Evidence
11 evidence entries recorded; each entry has a stable permalink (#ev-1 … #ev-11).
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[1]NavSource Online: Amphibious Photo Archive, USS LSM-390 (page 10/14/14390, last updated 4 Jan 2025; DANFS extract sourced to LSM-LSMR Amphibious Forces Vol. II, Turner Publishing, 1997) [other_primary]
- Locator
- NavSource 10/14/14390.htm - header block, awards block, specifications, timeline, commanding officers, photo captions
- Finding type
- vessel_history
- Finding
- Documented for this hull: laid down 13 November 1944 at U.S. Navy Yard, Charleston, S.C.; launched 12 December 1944; commissioned USS LSM-390, 31 January 1945, LT. Frederic M. Cook, Jr., USNR, in command. Assigned during and after WWII to the Asiatic-Pacific Theater - LSM Flotilla Eleven, LSM Group Thirty-Two, LSM Division Sixty-Four; post-war occupation duty in the Far East including China Service. Decommissioned 30 September 1946; laid up in the Atlantic Reserve Fleet. Authorized for conversion to a Coastal Mine Layer in FY 1953; converted at Summit Iron Works, Brooklyn, N.Y., 10 August 1953 - 13 May 1954; transferred to Denmark 13 May 1954; commissioned into the Danish Navy as HDMS Beskytteren (N-60), 8 June 1954; reclassified by the US Navy 1 October 1960 to MMC-8; decommissioned by the Danish Navy 12 November 1964; returned to US custody in 1965; struck from the Naval Register 'date unknown'; sold in 1965, fate unknown. Awards: China Service (extended), American Campaign Medal, Asiatic-Pacific Campaign Medal, WWII Victory Medal, Navy Occupation Service Medal (Asia clasp) - no battle stars shown. Spec block: LSM-1 class; 520 t. light / 743 t. landing / 1,095 t. full; 203'6" oa x 34'6" x 3'6"/7'8" light; 13.2 kts; complement 5 officers + 54 enlisted; armament 1 twin 40mm + 4 single 20mm; capacity 5 medium or 3 heavy tanks or 6 LVTs or 9 DUKWs; propulsion two GM 16-278A reversible diesels with hydraulic clutch, direct drive, 1,440 BHP each @ 720 rpm, twin screws 2,800 shp; diesel ship's-service generators 2x100kW AC + 1x20kW DC. MMC conversion spec: 60 complement, 4 twin 40mm + 6 single 20mm, 12 kts. Commanding officers: LT F. M. Cook Jr. (31 Jan 1945 - Dec 1945), LTjg O. E. Bradway Jr. (Dec 1945 - May 1946), LTjg L. Trillich (May 1946 - 30 Sep 1946). Photo captions document: fitting-out piers at US Navy Yard Charleston 10 Jan 1945 (photo 132-46); moored with LSM-157 and LSM-470 on China Service 12 Mar 1946 (National Museum of the US Navy); with LSM-157, LSM-470 and YOG-56 on China Service ca. 30 Sep 1945 - 12 Jun 1946; San Francisco Bay 1946 return (NH 79842); beached at 'Visques Island' [Vieques], east of Puerto Rico, during Caribbean Fleet Maneuvers, 17 Feb 1948 (USN 704882) - a date after her recorded decommissioning (see gaps); sea trials during Denmark turnover ca. May 1954 still wearing hull number 390.
- Verification
- verified
- Role
- context
- Documentation level
- ship_specific
- Accessed
- 2026-10-01
- Study period
- 1944-1965
- Population
- Charleston Naval Shipyard construction trades (1944-45); crew 1945-46; Summit Iron Works conversion trades (1953-54); Royal Danish Navy crew (1954-64)
- Limitations
- NavSource is a volunteer secondary compilation, not a primary registry - its DANFS extract derives from the Turner Publishing LSM-LSMR association volume, not an NHHC DANFS entry (none exists). Dates and specs track register data and are corroborated at key points by NHHC, Shipscribe and Jane's, but individual photo-caption dates (esp. the 17 Feb 1948 Vieques image) are as-captioned. Contains no asbestos or material content.
- Atlas source
- true
- Evidence ID
- ev-uss-lsm-390-lsm390-01
-
[2]NHHC online reading room, 'United States Pacific Fleet Organization, 1 May 1945' (primary organizational document) [nhhc_danfs]
- Locator
- Page 70-71 of the organization list: 'LSM FLOTILLA ELEVEN' > 'LSM GROUP THIRTY-TWO' > 'LSM DIVISION 64' table, line 'LSM 390'
- Finding type
- vessel_history
- Finding
- The Navy's own 1 May 1945 Pacific Fleet organization list places LSM 390 in LSM Flotilla Eleven, LSM Group Thirty-Two, LSM Division 64 - corroborating the NavSource flotilla/group/division assignment from a primary document. The same list shows her division mates: LSM 306, 307, 308, 309, 389 in Division 64; the division's commanding-officer column for these hulls shows '..........' (not filled in).
- Verification
- verified
- Role
- context
- Documentation level
- ship_specific
- Accessed
- 2026-10-01
- Study period
- 1945-05-01
- Population
- Crew aboard during Pacific assignment (1945)
- Limitations
- Confirms organizational assignment on 1 May 1945 only; establishes presence on the Pacific Fleet list, not operations, locations, or material condition. No asbestos content.
- Atlas source
- true
- Evidence ID
- ev-uss-lsm-390-lsm390-02
-
[3]NHHC photographic catalog record NH 79842, 'USS LSM-390' [nhhc_danfs]
- Locator
- NHHC NH-series catalog page NH 79842 (Title/Caption/Description fields)
- Finding type
- historical_record
- Finding
- NHHC's official photographic catalog holds image NH 79842 titled 'USS LSM-390', captioned 'In San Francisco Bay, 1945-46', described 'Courtesy of D.M. McPherson, 1974'. The same image is captioned on NavSource as the ship underway off Sausalito in 1946 returning from the Asiatic-Pacific Theater - consistent with post-Pacific return and pre-decommissioning.
- Verification
- verified
- Role
- context
- Documentation level
- ship_specific
- Accessed
- 2026-10-01
- Study period
- 1945-1946
- Population
- Crew aboard during 1945-46 Pacific return
- Limitations
- A photograph catalog record establishes that an official image exists and its NHHC caption - it is physical-presence documentation, not an operational or material record. '1945-46' (NHHC) vs '1946' (NavSource caption) is a caption-level imprecision, immaterial. No asbestos content.
- Atlas source
- true
- Evidence ID
- ev-uss-lsm-390-lsm390-03
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[4]Shipscribe, 'Turkish Marmoris (MMC 6-14, ex LSM) Class' - register-compiled construction/disposition tables and class/ship notes for the MMC 6-14 conversions (compiled 4 Oct 2021) [other_primary]
- Locator
- Shipscribe usnaux2/MMC/MMC06.html - Construction table (MMC 8 row), Disposition table (MMC 8 row), Class Notes, Ship Notes (MMC 8)
- Finding type
- historical_record
- Finding
- Register-compiled record for this hull as Danish BESKYTTEREN (MMC 8): FY 1953 MDAP conversion; 'Ex LSM 390 (comm. 31 Jan 1945, decomm. 30 Sep 1946). Converted by Summit Iron Works, Brooklyn, NY 10 Aug 1953 to 13 May 1954. Named by Denmark 26 Nov 1953 and comm. 8 June 1954. Decomm. 12 Oct 1963. Returned to US custody 1965, offered for sale Jan 1965 by the USAFE/UK Redistribution and Marketing Center.' Disposition table: US Strike June 1953; US Disposal 13 May 1954, transferred. Class note: six late LSMs were designated 10 April 1951 for conversion and MDAP transfer as coastal minelayers (the MMC 6 class); the FY 1953 Greek and Danish units (MMC 6-9) were numbered before the FY 1951 units (MMC 10-14) when MMC numbers were assigned in place of LSM designations as of 1 Oct 1960, the ships remaining stricken but retained on the NVR in MDAP loan status. Conversion detail: two minelaying rails on the former LSM vehicle deck, four booms for loading; a Danish source gives the Danish ships 98 Mk I mines.
- Verification
- verified
- Role
- context
- Documentation level
- ship_specific
- Accessed
- 2026-10-01
- Study period
- 1951-1965
- Population
- Summit Iron Works conversion trades (1953-54); MDAP transfer crews
- Limitations
- Shipscribe is a reputable private compilation of Naval Vessel Register and official data - treated as register-derived but is a secondary source; the Danish decommission date it carries (12 Oct 1963) conflicts with NavSource and navalhistory.dk (12 Nov 1964) - see gaps. Contains no asbestos or material content.
- Atlas source
- true
- Evidence ID
- ev-uss-lsm-390-lsm390-04
-
[5]Jane's Fighting Ships 1962-63, Danish Navy section, '2 "Beskytteren" Class' (digitized full text, Internet Archive) [other_primary]
- Locator
- Jane's Fighting Ships 1962-63 full-text scan, Royal Danish Navy section, '2 "Beskytteren" Class' entry
- Finding type
- historical_record
- Finding
- Contemporaneous published fleet reference confirms the Danish-service identity of this hull: 'BESKYTTEREN (ex-U.S. LSM 390) VINDHUNDEN (ex-U.S. LSM 392)'. Specifications in Danish service: displacement 743 tons light, 1,095 tons full load; dimensions 196.5' wl / 203.5' oa x 34.5' x 8.5'; guns 8-40mm twin, 6-20mm AA; machinery diesel, 2 shafts, BHP 2,800 = 12 kts; complement 60. Notes: 'Former United States LSM's reconstructed as minelayers in U.S.A. Beskytteren (Danish for "Protector") was launched on 12 Dec. 1944 by Charleston Navy Yard and transferred to the Royal Danish Navy at New York on 8 June 1954. Pennant Nos. N 60 and N 61, respectively.'
- Verification
- verified
- Role
- context
- Documentation level
- ship_specific
- Accessed
- 2026-10-01
- Study period
- 1954-1962 (edition coverage)
- Population
- Royal Danish Navy crew (1954-64)
- Limitations
- Jane's is a reputable commercial naval reference, not an official registry - figures are as-published for the class. Confirms identity and in-service specification, not materials. No asbestos content in this entry.
- Atlas source
- true
- Evidence ID
- ev-uss-lsm-390-lsm390-05
-
[6]navalhistory.dk (Johnny E. Balsved), 'Minelayer BESKYTTEREN (1954-1964)' data sheet - citing Olsen & Storgaard, Flaadens skibe og fartoejer 1945-1995 (Marinehistoriske skrifter, Copenhagen 1998) - via Wayback capture 2006-05-28 (live site temporarily disabled) [other_primary]
- Locator
- BESKYTTEREN (1954-1964) data sheet - Specifications and Notes sections
- Finding type
- historical_record
- Finding
- Danish-side record for this hull as BESKYTTEREN (1954-1964), 'The Protector': type minelayer (ex Landing Ship Medium), BESKYTTEREN class (sister N61 VINDHUNDEN); built by Charleston Naval Ship Yard; laid down 13 November 1944; launched 12 December 1944; commissioned into Danish service 8 June 1954; decommissioned 12 November 1964; pennant N50, later N60 from around 1955; international call sign OVKH; displacement 1,150 tons; 63.76 m x 10.49 m x 2.90 m; complement 75 (7 officers, 68 ratings/enlisted); propulsion 2 GMC/Cleveland diesels, 2,880 hp, 2 propellers; range 3,500 nm at 12 kts; armament 8 x 40mm M/36 LvSa2 (4x2) and 6 x 20mm M/42 LvSa (6x1).
- Verification
- partial
- Role
- context
- Documentation level
- ship_specific
- Accessed
- 2026-10-01
- Study period
- 1954-1964
- Population
- Royal Danish Navy crew (1954-64); Danish dockyard maintenance personnel
- Limitations
- Danish naval-history compilation citing a standard Danish fleet reference (Olsen & Storgaard 1998) - secondary, not official registry. The page's 'ex. USS LSM-392' attribution is an error - see ev-07 correction. Live site temporarily disabled this session; archived copy used. Complement (75) differs from Jane's (60) - Danish fit vs published MMC spec, unresolved but immaterial. No asbestos content.
- Atlas source
- true
- Evidence ID
- ev-uss-lsm-390-lsm390-06
-
[7]Identity cross-check: navalhistory.dk BESKYTTEREN page ('ex. USS LSM-392') vs NavSource LSM-390/LSM-392 pages, Shipscribe MMC06 class tables, and Jane's Fighting Ships 1962-63 Danish section [other_primary]
- Locator
- navalhistory.dk BESKYTTEREN(1954).htm 'Commissioned: June 8, 1954 - ex. USS LSM-392'; Vindhunden(1954).htm equivalent line; NavSource 10/14/14390.htm and 10/14/14392.htm; Shipscribe MMC06 construction/disposition/notes tables; Jane's 1962-63 Danish section
- Finding type
- historical_record
- Finding
- CORRECTION: the navalhistory.dk BESKYTTEREN (1954-1964) data sheet states 'ex. USS LSM-392' - a misidentification. US-side records agree BESKYTTEREN (N-60, MMC-8) is ex-LSM-390: NavSource (LSM-390 -> Beskytteren N-60; LSM-392 -> Vindhunden N-61/MMC-9), Shipscribe (MMC 8 'Ex LSM 390'; MMC 9 'Ex LSM 392'), and Jane's 1962-63 ('BESKYTTEREN (ex-U.S. LSM 390) VINDHUNDEN (ex-U.S. LSM 392)'). The Danish page's own build dates (laid down 13 Nov 1944, launched 12 Dec 1944) are LSM-390's dates, not LSM-392's (28 Nov / 17 Dec 1944 per Shipscribe). The sister page for VINDHUNDEN also claims 'ex. USS LSM-392' while carrying a 'laid down November 13, 1944' line - likewise LSM-390's keel date - showing crossed data on the Danish pages. Correct identity: LSM-390 = BESKYTTEREN.
- Verification
- verified
- Role
- correction
- Documentation level
- ship_specific
- Accessed
- 2026-10-01
- Study period
- 1954-1964 (identity window)
- Limitations
- Corrects a circulating identity error in a named secondary source; does not itself add asbestos or operational evidence. The Danish pages' dates partially self-contradict - treated as transcription slips, not evidence of a different hull.
- Atlas source
- true
- Evidence ID
- ev-uss-lsm-390-lsm390-07
-
[8]Era inference built on: NavSource specification block (2 x GM 16-278A diesels, direct drive - no steam plant); Jane's 1962-63 Danish-section machinery line (diesel, 2 shafts, 2,800 BHP); shipyard-exposure-map shipyards.json documented asbestos product list for charleston-naval-shipyard (builder, 1944-45); GAO HRD-80-2 Navy asbestos-era coverage (see ev-10) [other_primary]
- Locator
- NavSource 10/14/14390.htm specifications block; shipyards.json 'charleston-naval-shipyard' asbestos_products_documented field; GAO HRD-80-2 product page
- Finding type
- asbestos_application
- Finding
- A diesel-driven landing ship built at Charleston Naval Shipyard in 1944-45 sits inside both that yard's documented asbestos-use profile and the Navy's asbestos-insulation era; era-standard applications aboard a vessel of this type and period were thermal insulation, machinery and diesel-exhaust lagging, gaskets, valve packing, electrical insulation, and deck coverings in accommodation spaces. As a diesel ship she carried no boilers or turbines - the steam-plant lagging pathway does not apply. Her 1953-54 conversion to a coastal minelayer at Summit Iron Works falls inside the same era; whether conversion-yard work disturbed or added asbestos materials is undocumented.
- Verification
- inferred
- Role
- supporting
- Documentation level
- class_or_era
- Accessed
- 2026-10-01
- Study period
- 1944-1965
- Population
- Charleston Naval Shipyard construction trades (1944-45); USN crew (1945-46); Summit Iron Works conversion trades (1953-54); Royal Danish Navy crew (1954-64); unknown 1965 purchaser's disposal workforce
- Limitations
- Class/era inference only - no hull-specific insulation survey, material list, or work package located for LSM-390. 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-390-lsm390-08
-
[9]shipyard-exposure-map shipyards.json, yard record 'charleston-naval-shipyard' (evidence_tier 2): documented products list; Robert Whalen v. John Crane Inc. $70.8M California jury verdict Nov 2014 (Navy machinist); Walter Twidwell v. Aerco International $40M New York jury verdict 2018 (Navy veteran); OSHA inspection 100361849 (1988) citing Commander, Charleston Naval Shipyard under 29 CFR 1910.1001 [other_primary]
- Locator
- shipyards.json 'charleston-naval-shipyard' - asbestos_products_documented field; evidence rows ev-charleston-naval-shipyard-06, -07, -osha-1988-100361849
- Finding type
- historical_record
- Finding
- The yard that built this hull is a documented asbestos-use Navy yard in the Atlas yard dataset: asbestos products documented at Charleston Naval Shipyard include magnesia pipe insulation, asbestos cement products, pipe insulation at 5-50% asbestos content, boiler external coatings at 15% asbestos, spray-on insulation for walls and ship interiors, corrugated asbestos sheeting, asbestos gaskets in pumps and valves, packing materials for rotating equipment, thermal insulation for steam systems, fireproofing materials in living quarters, electrical insulation throughout vessels, spray-on corrosion-protection coatings, brake linings, and clutch facings; litigation verdicts document asbestos-exposure injury among Navy personnel associated with the yard (Whalen 2014; Twidwell 2018), and OSHA cited the yard under the asbestos standard in a 1988-90 inspection record.
- Verification
- verified
- Role
- context
- Documentation level
- class_or_era
- Accessed
- 2026-10-01
- Study period
- 1944-45 (build window within documented yard era); verdicts 2014, 2018; OSHA 1988-90
- Population
- Charleston Naval Shipyard workforce (WWII peak employment 25,948)
- Limitations
- Yard-level documentation, not a hull record: establishes asbestos use and exposure at Charleston Naval Shipyard generally - LSM-390 is not named in any underlying source. The yard dataset's component rows are of mixed verification (one fiber-measurement row is explicitly unverified/multi-yard); the product list and verdicts are the usable substance. Does not establish materials aboard this hull, individual exposure, quantity, or present-day presence.
- Atlas source
- true
- Evidence ID
- ev-uss-lsm-390-lsm390-09
-
[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 construction (1944-45), USN service (1945-46), reserve lay-up, and the 1953-54 US conversion period.
- 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, standing defect since Batch-01) - content via product-page description.
- Atlas source
- true
- Evidence ID
- ev-uss-lsm-390-lsm390-10
-
[11]Batch-6207 search ledger (this record): NavSource 10/14/14390; NHHC Pacific Fleet Organization 1 May 1945; NHHC photo NH 79842; Shipscribe MMC06; Jane's 1962-63 (Internet Archive full text); navalhistory.dk via Wayback; HyperWar DANFS LSM series (lsm390 404); NARA catalog (unfetchable); NVR (no entry); CourtListener (blocked this session); secondary web sweep [other_primary]
- Locator
- search_ledger rows sl-uss-lsm-390-lsm390-01 through -11
- Finding type
- historical_record
- Finding
- No qualifying ship-specific asbestos record located: no asbestos survey, abatement contract, hazmat disclosure, or verified litigation naming USS LSM-390 / Beskytteren (N-60) / MMC-8 was found in the public sources searched (see search_ledger). CAVEAT: CourtListener could not be queried to completion this session - the fleet-paced request budget was spent (helper returned pacing stand-down); logged as blocked in search_ledger, not as a negative result. Secondary web sweeps surfaced no qualifying case and no law-firm marketing assertions for this hull. No dedicated DANFS entry exists (NavSource's 'DANFS' text is a Turner-book extract; HyperWar lsm390.html 404).
- 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 - era and builder context make period asbestos use plausible; the litigation repository search is an open gap (budget-blocked, not run). RG 24 deck logs (1945-46) and Summit Iron Works conversion work papers are undigitized leads. Does not establish or defeat any claim of exposure or legal eligibility.
- Atlas source
- true
- Evidence ID
- ev-uss-lsm-390-lsm390-11