Evidence
12 evidence entries recorded; each entry has a stable permalink (#ev-1 … #ev-12).
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[1]research packet 530-packet.md (8 sources cited) [nhhc_danfs]
- Finding type
- vessel_history
- Finding
- Identity packet verdict: VERIFIED
- Verification
- verified
- Role
- supporting
- Documentation level
- ship_specific
- Evidence ID
- uss-lsm-118-lsm118-pkt-530-packet-md
-
[2]NavSource Online: Amphibious Photo Archive, USS LSM-118 - construction, assignment, campaign credits, occupation/China service, milestones, specifications, commanding officers (history extract from LSM-LSMR Amphibious Forces, Vol. II, Turner Publishing 1997) [other_primary]
- Locator
- NavSource 10/14/14118.htm history block, campaign/service tables, specifications block, commanding-officers list
- Finding type
- vessel_history
- Finding
- Documented for this hull: LSM-1-class Landing Ship Medium; laid down 21 October 1944 at Brown Ship Building Co., Houston, TX; launched 11 November 1944; commissioned USS LSM-118 on 8 December 1944, LT. Nicholas Mellan USNR in command. WWII Asiatic-Pacific Theater assignment: LSM Flotilla Twelve (LCDR A. F. Dineen USN), LSM Group Thirty-four (LCDR V. W. Webb USNR), LSM Division Sixty-Seven; participated in the Okinawa Gunto operation (assault and occupation of Okinawa Gunto, 17 April - 18 May 1945), earning one battle star. Post-war: Navy Occupation Service Medal periods 4-13 and 24-27 September 1945; China Service Medal (extended) 28 September - 3 December 1945. Decommissioned 25 April 1947; laid up in the Pacific Reserve Fleet; struck from the Naval Register, date unknown; sold October 1958 to Foss Launch & Tug Co., Seattle, WA, converted to a barge, fate unknown. Specifications: 520 t light / 743 t landing / 1,095 t full; 203'6" ovl; complement 5 officers + 54 enlisted; two Fairbanks Morse 38D81/8X10 diesels (1,440 BHP each @ 720 rpm), direct drive, twin propellers, 2,800 shp. Commanding officers: LT Mellan (8 Dec 1944 - 15 Dec 1945), ENS McGrath (15 Dec 1945 - 2 Jun 1946), LCDR Mosier (2 Jun 1946 - 25 Apr 1947).
- Verification
- verified
- Role
- supporting
- Documentation level
- ship_specific
- Accessed
- 2026-10-01
- Study period
- 1944-1958
- Population
- Brown Shipbuilding construction trades (Oct-Dec 1944); crew (1944-47: 5 officers + 54 enlisted design complement)
- Limitations
- NavSource is a volunteer secondary compilation sourcing the Turner Publishing LSM-LSMR history - milestone dates generally track NVR but are unverified against the primary register; 'struck' date given as unknown while secondary compilations carry 14 January 1958 (see ev-04 and gaps). Contains no asbestos content.
- Atlas source
- true
- Evidence ID
- ev-uss-lsm-118-lsm118-01
-
[3]NavSource Online: Amphibious Photo Archive, USS LSM-118 - photographic record incl. U.S. Naval Historical Center photo NH 79854 (San Francisco Bay, February 1946) [other_primary]
- Locator
- NavSource 10/14/14118.htm and 14118c.htm photo-caption tables
- Finding type
- vessel_history
- Finding
- Ship-specific photographic record placing this hull: crew photo at Amphibious Training Base, Little Creek, VA, 1944; moored bow-on at Naval Station Pearl Harbor circa 22 February - 3 March 1945 (or Jan-Feb 1946 return); 20mm gunnery practice off Okinawa circa 17 April - 19 May 1945 (with USS LSM-335 in background); loading cargo from Guadalcanal 17 July 1945; crew 'Victory cake' at Leyte, P.I., 16 August 1945; en route Guam from Okinawa during Typhoon Ida 11-19 September 1945; Tientsin, China, October 1945; moored at Tangku and beached at Tsingtao, China, Oct-Dec 1945; crew photos at Chinwangtao, China, November 1945; loading USCG cutter CG-83362 at Pearl Harbor 10 January 1946; en route Guam - Pearl Harbor 11-24 January 1946; San Francisco Bay, February 1946 (US Navy photo NH 79854, collections of the US Naval Historical Center).
- Verification
- verified
- Role
- supporting
- Documentation level
- ship_specific
- Accessed
- 2026-10-01
- Study period
- 1944-1946
- Population
- Crew aboard during documented movements (1944-46)
- Limitations
- Photo captions are contributor-supplied metadata hosted on a volunteer archive - dates/locations are per-caption and not independently verified; NH 79854 confirms an official US Naval Historical Center photograph of this hull exists (an archival lead). Contains no asbestos or material content.
- Atlas source
- true
- Evidence ID
- ev-uss-lsm-118-lsm118-02
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[4]shipbuildinghistory.com (Colton), Brown Shipbuilding Co., Houston TX yard list - hull 223 = LSM-118 [other_primary]
- Locator
- shipbuildinghistory.com Brown yard list, row for yard hull 223 (LSM 118)
- Finding type
- vessel_history
- Finding
- Brown Shipbuilding yard record for this hull: yard hull number 223, 'LSM 118', laid down 21-Oct-44, launched 11-Nov-44, delivered 8-Dec-44; disposition entry 'Laid up 1947, sold to Foss 1958, converted to barge, later A E C 41-24 (ON 284376)' - documenting the barge's post-Navy name and U.S. official number.
- Verification
- verified
- Role
- supporting
- Documentation level
- ship_specific
- Accessed
- 2026-10-01
- Study period
- 1944-1958
- Population
- Foss Launch & Tug conversion workers (1958) and later barge handlers
- Limitations
- Secondary compiled yard list (Colton's shipbuildinghistory.com) - consistent with NavSource on all overlapping dates; the post-sale identity A E C 41-24 / ON 284376 is the only located trace of the barge and is not further verified (merchant registry not searched). Contains no asbestos content.
- Atlas source
- true
- Evidence ID
- ev-uss-lsm-118-lsm118-03
-
[5]USNI Naval History 39(3), 'The Brown Shipbuilding Company's Rise During World War II' (June 2025) [reputable_press]
- Locator
- usni.org Naval History June 2025 article body (assembly-line/Greens Bayou/workforce passages)
- Finding type
- vessel_history
- Finding
- Builder-yard documentation: Brown Shipbuilding Co. of Houston, Texas - the yard that built this hull - won government contracts for destroyer escorts, submarine chasers, and landing craft, built vessels by assembly-line fabrication launched sideways into narrow Greens Bayou, and employed a peak workforce of more than 25,000 starting in late 1942.
- Verification
- verified
- Role
- context
- Documentation level
- class_or_era
- Accessed
- 2026-10-01
- Study period
- 1942-1946
- Population
- Brown Shipbuilding workforce (peak >25,000, from late 1942)
- Limitations
- Yard-level historical journalism from the U.S. Naval Institute, not a hull record - establishes the builder's scale, location (Greens Bayou), and wartime Navy contract work during this hull's construction period. Contains no asbestos content; documents no occupational-health condition at the yard.
- Atlas source
- true
- Evidence ID
- ev-uss-lsm-118-lsm118-04
-
[6]uboat.net Allied Warships, USS LSM 118 (LSM 118) - ordered, milestones, stricken 14 January 1958 [other_primary]
- Locator
- uboat.net ship page 12729, data table and history line
- Finding type
- vessel_history
- Finding
- uboat.net compiled record for this hull: ordered 15 September 1943; laid down 21 October 1944; launched 11 November 1944; commissioned 8 December 1944; 'End service 25 Apr 1947'; history line 'Decommissioned on 25 April 1947. Stricken on 14 January 1958. Sold in October 1958.'
- Verification
- partial
- Role
- context
- Documentation level
- ship_specific
- Accessed
- 2026-10-01
- Study period
- 1943-1958
- Limitations
- Secondary warship database; all dates match NavSource except the stricken date (14 January 1958) which NavSource lists as unknown - carried as a secondary-only stricken date pending register verification. 'Ordered' date likewise secondary-only. Contains no asbestos content.
- Atlas source
- true
- Evidence ID
- ev-uss-lsm-118-lsm118-05
-
[7]Era inference built on: NavSource specifications (two Fairbanks Morse 38D81/8X10 diesels, direct drive, twin screws; diesel-driven ship's-service generators - no steam plant); LSM-1-class WWII construction era (built Oct-Dec 1944); WWII shipbuilding asbestos documentation (Corn & Starr AJIM 1987, ev-07; MARAD/IITRI PB84104108, ev-08; GAO HRD-80-2, ev-09) [other_primary]
- Locator
- NavSource specifications block; ev-07, ev-08, ev-09 era documentation
- Finding type
- asbestos_application
- Finding
- A diesel-powered LSM-1-class landing ship built Oct-Dec 1944 sits inside the documented WWII shipbuilding asbestos era; era-standard applications aboard a diesel amphibious ship of this type and period were thermal insulation, machinery and diesel-exhaust lagging, gaskets, valve packing, electrical insulation, and fireproofing in the confined hull and machinery spaces. As a direct-drive diesel ship she carried no boiler or steam-turbine plant - the boiler/turbine lagging pathway of steam vessels does not apply, but the confined machinery-space exposure dynamic documented for marine engine rooms applies.
- Verification
- inferred
- Role
- supporting
- Documentation level
- class_or_era
- Accessed
- 2026-10-01
- Study period
- 1944-1958
- Population
- Brown Shipbuilding construction trades (Oct-Dec 1944); crew (1944-47); Foss conversion workers (1958)
- Limitations
- Class/era inference only - no hull-specific insulation survey, material list, or work package located for LSM-118. 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-lsm-118-lsm118-06
-
[8]Corn JK, Starr J, 'Historical perspective on asbestos: Policies and protective measures in World War II shipbuilding,' American Journal of Industrial Medicine 11(3):359-373 (1987); PMID 3555021 [other_primary]
- Locator
- AJIM 11(3):359-373; abstract and keyword block (doi.org/10.1002/ajim.4700110311)
- Finding type
- gov_survey
- Finding
- Peer-reviewed historical analysis of WWII-era shipbuilding documents 'the extensive use of asbestos as a fireproofing and insulating material in shipbuilding in the 1940s, when World War II industrial expansion brought about a hitherto unprecedented rise in the amount of asbestos utilized,' and reproduces Navy Secretary Knox memoranda (1941, 1943) extending safety/industrial-health requirements to private shipyards under Navy and Maritime Commission projects - the policy environment covering this hull's 1944 construction at a private contract yard (Brown Shipbuilding).
- Verification
- verified
- Role
- context
- Documentation level
- class_or_era
- Accessed
- 2026-10-01
- Study period
- 1987 (publication); covers 1940s construction era
- Population
- WWII shipbuilding workers (1940s policy environment)
- Limitations
- Era/policy-level documentation, not a hull record - LSM-118 and Brown Shipbuilding are not named in the abstract; the source documents that asbestos fireproofing/insulation was standard in 1940s shipbuilding, not its presence aboard this specific hull. Wiley and PubMed pages both block automated fetch (HTTP 403 / reCAPTCHA); citation verified via search-index rendering of the live Wiley page. Does not establish materials aboard, individual exposure, quantity, or present-day presence.
- Atlas source
- true
- Evidence ID
- ev-uss-lsm-118-lsm118-07
-
[9]Jones DR (IIT Research Institute, Chicago), 'Assessment of Asbestos Concentrations in the Engine Room Environment of Marine Vessels, Phase 1,' final report, Maritime Administration contract MA-5-38072, NTIS PB84104108 (1979) [marad_nrc]
- Locator
- NTIS title-detail page PB84104108 (abstract, keywords, source agency Maritime Administration)
- Finding type
- gov_survey
- Finding
- Maritime Administration-funded engineering assessment documenting that 'large quantities of asbestos ... have been used in the construction of ships, especially since the World War II shipbuilding boom' and characterizing asbestos in marine-vessel engine-room environments - the machinery-space context relevant to this diesel-driven landing ship (whose propulsion and generator diesels occupied the enclosed engine room).
- Verification
- verified
- Role
- context
- Documentation level
- class_or_era
- Accessed
- 2026-10-01
- Study period
- 1979 (report); covers WWII-boom-era construction
- Population
- Marine-vessel engine-room crews and shipyard trades (era-class documentation)
- Limitations
- Program/engineering-level documentation from NTIS metadata and abstract; the report does not name LSM-118 or any WWII amphibious ship - it establishes asbestos as a documented engine-room material aboard marine vessels of the era class, not aboard this hull. Full text not extracted (NTRL session-gated download).
- Atlas source
- true
- Evidence ID
- ev-uss-lsm-118-lsm118-08
-
[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 (Oct-Dec 1944) and service era (1944-47, plus 1947-58 reserve layup).
- Verification
- verified
- Role
- context
- Documentation level
- class_or_era
- Accessed
- 2026-10-01
- 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 2026-10-01) - content via product-page description.
- Atlas source
- true
- Evidence ID
- ev-uss-lsm-118-lsm118-09
-
[11]Rice University, Woodson Research Center - 'Series V: Brown Shipbuilding Company Files, 1939-1950' (Brown & Root records); plus RG 24 deck logs for USS LSM-118 (1944-47), NARA College Park [other_primary]
- Locator
- archives.library.rice.edu Series V finding-aid entry; NavSource photo caption (NH 79854); RG 24 deck-log holding standard (catalog unfetchable)
- Finding type
- historical_record
- Finding
- Archival leads located: (1) the Woodson Research Center at Rice University holds the Brown Shipbuilding Company Files, 1939-1950 - builder business records including correspondence with the U.S. Navy covering the period of this hull's construction; (2) NARA RG 24 deck logs for USS LSM-118 (commissioned Dec 1944 - decommissioned Apr 1947) are a standard holding at College Park; (3) US Naval Historical Center photograph NH 79854 (this hull in San Francisco Bay, February 1946) is referenced in NavSource captions.
- Verification
- partial
- Role
- archival_lead
- Documentation level
- ship_specific
- Accessed
- 2026-10-01
- Study period
- 1939-1950 (Rice series); 1944-47 (deck logs)
- Limitations
- Archival leads only - none of these collections has been searched for asbestos-relevant content (specs, work packages, correspondence); Rice finding aid lists the series scope but not hull-level files. RG 24 deck logs for this era are not publicly digitized; NARA catalog is JS-rendered and could not be queried from this session. No asbestos content located in the leads themselves.
- Atlas source
- true
- Evidence ID
- ev-uss-lsm-118-lsm118-10
-
[12]Batch-5917 search ledger (this record): NavSource ship page and photo captions; shipbuildinghistory.com Brown yard list; uboat.net; NHHC DANFS (no entry); NVR (no entry); NARA catalog (JS-blocked); GAO product page; CourtListener opinion index (0 hits); secondary web litigation sweep [other_primary]
- Locator
- search_ledger rows sl-uss-lsm-118-lsm118-01 through -12
- Finding type
- historical_record
- Finding
- No qualifying ship-specific asbestos record located: no asbestos survey, abatement contract, hazmat disclosure, or litigation naming USS LSM-118 was found in the public sources searched. CourtListener searches of the exact designation '"LSM-118"' returned zero published opinions (type=o) and zero dockets (type=r), both verified this session. Secondary web sweeps surfaced no qualifying case; the only 'asbestos aboard' material for LSMs generally is law-firm marketing content asserting asbestos without primary sourcing - excluded by source policy.
- Verification
- verified
- Role
- negative_finding
- Documentation level
- ship_specific
- Accessed
- 2026-10-01
- Study period
- 2026-10-01
- Limitations
- Absence of a located public record does not prove absence of asbestos aboard. CourtListener coverage: both the opinion index (type=o) and the docket index (type=r, incl. RECAP) returned 0 for '"LSM-118"' - a real negative within that index's coverage only; state-court and non-RECAP PACER filings are outside it. Deck logs, builder records (Rice), and any Foss conversion records are undigitized leads. Does not establish or defeat any claim of exposure or legal eligibility.
- Atlas source
- true
- Evidence ID
- ev-uss-lsm-118-lsm118-11