Evidence
11 evidence entries recorded; each entry has a stable permalink (#ev-1 … #ev-11).
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[1]research packet 503-packet.md (2 sources cited) [museum_official]
- Finding type
- vessel_history
- Finding
- Identity packet verdict: VERIFIED
- Verification
- verified
- Role
- supporting
- Documentation level
- ship_specific
- Evidence ID
- uss-lcs-l-3-57-lcsl357-pkt-503-packet-md
-
[2]NavSource Online: Amphibious Photo Archive, USS LSSL-57 ex USS LCS(L)(3)-57 - construction, awards, flotilla assignment, campaign and medal credits, transfer/disposal lines, specifications block citing Ships' Data U.S. Naval Vessels Navships 250-012 (April 15, 1945) [other_primary]
- Locator
- NavSource 10/05/050057.htm header block, award ribbon list, campaign table, specifications block, photo captions
- Finding type
- vessel_history
- Finding
- Documented for this hull: laid down 15 August 1944 at Albina Engine and Machine Works Inc., Portland OR; launched 14 September 1944; commissioned USS LCS(L)(3)-57, 30 October 1944, LT. H. L. Smith USNR in command. Asiatic-Pacific assignment: LCS(L)(3) Flotilla Three (CAPT T.C. Aylward), Group Seven (LCDR F.P. Stone), Division Fourteen; Okinawa Gunto operation, 26 March - 28 May 1945. Postwar: Navy Occupation Service Medal 19 September - 7 December 1945; China Service Medal (extended) 8-10 December 1945. Decommissioned (main page: date unknown). Redesignated Landing Ship Support Large USS LSSL-57, 28 February 1949. Transferred to Japan 14 January 1953, named Kiku. Returned to US custody 27 March 1958. Struck from the Naval Register (date unknown). Final disposition: recommended for use as a target, sunk by gunfire circa October 1958. Awards: Presidential Unit Citation, one battle star; page award display lists Combat Action Ribbon (Okinawa, 12 April 1945) and PUC dated 16 April 1945. Specs (Navships 250-012): 250 t light / 387 t full; 158' oa; beam 23'8"; diesel propulsion (GM diesels, quad packs per shaft, 1,600 BHP, twin variable-pitch propellers; 2 diesel-drive 60 kW 450V AC generators); complement 6 officers + 65 enlisted. Radio call sign NVTQ. Photo captions place the hull at Kerama Retto April 1945 after the kamikaze hit (a US Navy photo in the collections of the US National Archives) and homeward-bound at Saipan 29 December 1945 with LCS(L)(3)-76 and LCS(L)(3)-28.
- Verification
- verified
- Role
- context
- Documentation level
- ship_specific
- Accessed
- 2026-09-30
- Study period
- 1944-1958
- Population
- Albina construction trades (1944); crew 1944-46; Japanese crew as Kiku 1953-58
- Limitations
- NavSource is a volunteer secondary compilation - milestone dates generally track official records but the decommissioning and striking dates are unpopulated on the main page (CO's ship history supplies 20 August 1946 - see ev-03). Contains no asbestos or material content. The PUC display date (16 April 1945) conflicts with the NHHC-hosted action report and the ship's own history (12 April 1945) - see ev-05.
- Atlas source
- true
- Evidence ID
- ev-uss-lcsl357-01
-
[3]NHHC Online Reading Room: 'Action Report USS LCS (L) (3) 57, Battle of Okinawa at RP Station #1, April 12, 1945' - full transcription of the ship's official action report, signed HARRY L. SMITH (commanding officer) [nhhc_danfs]
- Locator
- NHHC Online Reading Room page, full transcription incl. Enclosure (A) message log, Parts III/V/VI damage narrative, Part VII personnel summary
- Finding type
- historical_record
- Finding
- The ship's official action report documents the 12 April 1945 radar-picket action north of Okinawa: enemy force ~25 aircraft (Vals and Nates); the ship attacked by two waves of four Nates, at least seven aircraft pressing home. At 1350 a Nate struck a glancing blow on the forward twin 40mm mount; at 1355 a Nate hit close aboard exploded ~10 feet off the port quarter, blowing an 8-foot-diameter hole extending 3 feet below the waterline, starting fires in the after magazine and on the fantail, disabling the after twin 40mm, damaging steering, and destroying internal communications; at 1430 a Nate hit the forward single 40mm gun, demolishing it and killing two men outright. Approximately one third of the second deck flooded; ship took a ~10-degree starboard list. The report records that 'BLACK GANG MEMBERS REMAINED IN THE ENGINE ROOM DESPITE RISING WATER, HEAVY FUMES AND SMOKE FROM BURNING INSULATION' - a ship-specific primary mention of insulation material aboard. Four attacking planes shot down sure (three hit the ship), one more with Corsair assist, two non-attacking planes downed. LCS(L)(3)-33, hit amidships and abandoned, burned, blew up and sank close aboard; LCS(L)(3)-115 recovered survivors; LCS(L)(3)-114 took wounded to port and escorted/towed the 57 to Hagushi anchorage. Enclosure message log also documents the 0011 rescue of 2nd Lt. C.H. Coppedge, VMF-441.
- Verification
- verified
- Role
- context
- Documentation level
- ship_specific
- Accessed
- 2026-09-30
- Study period
- 1945-04-09 to 1945-04-13
- Population
- Crew under fire 12 April 1945 (~71 complement); damage-control and engine-room personnel exposed to burning-material smoke including insulation
- Limitations
- A combat action report, not a material survey: it documents battle damage and casualty events, and mentions 'burning insulation' as a smoke/fume source in the engine room without identifying fiber content - asbestos is neither established nor excluded by this document (compare the Hornet HAER insulation finding in BATCH-01). The linked PDF scan returned HTTP 404 on 2026-09-30; the HTML page carries the full transcription and is the cited resource. Casualty counts (2 killed) come from the report's own summary; the CO's later ship history reports two dead, four wounded, four injured.
- Atlas source
- true
- Evidence ID
- ev-uss-lcsl357-02
-
[4]'A Brief History of LCS(L) 57' by Lt. H. L. Smith, Commanding Officer - the ship's own wartime/postwar history, provided to NavSource by the National Association of USS LCS(L) 1-130 [other_primary]
- Locator
- NavSource 10/05/050057h.htm, 'A Brief History of LCS(L) 57' full text
- Finding type
- vessel_history
- Finding
- The commanding officer's ship history documents: commissioned 30 October 1944 at Portland OR (built by Albina Engine and Machine Works); departed Portland 11 November 1944 with LCSs 43 and 44 for San Diego; no shakedown - one day in drydock, availability to 29 November; departed 1 December with Flotilla Three for Pearl Harbor (arrived 11 December, West Loch); Maui training under Group Seven (Kahoolawe shore bombardment); Kewalo Basin availability 31 December - 6 January 1945; Nawiliwili, Kauai escort duty for LCT Flotilla Twenty Three; departed Pearl Harbor 3 February 1945 escorting a ~50-ship LCT/LSM/LCS convoy - Johnston Island 9 February, Majuro 19 February, Eniwetok 25 February, Ulithi 6 March, San Pedro Bay 11 March for two weeks' invasion-tactics training. Arrived Okinawa 1 April under VADM Turner; close-invasion bombardment then smoke-screen duty to 4 April; screw vibration repairs at Kerama Retto 4-8 April; radar-picket duty with Cassin Young (DD-793) off Iheya Shima from 9 April; the 12 April attack (~25 suicide planes, 8 attacking this ship; two dead, four wounded, four injured; LCS-33 sunk close aboard); towed to Hagushi, then Kerama Retto 13 April - 28 May under repair; departed 28 May for San Pedro Bay, Leyte (arrived 3 June), ~2.5 months availability including four days drydock, incomplete at war's end. Departed 17 September for Wakayama, Japan (arrived 25 September); Presidential Unit Citation presented 12 October 1945 by VADM Oldendorf in a joint ceremony with LCS(L)(3)-51; Nagoya 24-25 October; Jinsen, Korea 13-18 November (Task Force 71, Seventh Fleet); Kunsan harbor soundings with LCS-28, 20-22 November. 'LCS 57 was placed out of commission on August 20, 1946, at Green Cove Springs, Florida, and assigned to the Atlantic Fleet.'
- Verification
- verified
- Role
- context
- Documentation level
- ship_specific
- Accessed
- 2026-09-30
- Study period
- 1944-1946
- Population
- Albina construction trades (1944); crew 1944-46; repair-yard personnel at Kerama Retto and San Pedro Bay availabilities (Apr-Jun 1945); Green Cove Springs lay-up workers (1946)
- Limitations
- Ship-authored history in the standard postwar submission format, hosted on NavSource via the veterans' association - near-primary provenance but not itself an official archive copy. Contains no asbestos or material content. Dates the kamikaze action to 12 April 1945; the PUC citation text reproduced on the same page dates it 16 April 1945 - see ev-05.
- Atlas source
- true
- Evidence ID
- ev-uss-lcsl357-03
-
[5]Presidential Unit Citation to USS LCS(L) 57 - citation text reproduced in full on the ship's NavSource history page, signed for the President by Secretary of the Navy James Forrestal [other_primary]
- Locator
- NavSource 10/05/050057h.htm, PUC text block (Forrestal signature)
- Finding type
- historical_record
- Finding
- The Presidential Unit Citation to USS LCS(L) 57 (text reproduced verbatim): 'For extraordinary heroism in action during an attack by enemy Japanese suicide planes north of Okinawa Jima 16 April 1945...' - describes the ship promptly opening fire on the first two planes penetrating the screen, destroying two more orbiting, exploding a fifth close aboard with two 40mm guns out of action and steering gear damaged, destroying a sixth, suffering severe further damage and casualties when the seventh crashed into the forward part of the ship, controlling fires and checking flooding through an eight-foot hole below the waterline, and fighting until the last of the 26-plane formation was destroyed or routed. Presented 12 October 1945 at Wakayama by VADM Oldendorf (per the CO's history); one battle star also credited for the Okinawa Gunto campaign.
- Verification
- verified
- Role
- context
- Documentation level
- ship_specific
- Accessed
- 2026-09-30
- Study period
- 1945-04-12 (action); 1945-10-12 (presentation)
- Population
- Crew of record for the cited action
- Limitations
- The citation text as reproduced reads '16 April 1945'; the NHHC-hosted action report, the ship's own CO history, and the sister ship LCS-114's history all date the described action to 12 April 1945, and the ship was under repair at Kerama Retto 13-28 April - she could not have fought this action on 16 April. The citation's printed date is treated as a clerical variance, not a second engagement - see ev-05. Award document; no asbestos content.
- Atlas source
- true
- Evidence ID
- ev-uss-lcsl357-04
-
[6]Date reconciliation: NHHC action report title 'APRIL 12, 1945'; LCS(L)(3)-57 CO ship history ('At noon on 12 April the station was attacked'); LCS(L)(3)-114 CO history via NavSource ('The LCS 114 experienced her largest raid on the 12th of April... With the LCS 114 that afternoon were... the LCS 33, the 57 and the 115... The LCS 57 was hit by 3 suiciders and shot down four more... put pumps aboard the 57, took her in tow'); NavSource award display (Combat Action Ribbon, Okinawa, 12 April 1945; PUC, 16 April 1945); PUC text ('16 April 1945') [other_primary]
- Locator
- NavSource 050057.htm award block + 050057h.htm PUC text vs. NHHC action-report page title and 050114h.htm
- Finding type
- historical_record
- Finding
- CORRECTION: the Presidential Unit Citation text printed for this ship dates the action '16 April 1945,' but the action it describes (seven-plane attack, hole below the waterline, steering and magazine damage, 26-plane enemy formation) is the 12 April 1945 radar-picket fight documented by the ship's own official action report (NHHC), her CO's ship history, the LCS(L)(3)-114 CO's account of the same station, and the Combat Action Ribbon date. The ship was alongside at Kerama Retto under repair 13-28 April and could not have fought the described action on 16 April. The PUC's '16 April' is a clerical variance in the award document; sources carrying '16 April 1945' for the kamikaze action should be read as 12 April 1945.
- Verification
- verified
- Role
- correction
- Documentation level
- ship_specific
- Accessed
- 2026-09-30
- Study period
- 1945
- Limitations
- Documents a discrepancy between a near-primary award citation and the primary action report rather than an asbestos fact. The correction reconciles dates; it does not alter the award. No asbestos content.
- Atlas source
- true
- Evidence ID
- ev-uss-lcsl357-05
-
[7]uswarships.jounin.jp LSSL table row for LSSL-57; corroborated by navypedia.org Japan 'YURI' class page (きく Kiku ex-LSSL57 ex-LCS(L)(3)57, pennant LSSL402, Albina Portland, returned 3.1958) and hush.web.fc2.com Naval Data Base (53.1/14 loan, Yuri-class guard vessel LS2>402, struck/returned 58.3/27, sunk as target ship October 1958); NavSource transfer lines [other_primary]
- Locator
- uswarships.jounin.jp/lssl.htm, LSSL-57 row; navypedia.org/ships/japan/jap_ls_ajisai.htm Kiku row; NavSource 050057.htm transfer lines
- Finding type
- vessel_history
- Finding
- Japanese service documentation (secondary compilations, mutually consistent): loaned to Japan 14 January 1953 and renamed Kiku (きく), serving as a Yuri-class guard vessel (警備船) with pennant LSSL-402 under the postwar Japanese maritime force (the Coastal Safety Force, predecessor of the JMSDF); reclassified 警備艇 (guard craft) 1 July 1954 when the JMSDF stood up; struck from the Japanese list and returned to US custody 27 March 1958; sunk as a gunnery target circa October 1958 (jounin.jp dates 1 October 1958). The same table carries a 30 November 1951 '運用開始' (operations commenced) notation for LSSL-57 - an unexplained possible reserve-fleet reactivation date; unverified. US-side milestones per NavSource: redesignated LSSL-57 on 28 February 1949; transferred 14 January 1953; returned 27 March 1958; struck, date unknown; sunk by gunfire circa October 1958.
- Verification
- partial
- Role
- context
- Documentation level
- ship_specific
- Accessed
- 2026-09-30
- Study period
- 1949-1958
- Population
- Japanese crew and maintainers as Kiku, 1953-58
- Limitations
- Japanese-service specifics (Kiku's pennant LSSL-402, Yuri class, the 1 July 1954 reclassification, the 30 November 1951 notation, and the 1 October 1958 sinking date) rest on Japanese secondary compilations and Polish Wikipedia corroboration, not primary Japanese or US records; NavSource states 'Japan Self-Defense Force' although the receiving service in January 1953 was the Coastal Safety Force (JMSDF formed July 1954). No asbestos content.
- Atlas source
- true
- Evidence ID
- ev-uss-lcsl357-06
-
[8]Era inference built on: NavSource specifications block (Navships 250-012, diesel plant, no steam); National Association of USS LCS(L) 1-130 specifications page (8 GM diesels, 4 per shaft, twin variable-pitch propellers, 2 GM generator diesels); shipbuildinghistory.com Albina production table (yard hull 211, LCS(L) 57); DOL BRB 08-0403 yard-level asbestos finding (see ev-08); GAO HRD-80-2 (see ev-09) [other_primary]
- Locator
- NavSource specifications block; mightymidgets.org/page2.htm specifications; NHHC action report Part VII (personnel/damage-control narrative)
- Finding type
- asbestos_application
- Finding
- A 1944 diesel-powered Landing Craft Support (Large)(Mark 3) gunboat built at a Pacific-coast yard inside the Navy's documented asbestos-use era. Era-standard applications for a diesel landing-support gunboat of this period: diesel exhaust lagging, thermal insulation in machinery and accommodation spaces, gaskets and valve packing on the diesel/pump/piping plant, and electrical insulation. The propulsion plant is all-diesel (eight GM diesels, four per shaft, twin variable-pitch propellers; two diesel-driven 60 kW generators) - no steam plant, so the boiler/turbine lagging pathway of steam vessels does not apply. The 12 April 1945 action report's 'smoke from burning insulation' in the engine room confirms insulation material was present in machinery spaces aboard this hull, without identifying fiber content.
- Verification
- inferred
- Role
- supporting
- Documentation level
- class_or_era
- Accessed
- 2026-09-30
- Study period
- 1944-1958
- Population
- Albina construction trades (1944); crew 1944-46; Kerama Retto and San Pedro Bay repair personnel (1945); Green Cove Springs lay-up (1946); Japanese service 1953-58; target-disposal firing crew 1958
- Limitations
- Class/era inference only - no hull-specific insulation schedule, material list, or work package located for this hull. Names era-standard applications, not confirmed installed asbestos materials. No quantity, no manufacturer attribution. The action-report 'burning insulation' mention establishes insulation aboard but not asbestos content.
- Atlas source
- true
- Evidence ID
- ev-uss-lcsl357-07
-
[9]U.S. Department of Labor, Benefits Review Board, BRB No. 08-0403 - K.M. (widow of J.M.) v. Lockheed Shipbuilding; Albina Engine and Machine; Willamette Iron and Steel (Decision and Order, issued 30 December 2008, affirming ALJ Decision and Order on Second Remand, 2003-LHC-2540); prior iterations McAllister v. Lockheed Shipbuilding, 39 BRBS 35 (2005) and 41 BRBS 28 (2007) [court_record]
- Locator
- DOL BRB 08-0403 slip op., facts section and 'responsible employer' analysis (pp. 2-10 of the PDF)
- Finding type
- litigation_documented
- Finding
- A federally adjudicated LHWCA death-benefits claim documents asbestos exposure at this hull's builder yard: the decedent, a shipyard carpenter, worked at Willamette Iron & Steel (through 1956), Albina Engine and Machine (through 1957), and Puget Sound/Lockheed (1957-1960); he died 22 September 2002 of pleural mesothelioma. The ALJ found 'clear, credible, and unrebutted evidence' of asbestos exposure in the shipyards (credited specifically at WISCO and, via a widow's statement and corroborating employee depositions, at Albina Engine) and identified Albina Engine as the last employer to expose the decedent to asbestos; the Board affirmed Albina Engine's liability as responsible employer. This is a merits-final administrative adjudication of asbestos exposure conditions at the builder yard.
- Verification
- verified
- Role
- context
- Documentation level
- class_or_era
- Accessed
- 2026-09-30
- Study period
- 1956-1960 (exposure window adjudicated); claim decided 2008
- Population
- Albina Engine and Machine yard workforce (decedent's adjudicated window 1956-57; yard operated at that site throughout the WWII construction era)
- Limitations
- Yard-level finding, not a hull record: the decedent's Albina employment (1956-1957) postdates this hull's August-October 1944 construction by more than a decade. The decision documents the yard's asbestos environment in the late 1950s and does not establish materials aboard this hull, individual exposure, quantity, or legal eligibility for any person. Litigation-stage note: this is a final affirmed BRB order (third remand concluded), not a pleading-stage allegation.
- Atlas source
- true
- Evidence ID
- ev-uss-lcsl357-08
-
[10]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 (1944) and US service era (1944-46, reserve 1946-58).
- 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-lcsl357-09
-
[11]Batch-5729 search ledger (this record): NHHC Online Reading Room action report; NavSource archive and CO-history pages; shipbuildinghistory.com Albina table; uswarships.jounin.jp, navypedia, fc2 Naval Data Base; DOL BRB 08-0403; GAO product page; CourtListener API v4 (authenticated); NARA catalog; secondary web sweeps [other_primary]
- Locator
- search_ledger rows sl-uss-lcsl357-01 through -16
- Finding type
- historical_record
- Finding
- No qualifying ship-specific asbestos record located: no asbestos survey, abatement contract, hazmat disclosure, or verified litigation naming USS LCS(L)(3)-57 / LSSL-57 / Kiku (LSSL-402) was found in the public sources searched. CourtListener opinion searches (authenticated, API v4) returned zero hits for "LCS(L)(3)-57", "LSSL-57", "LCS-57" asbestos, "LCS(L)(3) 57", and "LCS(L)-57", and the RECAP docket index returned zero dockets for "LCS(L)(3)-57" OR "LSSL-57"; a "Landing Craft Support" asbestos class-term opinion sweep could not be completed this session due to fleet-wide rate pacing and is logged as pending, not negative. Secondary web sweeps surfaced no qualifying case; no law-firm marketing page naming this specific hull was located in the sweeps performed.
- 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 NHHC action report and CO history are strong on combat events but carry no material content; the hull's 1945 Kerama Retto and San Pedro Bay repair availabilities, Green Cove Springs lay-up, and 1953 outfitting for Japanese transfer are undocumented for materials. NARA deck logs (RG 24) and war diaries (RG 38) for this hull are undigitized leads. Does not establish or defeat any claim of exposure or legal eligibility.
- Atlas source
- true
- Evidence ID
- ev-uss-lcsl357-10