Evidence
9 evidence entries recorded; each entry has a stable permalink (#ev-1 … #ev-9).
-
[1]research packet 487-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-968-lcil968-pkt-487-packet-md
-
[2]NavSource Online: Amphibious Photo Archive, USS LCI(L)-968 page (history credited to USS LCI 'Landing Craft Infantry,' Vol. II, Turner Publishing, 1995) [other_primary]
- Locator
- LCI(L)-968 entry, archives/10/15/150968.htm (verified live 2026-09-30)
- Finding type
- vessel_history
- Finding
- Identity, construction, and wartime record for this hull: laid down 29 February 1944 at Consolidated Steel Corp., Orange, Texas; launched 27 March 1944; commissioned USS LCI(L)-968 on 21 April 1944. Assigned to the Asiatic-Pacific Theater, LCI Flotilla Fifteen, LCI Group Forty-Three; earned one battle star for the Western New Guinea operations (Morotai landings, 15 September 1944). Postwar: Navy Occupation Service Medal and China Service Medal (extended), both 8 September - 16 December 1945. Decommissioned, date unknown; struck from the Naval Register 5 June 1946; transferred to the Maritime Commission 26 November 1948 for disposal; final disposition unknown. International radio call sign NYWT.
- Verification
- verified
- Role
- context
- Documentation level
- ship_specific
- Accessed
- 2026-09-30
- Study period
- 1944-1948
- Limitations
- Establishes identity, construction, unit assignment, campaign credit, awards, and postwar disposition chain. The page's history derives from the Turner Publishing association history, not DANFS; contains no asbestos, insulation-material, or health information and supports no asbestos claim.
- Atlas source
- true
- Evidence ID
- ev-uss-lci-l-968-lcil968-01
-
[3]uboat.net Allied Warships: USS LCI(L)-968 (ship/22033) - LCI 351 class entry with wartime event log [other_primary]
- Locator
- ship/22033 notable events: 5 Aug 1944 convoy; 15 Sep 1944 Operation Tradewind TG 77.3.23 listing (verified live 2026-09-30)
- Finding type
- vessel_history
- Finding
- Operational detail for this hull: on 5 August 1944 LCI(L)-968 joined a Langemak Bay-to-Humboldt Bay convoy of LCI(L)s about two hours after sailing, with LCI(L)-436, LCI(L)-446, and LCI(L)-970 (Australian escort HMAS Vendetta, Cootamundra, Glenelg). On 15 September 1944 she appears in the Morotai assault task organization (Operation Tradewind) as a unit of Task Group 77.3.23 - the LCI(L) group of the Red Beach attack force (TG 77.3.2, T/R.Adm. R.A. Fechteler) - listed as 'USS 968 (Lt.(jg) B. Shaw, USNR)'. Consistent with NavSource's photo caption showing LCI(L)-968 and LCI(L)-609 landing 31st Division troops on Morotai that date.
- Verification
- verified
- Role
- context
- Documentation level
- ship_specific
- Accessed
- 2026-09-30
- Study period
- 1944
- Limitations
- uboat.net is a secondary compilation of official records (patrol/convoy reports, task organizations); corroborates NavSource independently. Names the embarked CO at Morotai (Lt.(jg) B. Shaw, USNR) but is not a commissioning-document source. Contains no asbestos information.
- Atlas source
- true
- Evidence ID
- ev-uss-lci-l-968-lcil968-02
-
[4]Tim Colton, ShipbuildingHistory: 'Consolidated Orange' yard table (hull 1262 row) and 'Landing Craft Infantry LCI(L)' production table (LCI(L) 968 row) [other_primary]
- Locator
- consolidatedorange.htm hull-1262 row; smallships/lcil.htm LCI(L) 968 row (both verified live 2026-09-30)
- Finding type
- vessel_history
- Finding
- Builder's-yard record for this hull: Consolidated Steel Corp., Orange TX yard table lists hull no. 1262, U.S. Navy landing craft LCI(L) 968, 260 tons, contract date 10 December 1943, delivery April 1944, disposition 'Struck 1946'. Colton's master LCI(L) production table records 'To NDRF 1948' - consistent with NavSource's 26 November 1948 transfer to the Maritime Commission.
- Verification
- verified
- Role
- context
- Documentation level
- ship_specific
- Accessed
- 2026-09-30
- Study period
- 1943-1948
- Limitations
- Secondary compilation; yard-table contract date (10 Dec 1943) and delivery month (Apr 1944) bracket NavSource's laid-down/launch/commissioning dates without contradiction. Neither table provides keel-laid or launch dates for this hull. No asbestos content.
- Atlas source
- true
- Evidence ID
- ev-uss-lci-l-968-lcil968-03
-
[5]National Archives and Records Administration, Special List 44 (List of Logbooks of U.S. Navy Ships, Stations, and Miscellaneous Units), ship-number listing [other_primary]
- Locator
- sl-44-ship-number.pdf, LCI(L)-968 entry (PDF p.30 of the ship-number listing; verified live 2026-09-30)
- Finding type
- historical_record
- Finding
- NARA's Special List 44 inventory (by ship number) lists Navy deck logs for 'LCI(L)-968' covering 21 April 1944 through 30 June 1945 - log coverage beginning on her commissioning date and spanning her entire combat career (Humboldt Bay convoy, Morotai landing) plus the first postwar months. The physical logs are NARA records requiring research-room or reproduction access.
- Verification
- verified
- Role
- archival_lead
- Documentation level
- ship_specific
- Accessed
- 2026-09-30
- Study period
- 1944-04-21 to 1945-06-30
- Limitations
- Confirms that deck logs exist for the hull for the stated window; it is an inventory listing, not the logs themselves - contents (including any material/maintenance notes) are unknown until pulled. Log coverage for the occupation/China-service period (Sep-Dec 1945) and to disposal is outside this listing's window. Not an asbestos record.
- Atlas source
- true
- Evidence ID
- ev-uss-lci-l-968-lcil968-04
-
[6]The Elsie Item (USS LCI National Association newsletter), issue 25 (June 1998) and issue 106 (September 2019); NavSource LCI(L)-968 photo credits [other_primary]
- Locator
- ELSIEITEM-25-Jun-1998.pdf reunion-minutes mentions; ElsieItem-106-Sep-2019.pdf member listing (both verified live 2026-09-30); navsource.net/archives/10/15/150968.htm captions
- Finding type
- historical_record
- Finding
- The USS LCI National Association newsletter The Elsie Item documents named veterans of this hull: the June 1998 issue records 'Bill Ringle LCI 968' introducing a resolution at the national reunion and 'Bill DuBois LCI 968' speaking at the same meeting; the September 2019 issue (no. 106) lists 'LCI 968 - Erwin L. Bentlage' in its member record. NavSource's photo credits identify Bill Ringle as XO of LCI(L)-968 (Morotai landing photo) and Thomas Ely, Stewards Mate 1/C, as the figure in the Hollandia photograph contributed by Bill Brinkley.
- Verification
- verified
- Role
- archival_lead
- Documentation level
- ship_specific
- Accessed
- 2026-09-30
- Study period
- 1998-2019 publications; wartime service 1944-46
- Population
- LCI(L)-968 veterans (association members)
- Limitations
- Association newsletter records confirming named crew for this hull - a lead to first-person accounts; they are not official service records and contain no exposure, medical, or material information. Newsletter PDFs on usslci.org verified live.
- Atlas source
- true
- Evidence ID
- ev-uss-lci-l-968-lcil968-05
-
[7]Historic American Engineering Record: HAER No. OR-180, LCI(L)-713 (Amphibious Forces Memorial Museum, Portland OR), and HAER No. AK-52, M/V Husky II ex-USS LCI(L)-653 (Seldovia AK) - NPS documented histories of surviving LCI(L)-351-class sisters [haer]
- Locator
- or0606data.pdf (HAER OR-180, LCI(L)-713, written data); ak0557data.pdf (HAER AK-52, ex-LCI(L)-653) - both verified live at loc.gov 2026-09-30
- Finding type
- asbestos_application
- Finding
- LCI(L)s were diesel-powered landing craft of a utilitarian wartime Bureau of Ships design (over 900 built by ten yards; ~158 ft, twin-screw). This hull is an LCI(L)-351-class craft whose propulsion was two sets of four General Motors Series 71 diesel engines, four per shaft, with twin variable-pitch propellers (NavSource specification block; HAER-documented class design). An all-diesel plant means no boilers, steam lines, or turbine lagging aboard; the asbestos-relevant systems for a craft of this type and era are engine exhaust/muffler lagging, machinery thermal and acoustic insulation, engine and system gaskets, valve packing, and electrical insulation - era-typical products, not hull-documented applications. The HAER record for sister hull LCI(L)-713 documents welded 1/4-inch steel plate construction and the class's 2-inch plastic splinter protection (crushed granite pebbles embedded in bitumen) on gun tubs, conning tower, and pilot house.
- Verification
- inferred
- Role
- supporting
- Documentation level
- class_or_era
- Accessed
- 2026-09-30
- Study period
- 1944
- Population
- Construction trades (Consolidated Steel, Orange TX, 1944); embarked crew and troops
- Limitations
- Class/design documentation, not a hull record: neither HAER study names this vessel, and neither states 'asbestos' content - OR-180 contains no asbestos/insulation-material statement at all, and AK-52's only insulation references are post-service fishing-tender modifications. Asbestos presence aboard this hull is era inference from diesel-craft practice, not ship-proven; does not establish quantity, location, exposure, or causation.
- Atlas source
- true
- Evidence ID
- ev-uss-lci-l-968-lcil968-06
-
[8]GAO HRD-80-2, 'Efforts to Protect Navy Shipyard Workers from Asbestos Exposure' (1980), product page [gao]
- Locator
- gao.gov/products/hrd-80-2 product page (HTTP 403 to automated fetch; description-level citation, same standing limitation as batch-01)
- Finding type
- gov_survey
- Finding
- GAO reviewed the Navy's efforts to protect workers from asbestos exposure at Long Beach and Norfolk Naval Shipyards, covering use of asbestos in Navy ships, removal costs, and disability compensation; it records the Navy's 1975 policy of removing/replacing asbestos insulation only when damaged or repaired. Program-level documentation that asbestos insulation was standard aboard U.S. Navy vessels of the era.
- Verification
- verified
- Role
- context
- Documentation level
- class_or_era
- Accessed
- 2026-09-30
- Study period
- 1980 report; Navy practice through early 1970s
- Population
- Navy shipyard workers (program context)
- Limitations
- Navy program-level document; fieldwork yards were Long Beach and Norfolk, not Consolidated Steel, and it does not name this hull or class. Establishes era policy only. Full text not retrieved - gao.gov returns 403 to automated fetches (standing access limitation).
- Atlas source
- true
- Evidence ID
- ev-uss-lci-l-968-lcil968-07
-
[9]Batch-5616 search ledger (this record): NavSource; uboat.net; NARA SL44; Colton shipbuildinghistory (both tables); usslci.org newsletters; HAER OR-180 and AK-52; CourtListener; MARAD/NVR/NHHC checks; live-web sweep [other_primary]
- Locator
- search_ledger rows sl-uss-lci-l-968-lcil968-01 through sl-uss-lci-l-968-lcil968-14
- Finding type
- historical_record
- Finding
- No qualifying ship-specific asbestos record located: no asbestos survey, abatement contract, hazmat disclosure, museum record, or docketed asbestos case naming LCI-968 / LCI(L)-968 was found in the sources searched (see search_ledger). CourtListener opinion searches for 'LCI(L)-968' and 'USS LCI' + asbestos returned count 0 on 2026-09-30; remaining hull-string variants and the RECAP docket index were blocked by fleet-wide API pacing and are logged as blocked, not no-result. The only asbestos content surfaced by the live-web sweep is law-firm marketing material (asbestos-ship listicles asserting asbestos aboard without primary sourcing) - excluded by source policy.
- 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 - a 1944 Navy build is era-consistent with asbestos-containing materials. Does not establish presence or absence; does not establish or defeat any exposure claim or legal eligibility. CourtListener coverage is partial: two opinion queries verified 0; the remaining opinion/docket queries were blocked this session.
- Atlas source
- true
- Evidence ID
- ev-uss-lci-l-968-lcil968-08