Evidence
13 evidence entries recorded; each entry has a stable permalink (#ev-1 … #ev-13).
-
[1]research packet 578-packet.md (2 sources cited) [other_primary]
- Finding type
- vessel_history
- Finding
- Identity packet verdict: VERIFIED
- Verification
- verified
- Role
- supporting
- Documentation level
- ship_specific
- Evidence ID
- uss-lsm-444-lsm444-pkt-578-packet-md
-
[2]NavSource Online: Amphibious Photo Archive, USS LSM-444 page (construction and milestone timeline, awards, specification block, commanding-officer list; history extract credited to LSM-LSMR Amphibious Forces, Vol. II, Turner Publishing, 1997, ISBN 1-56311-389-9) [other_primary]
- Locator
- NavSource 10/14/14444.htm - main timeline block, awards table, specifications block, commanding-officers table
- Finding type
- vessel_history
- Finding
- Documented for this hull: laid down 1 March 1945 at Dravo Corporation, Wilmington, DE; launched 17 April 1945; commissioned USS LSM-444, 13 May 1945, LTjg. Loren B. Waller USNR in command. WWII assignment: Asiatic-Pacific Theater, LSM Flotilla Fourteen (LCDR W. R. McCaleb), LSM Group Forty-Two, LSM Division Eighty-Three. Post-war occupation and China service periods documented by award-eligibility windows (Navy Occupation Service Medal and China Service Medal extended) running to 26 April 1949 (China) and 3 May 1949 (occupation). Decommissioned in 1949 at San Diego, CA; laid up in the Pacific Reserve Fleet. Reactivated and transferred 13 November 1957 to the Atomic Energy Commission; returned to US Navy custody August 1960; transferred 2 September 1960 to Chile as Aspirante Morel (LSM-92); converted in 1977 by the Chilean Navy to a floating brig; struck from the Naval Register, date unknown; hulk sold for scrapping by the Chilean Navy in 1981. Spec block: 520 t. light / 743 t. landing / 1,095 t. full load; 203'6" ovl x 34'6"; 13.2 kts; complement 5 officers + 54 enlisted; troop accommodations 2 officers + 46 enlisted; one twin 40mm + four single 20mm; two GM 16-278A diesels (1,440 BHP each @ 720 rpm, direct drive with hydraulic clutch), twin screws, 2,800 shp; diesel ship's-service generators 2 x 100kW 450V AC and 1 x 20kW 120V DC; endurance 4,900 mi @ 12 kts. Commanding officers listed: LTjg Loren B. Waller (13 May 1945 - 29 Jan 1946), ENS August R. Winsten (to 9 Mar 1946), ENS J. J. Dermody (to May 1946), LT Ralph Brown Hensley (May 1946 - 1947), LT Jesse Earl Gose (1947 - ?).
- Verification
- verified
- Role
- context
- Documentation level
- ship_specific
- Accessed
- 2026-10-01
- Study period
- 1945-1981
- Population
- Dravo Wilmington construction trades (Mar-May 1945); USN crew 1945-49 (5 officers + 54 enlisted spec complement); embarked troops (up to 2 officers + 46 enlisted); Pacific Reserve Fleet caretakers 1949-57; AEC-contract civilian/uniformed crew 1957-60; Chilean crew 1960-c.1981; brig staff and detainees 1977-c.1981
- Limitations
- NavSource is a volunteer secondary compilation, not a primary registry; the history extract is credited to a veterans' publication (Turner Publishing), not DANFS - this hull has no DANFS entry. Decommissioning given as year only; striking date given as unknown; the 1977 floating-brig conversion is single-sourced here. Contains no asbestos content. Page verified live 2026-10-01 (HTTP 200).
- Atlas source
- true
- Evidence ID
- ev-uss-lsm-444-01
-
[3]NavSource LSM-444 photo captions: Okinawa grounding (Typhoon Louise), Tsingtao pierside photo, China Sea underway c. 1947, and Point Loma departure photo on loan to the Atomic Energy Commission (photo courtesy U.S. Naval Institute) [other_primary]
- Locator
- NavSource 10/14/14444.htm photo table, images 101444402 (Okinawa grounding), 101438104 (Tsingtao), 101444401 (China Sea), 101444410 (Point Loma/AEC)
- Finding type
- vessel_history
- Finding
- Photographic documentation specific to this hull: (1) 'USS LSM-444 grounded at Okinawa as a result of Typhoon "Louise", 5 October 1945' - contemporaneous photo caption; (2) LSM-444 moored pierside at Tsingtao, China, inboard of USS LSM-447 and outboard of USS LSM-381 (crew-contributed photo); (3) USS LSM-444 underway in the China Sea, circa 1947; (4) 'The unarmed ex-USS LSM-444 passing Point Loma as she departs San Diego, CA., in the mid-1950's. LSM-444 was on loan to the Atomic Energy Commission when this photo was taken' - photo credited to the U.S. Naval Institute. Chilean-period photos document Aspirante Morel at Punta Arenas (III Zona Naval), November 1967, including livestock ferry work at Tres Puentes and Estancia Rabalo, plus a namesake photo caption: 'Juan Antonio Morel Zegers was born in Santiago (Chile) on 13 June 1865; died on 6 December 1880... in a clash between Chilean torpedo boats and Peruvian gunboats during the blockading of the port of Callao in 1880.'
- Verification
- verified
- Role
- context
- Documentation level
- ship_specific
- Accessed
- 2026-10-01
- Study period
- 1945-1967
- Population
- Crew during Typhoon Louise grounding (Oct 1945); China-service crew at Tsingtao; AEC-period departing crew at San Diego (mid-1950s); Chilean crew at Punta Arenas (1967)
- Limitations
- Photo captions are contributor-supplied metadata on a volunteer archive - authoritative for presence/appearance, not for operational detail. The caption date '5 October 1945' for the Okinawa grounding predates Typhoon Louise's documented Okinawa passage (9-10 October 1945) - likely a caption slip; flagged in gaps. The Point Loma caption's 'mid-1950's' is loose but consistent with the documented 13 Nov 1957 AEC transfer. No asbestos content.
- Atlas source
- true
- Evidence ID
- ev-uss-lsm-444-02
-
[4]U.S. Atomic Energy Commission record, 'Revised Schedule for Construction and/or Rehabilitation of Weather and Rad-Safe Stations, December 23, 1957' - reproduced from the holdings of the National Archives, Pacific Southwest Region, Collection RC 326 (AEC), via nuclearsecrecy.com [other_primary]
- Locator
- 0406020.pdf, schedule table entries 'LSM 444: Ujelang 19 March to 22 March' (pp. of the two December 23, 1957 schedules)
- Finding type
- historical_record
- Finding
- An AEC planning document dated 23 December 1957 - five weeks after this hull's transfer to the AEC - assigns 'LSM 444' to Ujelang Atoll for the period 19-22 March [1958] under a revised schedule for construction and rehabilitation of weather and rad-safe stations across the Pacific Proving Grounds region (sister taskings: LST-618/664 to Ponape, Truk, Wotho, Rongelap; LSD Alamo/Comstock/Monticello to Ujelang, Kapingamarangi, Kusaie, Tarawa, Nauru). Documents the ship's AEC role: logistics/construction support for the weather and radiation-safety station network supporting nuclear testing.
- Verification
- verified
- Role
- context
- Documentation level
- ship_specific
- Accessed
- 2026-10-01
- Study period
- 1957-1958
- Population
- AEC-contract crew and embarked construction/survey parties (1957-58)
- Limitations
- A planning schedule, not a completion record - it shows intended tasking; whether LSM-444 executed the Ujelang call exactly as scheduled is not documented here (a same-page 'revised tentative' schedule confirms the assignment). Document is a NARA-held record reproduced on a third-party academic mirror (nuclearsecrecy.com); NARA collection RC 326, box 61670, folder 'Nauru Island' stamping is legible in the scan. No asbestos or contamination data for the hull itself.
- Atlas source
- true
- Evidence ID
- ev-uss-lsm-444-03
-
[5]J-3 Daily Diary, Eniwetok Atoll (Hardtack I Operation), 15 July 1958, doc. 411065 - RMI Nuclear Justice Documents archive; footer: 'Confirmed Unclassified by authority of DOE' [other_primary]
- Locator
- RMI Nuclear Justice Documents, doc 411065, J-3 Daily Diary Eniwetok Atoll 15 Jul 1958, 'Miscellaneous' item b
- Finding type
- historical_record
- Finding
- The Joint Task Force 7 J-3 daily diary for 15 July 1958 records: 'All arrangements have been completed for the support of Program 40 at and near RONGELAP during the period 12 - 24 August 1958, TG 7.5 has been requested to furnish the MV ALOTO (Via Support Work Order) and TG 7.4 has been requested to furnish communications and SA-16 support.' The same diary's publications list identifies Program 40 as '(Radiation Biology)' (doc. 2937-JFE). Documents this hull - under her AEC operating name MV Aloto - tasked as a support vessel for post-detonation radiation-biology work at Rongelap during Operation Hardtack I.
- Verification
- verified
- Role
- context
- Documentation level
- ship_specific
- Accessed
- 2026-10-01
- Study period
- 1958 (Hardtack I)
- Population
- MV Aloto AEC-period crew; TG 7.5 / Program 40 radiation-biology personnel embarked Aug 1958
- Limitations
- Establishes tasking and role, not events aboard: the diary shows the work order, not daily operations, crew composition, or radiological conditions aboard. OCR of the scan is imperfect but the MV ALOTO passage is legible. The vessel's own radiological status (contamination received, decontamination performed) is not addressed in this record.
- Atlas source
- true
- Evidence ID
- ev-uss-lsm-444-04
-
[6]University of Washington Laboratory of Radiation Biology (AEC-sponsored), Kelshaw Bonham, 'Further Contributions on Gross Beta Radioactivity of Biological and Related Samples at the Eniwetok Proving Ground, 1952-1958' (4 December 1959) - NARA-held AEC record via nuclearsecrecy.com [other_primary]
- Locator
- 0015869.pdf, sampling-methods section describing the August 1958 lagoon program (OCR-extracted; scan reproduced from NARA holdings)
- Finding type
- historical_record
- Finding
- The report documents this hull - 'the support vessel, LSM "Aloto"' - serving as the lagoon sampling platform at Eniwetok in August 1958: 'In August 1958 only, plankton was also collected from the support vessel, LSM "Aloto" by means of pumping, which not only permitted a more precise measurement of volume of sea water filtered and pin pointing of location of the sampling station than is possible with tows, but also allowed simultaneous sampling of the lagoon-bottom material.' Bottom samples at nine of ten stations 'were obtained ... by personnel of the "Aloto"' using the sounding-lead technique; seawater for plankton was 'pumped from astern of the "Aloto"' by a gasoline-powered firefighting pump (~40 gpm) and a submersible electric pump (~180 gpm). Stations ranged along the southern and eastern portions of the Eniwetok lagoon.
- Verification
- verified
- Role
- context
- Documentation level
- ship_specific
- Accessed
- 2026-10-01
- Study period
- 1958
- Population
- Aloto crew and University of Washington embarked scientific personnel, Eniwetok lagoon, August 1958
- Limitations
- Documents the vessel's use as an AEC radiation-biology sampling platform inside the test lagoon in August 1958 - in the immediate aftermath of Hardtack I detonations. The report is about sample radioactivity, not the ship: it does not report hull contamination readings, crew dosimetry, or decontamination of the vessel. Whether the hull itself carried residual contamination when returned to the Navy in August 1960 is not established here - flagged in gaps. No asbestos content.
- Atlas source
- true
- Evidence ID
- ev-uss-lsm-444-05
-
[7]NERC Vocabulary Server / ICES Platform Codes, entry SDN:C17::337L - 'USS LSM 444 / Aloto' platform record (accepted, version 5) [other_primary]
- Locator
- SDN:C17::337L definition notes field
- Finding type
- historical_record
- Finding
- The international oceanographic platform registry (ICES platform codes, maintained on the NERC Vocabulary Server) records: 'Landing ship medium. Commissioned as USS LSM 444 and later named Aloto. Out of service from 1949-1957. Used by US AEA [sic - AEC] 1957-1960. Transferred to Chile in 1960 and served as Aspirante Morel (LSM 92) until scrapped in 1981.' Corroborates the hull's identity chain and the Aloto name as an oceanographic-platform-recognized designation.
- Verification
- verified
- Role
- context
- Documentation level
- ship_specific
- Accessed
- 2026-10-01
- Study period
- 1945-1981 (coverage)
- Limitations
- A data-clearinghouse record built for platform disambiguation, not a custody/naming instrument - 'named Aloto' here reflects AEC-era usage seen in JTF-7/UW records; the formal authority for the name (contract title, renaming order, or informal call name) is not documented. Registry says 'US AEA' - a transcription slip for AEC (the U.S. had no 'AEA'; the Atomic Energy Commission is documented by the primary records).
- Atlas source
- true
- Evidence ID
- ev-uss-lsm-444-06
-
[8]Armada de Chile, official historic-units page 'Barcaza "Aspirante Morel" 2°' (Tradicion e historia > Unidades Historicas) [other_primary]
- Locator
- Armada de Chile unidades-historicas page, 'Barcaza Aspirante Morel 2°' body text and spec block
- Finding type
- vessel_history
- Finding
- The Chilean Navy's official history page records for this hull: former names 'USS LSM 444 Aloto'; 'Adquirida en prestamo renovable a los EE.UU. de N. A. el 8 de agosto de 1960 conforme a D.S. N° 2774 de 19 de julio de 1960' (acquired on renewable loan from the U.S.A. 8 August 1960 under Supreme Decree 2774 of 19 July 1960); 'Dada de Alta en la Armada el 2 de septiembre de 1960, fecha de su transferencia' (commissioned into the Navy 2 September 1960, the transfer date); sister units listed (Aspirante Morel 1° ex-LST-417, Guardiamarina Contreras ex-LSM-113, Aspirante Isaza ex-LSM-295, Aspirante Goycolea ex-LSM-400); 'Se autoriza enajenacion por D.S. (M) N 955 de 5 de octubre de 1982' (disposal authorized by Ministry decree 955 of 5 October 1982). Specs given: year 1945, 1,095 t full load / 743 t standard, 2,800 BHP, four 20mm machine guns, 12 kt max.
- Verification
- verified
- Role
- context
- Documentation level
- ship_specific
- Accessed
- 2026-10-01
- Study period
- 1960-1982
- Population
- Chilean Navy crew (1960-1981); III Zona Naval (Punta Arenas) based period; brig complement after 1977 conversion
- Limitations
- Official Chilean Navy history page - authoritative for Chilean administrative milestones (decrees, alta date, disposal authorization) but thin on operations. The 5 Oct 1982 disposal authorization postdates NavSource's 'sold for scrapping 1981' - administrative vs. physical disposition; flagged in gaps. Spanish-language source; quotes translated. Armada lists former name 'Aloto' as if a USN name - it was the AEC operating name (see ev-04/05/06). No asbestos content.
- Atlas source
- true
- Evidence ID
- ev-uss-lsm-444-07
-
[9]Shipbuilding History (Tim Colton), 'Dravo Wilmington' yard construction table - LSM-444 row [other_primary]
- Locator
- dravow/ construction table, LSM-444 row (adjacent rows LSM-443 'sold to Crowley 1948' and LSM-445 'converted to catapult control ship YV-1')
- Finding type
- vessel_history
- Finding
- The Dravo Corporation Wilmington, DE construction list records LSM-444 as a US Navy landing ship, 520 tons, 203 ft, delivered 12 May 1945, with the disposition note: 'laid up 1946, to AEC 1957, to Chile 1960 as Aspirante Morel (LSM-92), scrapped 1981.' The page documents the yard's wartime role - the former Harlan & Hollingsworth / Bethlehem Wilmington property - and 65 LSMs built at Dravo Wilmington April 1944 - May 1945, hull numbers in Dravo's Pittsburgh series.
- Verification
- verified
- Role
- context
- Documentation level
- ship_specific
- Accessed
- 2026-10-01
- Study period
- 1944-1945 (construction window)
- Population
- Dravo Wilmington workforce (wartime peak ~10,500 per secondary sources)
- Limitations
- Reputable secondary compilation (Colton yard tables track official delivery records), not a primary registry. CONFLICT: its 'laid up 1946' contradicts NavSource's documented occupation/China service through April-May 1949 and 1949 decommissioning - carried as a gap; NavSource timeline retained. 'Delivered 12 May 1945' vs 'commissioned 13 May 1945' is the normal delivery/commissioning sequence, not a conflict. No asbestos content.
- Atlas source
- true
- Evidence ID
- ev-uss-lsm-444-08
-
[10]Era inference built on: NavSource specification block (two GM 16-278A diesels, direct drive, twin screws - no steam plant); Shipbuilding History Dravo Wilmington table (1945 diesel landing ship); GAO HRD-80-2 (see ev-10); NHHC LSM class description (see ev-11) [other_primary]
- Locator
- NavSource spec block propulsion section; shipbuildinghistory.njscuba.net dravow table; GAO HRD-80-2 product page
- Finding type
- asbestos_application
- Finding
- A diesel-propelled landing ship built March-May 1945 sits inside the Navy's documented asbestos-use era; era-standard applications aboard diesel amphibious types of this period were diesel-exhaust lagging, machinery insulation, gaskets, valve packing, electrical insulation, winch/windlass brake linings, and joiner/bulkhead fireproofing materials. The propulsion plant is diesel direct-drive (2 x GM 16-278A, 2,800 shp) - no boilers or steam turbines, so the boiler/steam-line lagging pathway documented for steam vessels does not apply to this hull.
- Verification
- inferred
- Role
- supporting
- Documentation level
- class_or_era
- Accessed
- 2026-10-01
- Study period
- 1945-1982
- Population
- Dravo Wilmington construction trades (1945); USN crew 1945-49; AEC-period crew 1957-60; Chilean crew 1960-81 incl. 1977 brig conversion trades; Chilean shipbreakers 1981-82
- Limitations
- Class/era inference only - no hull-specific insulation survey, material list, or work package located for LSM-444. Names era-standard applications, not confirmed installed materials. No quantity; no manufacturer attribution for this hull. Does not establish presence, condition, or individual exposure.
- Atlas source
- true
- Evidence ID
- ev-uss-lsm-444-09
-
[11]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 (1945), USN service (1945-49), reserve-fleet period (1949-57), and AEC custody (1957-60).
- 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-444-10
-
[12]NHHC, 'The Navy's Happy Medium' (art exhibit page, Art of Naval Amphibious Operations from WWII) - LSM type description [archived; live page returned 404 on 2026-10-01] [nhhc_danfs]
- Locator
- NHHC 'The Navy's Happy Medium' exhibit page, descriptive paragraph
- Finding type
- vessel_history
- Finding
- NHHC describes the LSM type's origin: 'Needing a landing ship somewhere between the size and displacement of an LCI (Landing Craft, Infantry) and an LST (Landing Ship, Tank), the Navy turned the problem over to its architects and designers who came up with the compact and maneuverable LSM (Landing Ship, Medium).' Establishes the official Navy framing of the class this hull belongs to.
- Verification
- verified
- Role
- context
- Documentation level
- class_or_era
- Accessed
- 2026-10-01
- Study period
- 1943-1945 (class design era)
- Limitations
- Official NHHC source but class-level description only - no hull-specific content. Live NHHC URL returned 404 on 2026-10-01 (standing NHHC link-rot defect, per BATCH-01); cited via Wayback capture 2025-12-09 and labeled as archived. No asbestos content.
- Atlas source
- true
- Evidence ID
- ev-uss-lsm-444-11
-
[13]Batch-6255 search ledger (this record): NavSource live fetch; DANFS index check; NVR check; CourtListener authenticated searches (6 queries); NARA RC-326 AEC records via nuclearsecrecy.com; RMI Nuclear Justice Documents; Armada de Chile; Shipbuilding History; NHHC via Wayback; secondary web sweep [other_primary]
- Locator
- search_ledger rows sl-uss-lsm-444-01 through -15
- Finding type
- historical_record
- Finding
- No qualifying ship-specific asbestos record located: no asbestos survey, abatement contract, hazmat disclosure, or docketed case naming USS LSM-444 / LSM-444 / MV Aloto / Aspirante Morel was found in the public sources searched. CourtListener returned zero results across authenticated API searches of opinions and dockets for 'LSM-444', 'USS LSM-444', '"LSM 444" asbestos', 'Aspirante Morel', and 'Aloto' + ship (2026-10-01). DANFS has no entry for this hull (numbered amphibious ships without assigned names are not covered individually). NVR has no entry (ships disposed before 1987 are excluded per NVR's own disclaimer). The only 'asbestos aboard LSM' material found is law-firm marketing content asserting asbestos for the LSM class generally 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 - era-consistent inference still applies. CourtListener zero-result sets reflect published opinions and RECAP dockets, not unfiled or settled matters. Deck logs, Dravo work packages, AEC custody records beyond those found, and Chilean disposal records are undigitized leads. Does not establish or defeat any claim of exposure or legal eligibility.
- Atlas source
- true
- Evidence ID
- ev-uss-lsm-444-12