Evidence
11 evidence entries recorded; each entry has a stable permalink (#ev-1 … #ev-11).
-
[1]NHHC, Dictionary of American Naval Fighting Ships, Vol. IV, pp. 110-11, 'Libra' (the single DANFS Libra entry - no second naval vessel of the name) [nhhc_danfs]
- Locator
- DANFS Vol. IV pp. 110-11; HyperWar transcription (ibiblio); characteristic line and construction paragraph verified against the archive.org scan of printed Vol. IV (identifier dictionaryofamer04wash)
- Finding type
- vessel_history
- Finding
- DANFS records this hull as the Maritime Commission type C2-F freighter Jean Lykes (MC hull 130), laid down by Federal Shipbuilding & Dry Dock Co., Kearny, N.J., under contract for Lykes Steamship Co., Galveston, Tex.; launched 12 November 1941, sponsored by Mrs. Hale Boggs (wife of Congressman Boggs of Louisiana); acquired by the Navy 30 December 1941; named Libra 9 January 1942; commissioned 13 May 1942 as cargo ship AK-53, Comdr. W. B. Fletcher in command; conversion completed at New York City 26 May 1942. DANFS characteristic line (printed Vol. IV, pp. 110-11): displacement 10,713; length 459'2"; beam 63'; draft 20'6"; speed 15.5 k.; complement 405; armament 1x5", 4x3"; class Arcturus.
- Verification
- verified
- Role
- supporting
- Documentation level
- ship_specific
- Accessed
- 2026-09-21
- Study period
- 1941-1942
- Limitations
- Canonical history.navy.mil DANFS URLs returned HTTP 404 on 2026-09-21 (four URL patterns tried); text verified via HyperWar transcription and the printed-volume scan - the two agree (459'2", cpl. 405); the hazegray mirror transcription's 469'2"/406 is a transcription error, see correction row. Historical account, not a materials survey; establishes no asbestos presence or exposure.
- Atlas source
- true
- Evidence ID
- ev-uss-libra-ak53-01
-
[2]NHHC, DANFS, Vol. IV, pp. 110-11, 'Libra' - wartime service paragraphs [nhhc_danfs]
- Locator
- DANFS service paragraphs 2-8; archive.org print scan dictionaryofamer04wash
- Finding type
- vessel_history
- Finding
- Wartime service per DANFS: loaded combat equipment at Hampton Roads and arrived Wellington, New Zealand, 11 July 1942; carried 1st Marine Expeditionary Force cargo through Fiji rehearsals; unloaded off Tulagi 7-9 August 1942 under repeated air attack, overhearing the Battle of Savo Island early 9 August; supply runs Noumea-Ellice Islands-Espiritu Santo; returned to Guadalcanal 11-12 November 1942 during the naval battle; redesignated AKA-12 on 1 February 1943; New Zealand-New Hebrides cargo through March 1943, joining 3d Fleet 20 March; Navy Unit Commendation for superlative performance through the Guadalcanal campaign - earned in part on 30 June 1943 when, unloading at Rendova under heavy air attack, she took the torpedoed transport McCawley in tow and helped splash three of eight attacking dive-bombers; repair period in New Zealand August 1943; assault force at Empress Augusta Bay, Bougainville, 1 and 8 November 1943; Guam assault off the Asan beaches 21 July 1944; San Francisco overhaul August-October 1944; Lingayen Gulf landings 11 January 1945; final amphibious operation Iwo Jima from 19 February 1945; entered Tokyo Bay 2 September 1945 supporting the occupation; nine battle stars for World War II service.
- Verification
- verified
- Role
- supporting
- Documentation level
- ship_specific
- Accessed
- 2026-09-21
- Study period
- 1942-1945
- Population
- Crew of approximately 405 per DANFS reference complement (not a muster or exposure count); embarked cargo troops handled in amphibious unloading
- Limitations
- Operational history only - no materials, insulation, or maintenance-process detail that could evidence asbestos. The 30 June Rendova/McCawley action is dated 1943 by DANFS context (the McCawley sinking); NavSource's campaign table prints '30 June 1944', a one-year typographical error - see correction row. 'Arriving 31 November' (Seattle) is an impossible date in the printed text and is not asserted. Yards for the 1943 New Zealand repair and 1944 San Francisco overhaul are not named.
- Atlas source
- true
- Evidence ID
- ev-uss-libra-ak53-02
-
[3]NHHC, DANFS, Vol. IV, pp. 110-11, 'Libra' - postwar paragraphs [nhhc_danfs]
- Locator
- DANFS final three paragraphs; archive.org print scan dictionaryofamer04wash
- Finding type
- vessel_history
- Finding
- Postwar naval service per DANFS: post-occupation cargo runs completed 21 November 1945; served with the Pacific Fleet out of San Francisco for two years with four western Pacific voyages; departed Guam 6 October 1947 for Boston via Hawaii and the Panama Canal, arriving 26 November; decommissioned 19 April 1948 into the Atlantic Reserve Fleet. Recommissioned 28 August 1950 for the Korean-war cargo demand, joining the Amphibious Force, Atlantic Fleet, for east coast and Caribbean training; served with the 6th Fleet in the Mediterranean 18 January-12 May 1954, then trained reservists. Decommissioned 6 October 1955 into the Reserve Fleet at Charleston, S.C.
- Verification
- verified
- Role
- supporting
- Documentation level
- ship_specific
- Accessed
- 2026-09-21
- Study period
- 1945-1955
- Limitations
- Historical account only. DANFS's 'transferred to the Maritime Administration in July 1964' compresses a longer custody sequence documented by MARAD milestones and NavSource - reconciled in ev-04 and the correction row. Wikipedia's '12 April 1948' decommissioning conflicts with DANFS/NavSource 19 April - DANFS adopted. No asbestos content.
- Atlas source
- true
- Evidence ID
- ev-uss-libra-ak53-03
-
[4]U.S. Maritime Administration, ShipHistory database - LIBRA (AKA-12/LKA-12), Ship History Detail 3018, with digitized status cards and attached document [marad_nrc]
- Locator
- ShipHistory Detail 3018 - characteristics block, Vessel Name History, Milestones table, status-card scans; attached document LIBRA.pdf
- Finding type
- historical_record
- Finding
- MARAD ShipHistory database record for LIBRA (AKA-12/LKA-12), Detail 3018: year built 1941; official number 241221; shipyard Federal Shipbuilding and Dry Dock; MARAD type C2-F; length 459.00 ft, beam 63.00 ft; fate 'Sold - Scrap'. Vessel name history: Jean Lykes (1941), Libra 1941-1985. Milestones: Entry 6/1/1960 (custody to the reserve fleet); Acquisition 7/31/1964 annotated 'CUST 1960 NDRF 1964'; Withdrawal 4/17/1985 - reconciling DANFS's 'July 1964' transfer (formal acquisition) with NavSource's '1 June 1960' custody transfer.
- Verification
- verified
- Role
- supporting
- Documentation level
- ship_specific
- Accessed
- 2026-09-21
- Study period
- 1941-1985
- Limitations
- Authoritative for government custody milestones and registration particulars. The attached LIBRA.pdf is a custody/delivery form for 'LIBRA (Small Boat)' at Stamford, Conn., dated 1941-12-22 - it does not match this hull's timeline (acquired 1941-12-30 at Kearny, named 1942-01-09) and is classified as a different-vessel/misfiled attachment, not evidence about this hull. The record contains no asbestos, materials or condition-survey information; supports no asbestos claim.
- Atlas source
- true
- Evidence ID
- ev-uss-libra-ak53-04
-
[5]NavSource Online: Amphibious Photo Archive, USS Libra (LKA-12) ex AKA-12 ex AK-53 page (contributor Don McGrogan, BMCS USN Ret.) [other_primary]
- Locator
- Chronology bullets, campaign table, awards ribbon table, specifications block
- Finding type
- historical_record
- Finding
- NavSource Online amphibious archive page for AKA-12 supplies the post-DANFS chronology and technical detail not in the official entry: custody transferred to the Maritime Administration 1 June 1960 and reassigned to NDRF James River, Lee Hall, Va.; withdrawn from NDRF 23 August 1962 by the Navy for testing activation methods and returned c.10 September 1963; redesignated amphibious transport LKA-12 on 1 January 1969; struck from the Naval Register 1 January 1977; withdrawn from the Reserve Fleet 20 January 1984 for stripping, returned 31 July 1984; sold as scrap 17 April 1985 to Andover Shipping Co. Spec table: displacement 5,185 t. light / 14,225 t. full; complement 49 officers + 445 enlisted; largest boom 40 t.; one GE turbine, two Foster Wheeler D-type boilers (465 psi, 765 deg), double GE main reduction gear, single propeller 6,000 shp; landing craft outfit 1 LCP(L), 8 LCM(3), 16 LCVP; armament 1x5"/38, 4 twin 40mm, 18 single 20mm. Awards ribbon table adds Navy Unit Commendation, Asiatic-Pacific Campaign Medal (9), Navy Occupation Service Medal (Asia), Philippines Presidential Unit Citation and Philippines Liberation Medal (1 star).
- Verification
- partial
- Role
- supporting
- Documentation level
- ship_specific
- Accessed
- 2026-09-21
- Study period
- 1941-1985
- Limitations
- Volunteer-compiled secondary source, not an official register - used for the LKA-12 reclassification, strike date, NDRF custody movements and disposal detail that DANFS (written to c.1969) does not carry. The 17 April 1985 scrapping sale is corroborated by MARAD's withdrawal milestone; the 1960/1964 custody sequence is corroborated by MARAD 'CUST 1960 NDRF 1964'. Complement 49+445 conflicts with DANFS 405 - kept unmerged. The campaign table's '30 June 1944' for Rendova is a typographical error (1943 per DANFS). No asbestos content.
- Atlas source
- true
- Evidence ID
- ev-uss-libra-ak53-05
-
[6]Printed DANFS Vol. IV pp. 110-11 (archive.org scan dictionaryofamer04wash) vs hazegray transcription; MARAD ShipHistory Detail 3018 milestones; NavSource chronology/campaign table; Wikipedia infobox [nhhc_danfs]
- Locator
- DANFS characteristic line and final paragraphs; MARAD milestones table; NavSource bullets and campaign table
- Finding type
- vessel_history
- Finding
- Source discrepancies resolved: (a) characteristic line - the printed DANFS Vol. IV scan reads length 459'2" and complement 405; the hazegray transcription's 469'2"/406 is a transcription error, and MARAD's 459.00 ft corroborates the print; (b) MARAD custody - 'Entry 6/1/1960', 'Acquisition 7/31/1964' annotated 'CUST 1960 NDRF 1964', reconciling NavSource's 1 June 1960 custody transfer with DANFS's 'transferred to the Maritime Administration in July 1964' (formal acquisition), with the Navy's 1962-63 activation-testing withdrawal (NavSource) falling between them; (c) decommissioning - Wikipedia's '12 April 1948' is superseded by DANFS and NavSource, which agree on 19 April 1948; (d) NavSource's 'New Georgia-Rendova-Vangunu occupation, 30 June 1944' is a one-year error - DANFS places the Rendova/McCawley action in June 1943 within the Guadalcanal-campaign narrative, consistent with McCawley's loss on 30 June 1943; (e) DANFS's Seattle arrival '31 November' 1945 is an impossible printed date and is not asserted as fact.
- Verification
- verified
- Role
- correction
- Documentation level
- ship_specific
- Accessed
- 2026-09-21
- Study period
- 1941-1985
- Limitations
- Resolves publication-level discrepancies between official text, the MARAD record and secondary compilations; none affects hull identity. No asbestos content in any of these sources.
- Atlas source
- true
- Evidence ID
- ev-uss-libra-ak53-06
-
[7]Corn, Jacqueline Karnell, and Jennifer Starr, 'Historical perspective on asbestos: Policies and protective measures in World War II shipbuilding,' American Journal of Industrial Medicine 11(3):359-373 (1987) [other_primary]
- Locator
- Journal article DOI landing page
- Finding type
- asbestos_application
- Finding
- Peer-reviewed historical study documents that asbestos was used extensively as a fireproofing and insulating material in U.S. shipbuilding during WWII - the era and Maritime Commission construction program under which this C2-F hull was built at Federal Shipbuilding, Kearny (1941), and in which she was converted to a Navy cargo ship at New York (May 1942) and repeatedly overhauled and repaired in wartime yards.
- Verification
- verified
- Role
- context
- Documentation level
- class_or_era
- Accessed
- 2026-09-21
- Study period
- 1940-1945
- Population
- WWII-era shipyard workers and ship crews (program context)
- Limitations
- Program-level scholarship; does not name this hull, the C2-F type, or Federal Shipbuilding specifically. Supports era context only - not evidence that asbestos was installed aboard this hull, and establishes nothing about quantities, locations, condition, individual exposure or causation.
- Atlas source
- true
- Evidence ID
- ev-uss-libra-ak53-07
-
[8]GAO, 'Navy Efforts To Protect Workers From Asbestos Exposure,' HRD-80-2 (1979-10-18) [gao]
- Locator
- GAO product page HRD-80-2
- Finding type
- gov_survey
- Finding
- GAO documented the Navy's asbestos-protection program and its insulation-removal policies, with fieldwork at Long Beach and Norfolk Naval Shipyards - program-level context for Navy-yard availabilities of the type this ship underwent (1942 New York conversion, 1943 New Zealand repair, 1944 San Francisco overhaul, postwar reserve-fleet lay-ups). Libra's Navy service (1942-1955) predates the report's 1970s policy window.
- Verification
- verified
- Role
- context
- Documentation level
- class_or_era
- Accessed
- 2026-09-21
- Study period
- 1979 (report); covers policies 1975-1979
- Population
- Navy shipyard workers (program level)
- Limitations
- Program-level report; fieldwork yards were not Libra yards and the report postdates her Navy service. gao.gov returns HTTP 403 to automated fetches - product-page description used; full text not retrieved this pass. Establishes nothing about this hull.
- Atlas source
- true
- Evidence ID
- ev-uss-libra-ak53-08
-
[9]Owens-Illinois, Inc., Industrial Health Survey of Federal Shipbuilding and Dry Dock Co., Kearny, NJ (Aug. 30-Sep. 2, 1944); introduced as Owens-Illinois interrogatory exhibit #20 in Heathman v. Owens-Corning Fiberglas Corp., Brazoria County TX (1990); indexed in shipyards.json record federal-shipbuilding-kearny [other_primary]
- Locator
- toxicdocs.org scan; shipyards.json yard record federal-shipbuilding-kearny, evidence ev-federal-kearny-ihs-1944
- Finding type
- asbestos_application
- Finding
- Yard-level documentation for the builder: an Owens-Illinois Industrial Health Survey of Federal Shipbuilding & Dry Dock Co., Kearny, N.J. (30 August-2 September 1944) documented insulators working with asbestos pipe covering (Johns-Manville Superex) and boiler insulation in confined shipyard spaces during the yard's wartime production - the same yard that built this hull in 1941 under a Maritime Commission contract.
- Verification
- verified
- Role
- context
- Documentation level
- context_only
- Accessed
- 2026-09-21
- Study period
- 1944 (survey window); hull built 1941
- Population
- Shipyard insulators and pipefitters at Federal Shipbuilding, Kearny (yard-level)
- Limitations
- Yard-level survey conducted by a manufacturer with commercial interest, and it postdates this hull's 1941 construction by roughly three years - it documents wartime asbestos practice at the building yard, not materials aboard this hull. Does not establish installation, quantity, condition, exposure or causation for AK-53/AKA-12.
- Atlas source
- true
- Evidence ID
- ev-uss-libra-ak53-09
-
[10]Batch-935 search ledger (this record): DANFS print scan + mirrors; NavSource; MARAD ShipHistory 3018 + attachments; NARA Ship Plan Index and asbestos research guide; shipyards.json; shipbuildinghistory C2 list; secondary cross-checks [other_primary]
- Locator
- search_ledger rows sl-uss-libra-ak53-01 through sl-uss-libra-ak53-13
- Finding type
- historical_record
- Finding
- No qualifying ship-specific asbestos record located: no asbestos survey, material specification, abatement contract, hazmat disclosure or exposure testimony naming this hull was found in the public sources searched (see search_ledger). The CourtListener litigation sweep was not performed: the authenticated API v4 endpoint returned HTTP 429 (2,800/day quota already consumed; expected available in ~10,931 s) on the first request of the session - no opinion or docket query completed, so no litigation conclusion of any kind is made.
- Verification
- verified
- Role
- negative_finding
- Documentation level
- ship_specific
- Accessed
- 2026-09-21
- Study period
- 2026-09-21
- Limitations
- Absence of a located public record does not prove absence of asbestos aboard - a 1941 Maritime Commission C2-F steamship is era-consistent with asbestos-containing insulation, and her WWII conversion/repair history involved yards where asbestos work is documented. Does not establish presence or absence; does not establish or defeat any exposure claim or legal eligibility. The unrun litigation sweep means no litigation finding, positive or negative, is supported.
- Atlas source
- true
- Evidence ID
- ev-uss-libra-ak53-10
-
[11]NARA guided topic 'Researching Asbestos aboard US Naval Vessel up through 1961'; NARA Guide to Federal Records RG 19/24/178/181; NARA Cartographic Branch Ship Plan Index (full page retrieved and searched 2026-09-21) [other_primary]
- Locator
- asbestos guided-topic page; Ship Plan Index https://www.archives.gov/research/cartographic/ship-index (no Libra row found); RG guides 019/024/178/181
- Finding type
- historical_record
- Finding
- Archival leads (not retrieved - require research-room or reproduction order; no spend authorized): NARA RG 19 (Bureau of Ships) general correspondence 1940-1945+ filed by hull designation - this hull files under 'AK53' then 'AKA12' per the Navy Filing Manual, with class-level correspondence under the Arcturus namesake and type-level under 'AK'/'AKA'; these hold conversion, alteration and repair correspondence for the 1942 New York conversion and 1944 San Francisco overhaul; RG 178 (U.S. Maritime Commission) Construction Division records may hold MC hull 130 (Jean Lykes) construction and outfitting papers for the Lykes Bros. contract; RG 24 deck logs cover AK-53/AKA-12 service 1942-1955; RG 181 covers the naval-district yards touched (New York, Boston, Charleston, San Francisco). NARA's guided topic 'Researching Asbestos aboard US Naval Vessel up through 1961' maps exactly this route. Separately, the NARA Cartographic Branch Ship Plan Index (56,000+ name rows, fully loaded) contains no LIBRA, AKA-12 or JEAN LYKES entry - no engineering-drawing series entry located for this hull.
- Verification
- unverified
- Role
- archival_lead
- Documentation level
- context_only
- Accessed
- 2026-09-21
- Study period
- 1941-1985 records
- Limitations
- Record-group mapping and index-negative only - no box-level retrieval performed and no catalog item verified to exist for this hull; existence of asbestos-specific documents for MC hull 130/AK-53/AKA-12 is unknown until surveyed in person. Nothing in this row is an asbestos finding.
- Atlas source
- true
- Evidence ID
- ev-uss-libra-ak53-11