore And We Were His Men', Parts I-II)
- Finding type
- historical_record
- Finding
- Veterans'-association account documents: LCI(G)-730 was the flagship of LCI Flotilla Thirteen ('Black Cat Flotilla') under LCDR John H. Morrill, who had escaped Corregidor in 1942 and personally requested LCI flotilla command; flotilla training with the Army's 81st Infantry Division off San Luis Obispo, CA (spring 1944); the Black Cats assisting the recapture of Guam (July 1944); the ship inside the bombardment smoke during the first assault waves at Angaur's Blue Beach (17 September 1944); Schonian Harbor mine-clearing by an eleven-swimmer team using a salvaged LCVP; the 17 November 1944 swimmer-saboteur attack and interrogation of the sole prisoner; Japanese officers approaching LCI(G)-730 with surrender documents in late August 1945 (dated fourteen days after 15 August); and radarman Dan Tolar leaving the ship at San Diego in March 1946. Radar operators named: Dan Tolar and Russell 'Deacon' Packard (reported 11 April 1944), Harry T. Wilhoit (June 1944).
- Verification
- verified
- Role
- context
- Documentation level
- ship_specific
- Accessed
- 2026-09-30
- Study period
- 1944-1946
- Population
- LCI(G)-730 crew 1944-46; Flotilla Thirteen staff; embarked 81st Division troops (training)
- Limitations
- Veterans'-association newsletter, not an official record: sourced to the flotilla commander's self-published memoir (Morrill, The Cincinnati, 1994) plus interviews with three former crew. The Guam claim and the late-August surrender-document approach are not corroborated by the official campaign-star listing (one star, Palaus only) and differ in detail from Rielly's account, which places the 29 August surrender-message approach alongside LCI(L)-737 and the formal surrender aboard Amick (DE-168) on 2 September 1945 - both narratives carried, discrepancy noted in gaps. Contains no asbestos content.
- Atlas source
- true
- Evidence ID
- ev-uss-lci-l-730-lcil730-03
-
[5]Shipbuilding History, Commercial Iron Works (Portland OR) construction list - yard hull 105 = LCI(L)-730 [other_primary]
- Locator
- Commercial Iron Works page, table row 105 (LCI(L)-730) and yard history paragraph
- Finding type
- vessel_history
- Finding
- The builder's-yard construction list records hull 105 as LCI(L)-730 for the U.S. Navy, 246 tons, 159 ft, delivered January 1944, 'struck 1946.' Yard history line: Commercial Iron Works was started November 1916 on a 30-acre site just south of the Ross Island Bridge; it closed in 1946 after building 188 boats during WWII; the site was sold to Zidell Marine as a ship dismantling facility.
- Verification
- verified
- Role
- context
- Documentation level
- ship_specific
- Accessed
- 2026-09-30
- Study period
- 1943-1946
- Population
- Commercial Iron Works trades (1943-44)
- Limitations
- Volunteer-compiled yard list; consistent with NavSource on builder and delivery month. Page returns HTTP 500 to plain curl user-agents; content verified live via Firecrawl scrape on 2026-09-30. No asbestos content.
- Atlas source
- true
- Evidence ID
- ev-uss-lci-l-730-lcil730-04
-
[6]Historic American Engineering Record HAER OR-180, LCI(L)-713 (Amphibious Forces Memorial Museum, Portland, OR) - National Park Service written historical and descriptive data for the LCI-351 class [haer]
- Locator
- HAER OR-180 written data: principal measurements; lower-deck and engine-room description; deckhouse description
- Finding type
- historical_record
- Finding
- NPS/HAER engineering documentation of the LCI-351 class (recorded on preserved sister LCI(L)-713) describes the design relevant to this hull: eight General Motors 6-71 diesel engines in the engine room arranged in two banks of four, each bank driving a shaft with a four-foot propeller; an engine exhaust system with both above-water and underwater discharge (the latter for noise reduction during landings); two 250-kW generators; compartment layout of forward troop compartments (~60 troops each), 24-berth crew compartment, engine room, aft troop compartment, magazine and steering spaces; deckhouse with staterooms, radio room, galley, and pilothouse. Confirms the class carried an all-diesel plant with no steam system.
- Verification
- verified
- Role
- context
- Documentation level
- class_or_era
- Accessed
- 2026-09-30
- Study period
- 1943-1944 (design); documentation date per HAER record
- Population
- LCI-351-class crews generally (design context)
- Limitations
- Class/design documentation recorded on sister hull LCI(L)-713, not a hull record for 730; it is a structural/engineering description - it does not itemize insulation or other materials and contains no asbestos statement. Builder-yard latitude in construction is acknowledged in the document itself. Does not establish materials aboard this hull.
- Atlas source
- true
- Evidence ID
- ev-uss-lci-l-730-lcil730-05
-
[7]Oregon DEQ Environmental Cleanup Site Information (ECSI) Site 689, Zidell Waterfront Property (former Commercial Iron Works site, 3121 SW Moody Ave., Portland) + Oregon DEQ 'Zidell Waterfront Property Cleanup' presentation (2012) [other_primary]
- Locator
- DEQ ECSI Site 689 detail report (contamination summary); DEQ 'Zidell Waterfront Property Cleanup' PDF (ph-ZidellCAG.pdf), history and contaminants slides
- Finding type
- environmental_record
- Finding
- State environmental-cleanup documentation for the builder's former site: Oregon DEQ Site 689 records the property as an 'Ironworks shipyard before WWII' with WWII-era building/repair/salvage of ships, purchased by Zidell in 1946, which dismantled 336 ships over 30 years with waste used as site fill. The remedial investigation found asbestos 'prevalent in upland and bankline soil' alongside PCBs, metals, PAHs, and TBT; the cleanup included a certified asbestos-abatement project with air monitoring and bulk ACM disposal (2005 Record of Decision; construction completion ~2012).
- Verification
- verified
- Role
- context
- Documentation level
- class_or_era
- Accessed
- 2026-09-30
- Study period
- 1946-2012 (contamination and cleanup); site industrial use from 1916
- Population
- Site workers and remediation crews (cleanup era 1997-2012); historic shipyard workforce context
- Limitations
- Site-level environmental record, not a hull record: the documented asbestos burden reflects the whole industrial history of the site and is dominated by the post-1946 Zidell shipbreaking era (336 ships dismantled). It does not document asbestos installed in LCI(L)-730 or any 1943-44 construction practice. Supports yard-site context only.
- Atlas source
- true
- Evidence ID
- ev-uss-lci-l-730-lcil730-06
-
[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, 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-c.1946).
- 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 returns HTTP 403 to automated fetch, confirmed 2026-09-30) - content via product-page description.
- Atlas source
- true
- Evidence ID
- ev-uss-lci-l-730-lcil730-07
-
[9]Era inference built on: NavSource spec block (all-diesel LCI-351 propulsion); HAER OR-180 class engineering record (8x GM 6-71 diesels, dual exhaust systems, compartment layout); GAO HRD-80-2 Navy asbestos-era documentation (see ev-07); DEQ Site 689 builder-site record (see ev-06) [other_primary]
- Locator
- NavSource specifications block; HAER OR-180 engineering description; GAO HRD-80-2 product page
- Finding type
- asbestos_application
- Finding
- A diesel-powered LCI-351-class landing craft built in 1943-44 sits inside the Navy's documented asbestos-use era; era-standard applications aboard a small diesel combatant of this period were engine and exhaust lagging, machinery insulation, gaskets, valve packing, and electrical insulation in the confined hull volume. As a diesel vessel she carried no steam plant - the boiler/turbine lagging pathway of steam ships does not apply - but the cramped engine-room, exhaust, and accommodation spaces follow the same era material pattern.
- Verification
- inferred
- Role
- supporting
- Documentation level
- class_or_era
- Accessed
- 2026-09-30
- Study period
- 1943-1948
- Population
- Commercial Iron Works trades (1943-44); crew (1944-c.1946); Naval Repair Base San Diego conversion trades (1944); post-war inactivation crews
- Limitations
- Class/era inference only - no hull-specific insulation survey, material list, or work package located for LCI(L)-730/LCI(G)-730. Names era-standard applications, not confirmed installed materials. No quantity. Product names are normalized era terms; no manufacturer attribution for this hull.
- Atlas source
- true
- Evidence ID
- ev-uss-lci-l-730-lcil730-08
-
[10]Batch-5456 search ledger (this record): NavSource ship page; NHHC DANFS (no entry); Naval Vessel Register (no entry - pre-1987 disposal); Rielly published history; USS LCI National Association Elsie Item 84; shipbuildinghistory.com builder list; NPS HAER OR-180; Oregon DEQ ECSI 689; GAO product page; CourtListener API v4; NARA catalog/deck-log lead; secondary web litigation sweep [other_primary]
- Locator
- search_ledger rows sl-uss-lci-l-730-lcil730-01 through -12
- Finding type
- historical_record
- Finding
- No qualifying ship-specific asbestos record located: no asbestos survey, abatement contract, hazmat disclosure, or qualifying litigation naming LCI(L)-730 / LCI(G)-730 was found in the public sources searched (see search_ledger). CourtListener returned zero results for opinions ('LCI 730', 'LCI(L)-730', 'LCI(G)-730') and for dockets (all three hull-designation variants) via authenticated API v4, 2026-09-30 - a verified negative for indexed litigation. Secondary web sweeps surfaced no qualifying case and, unusually, no law-firm marketing page asserting asbestos aboard this specific 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. The litigation negative covers CourtListener's opinion and docket indexes only - state-court dockets and non-indexed filings are outside its scope. Deck logs and the Flotilla Thirteen war diaries (which would document maintenance and any material disturbance) are undigitized archival leads at NARA. Does not establish or defeat any claim of exposure or legal eligibility.
- Atlas source
- true
- Evidence ID
- ev-uss-lci-l-730-lcil730-09
-
[11]Assignment cross-check: NavSource assignment line (LCI Flotilla Three 1944; LCI Flotilla Six 1945, CDR A.R. Montgomery; LCI Group Eighteen, LCDR E.L. Yates; LCI Division Thirty-Five May 1945) vs. Rielly notes citing 'Commander LCI(L) Flotilla THIRTEEN (U.S.S. LCI(G) 730, Flagship), War Diary for April 1945' and 'LCI(L) Flotilla Thirteen, Serial 0627, War Diary for August 1945,' plus Elsie Item 84 flagship-of-Flotilla-Thirteen account [other_primary]
- Locator
- NavSource 150730 assignment line; Rielly Notes (footnotes 46-47) and Appendix I; Elsie Item 84
- Finding type
- historical_record
- Finding
- CORRECTION/CONFLICT: NavSource's assignment line places this hull in LCI Flotilla Three (1944) and LCI Flotilla Six with Group Eighteen/Division Thirty-Five in 1945, but primary war diaries cited in the published record show LCI(G)-730 serving as flagship of LCI(L) Flotilla Thirteen in April 1945 and Flotilla Thirteen still operating as such through August-September 1945 - consistent with the veterans' association flagship account. The Yates group commander's name appears in both sources (NavSource 'Group Eighteen, LCDR E.L. Yates'; Rielly's Palau account has Yates commanding the nine-gunboat group that included 730). The war-diary-documented Flotilla Thirteen flagship role is carried as the operational record; the NavSource numbered-assignment line is retained verbatim for reference with the conflict unresolved.
- Verification
- partial
- Role
- correction
- Documentation level
- ship_specific
- Accessed
- 2026-09-30
- Study period
- 1944-1945
- Limitations
- Corrects/clarifies an organizational-assignment discrepancy, not a material claim. NavSource assignment lines are compiled secondary data; administrative versus operational flotilla assignments may both be partially correct at different dates. The underlying war diaries are at NARA and not publicly digitized.
- Atlas source
- true
- Evidence ID
- ev-uss-lci-l-730-lcil730-10