Evidence
12 evidence entries recorded; each entry has a stable permalink (#ev-1 … #ev-12).
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[1]DANFS-derived history of USS LSM-457 hosted at NavSource (spec block from DANFS Vol. I, 1964; narrative compiled from Official Ship Movement Cards and Deck Logs, submitted by crewman Karl E. Lemmerman, ETM2c USNR, June 1944 - June 1946) [nhhc_danfs]
- Locator
- NavSource USS LSM-457 history page, full narrative
- Finding type
- vessel_history
- Finding
- Documented for this hull: laid down 4 December 1944 by Western Pipe and Steel Company, Wilmington, California; launched 17 March 1945; accepted and placed in full commission 28 March 1945 at San Pedro, California. Fitting out and shakedown to 4 April; Training Command, Amphibious Forces at San Diego until 16 May; arrived Pearl Harbor 26 May 1945. Departed 27 June with Task Unit 13.11.50 for Eniwetok (arrived 9 July), then Saipan (16 July). 'Part of the 83rd Division, 42nd Squadron, 14th Flotilla, 7th Pacific Fleet.' Arrived San Pedro Bay, Leyte Gulf, 26 July; unloaded cargo of three 18-ton picket boats at Guiuan, Samar, 1 August; received word of Japan's surrender offer 10 August. 9 September loaded two LCMs, joined CTU 93.4.30 for Okinawa; arrived Buckner Bay 14 September; beached at Guerin Point 20 September loading First Division Engineers, USMC. Departed Okinawa 25 September with TU 78.1.90 for Taku, China; arrived Hai River 30 September; unloaded Marines and equipment 3 October; shuttled passengers/supplies around Tientsin and the Gulf of Bo Hai; October run to Okinawa and back (towed LSM-174 partway). Departed Gulf of Bo Hai 11 December with TG 78.19.10 for Korea; served Jinsen Ko/Jinsen Harbor until 8 January 1946. Returned to Taku 10 January; Tientsin area until 13 March; to Shanghai with CTU 78.19.24, entering Shanghai Drydocks 6-13 April; departed 25 April with LSM-157 for Tsingtao, arriving 26 April. Chinese crew reported aboard 29 April for training. Decommissioned at Tsingtao 12 June 1946 and turned over to the Chinese Navy on Lend-Lease; escaped to Taiwan October 1949; the narrative further records that as of 2001 the hull remained active in the ROC Navy as Mei Sung-694 alongside three other ex-LSMs (155, 362, 471) of the Mei Lo (LSM-1) class utility landing craft, all extensively overhauled and modified.
- Verification
- verified
- Role
- context
- Documentation level
- ship_specific
- Accessed
- 2026-10-01
- Study period
- 1944-1946
- Population
- Western Pipe and Steel construction trades (1944-45); U.S. Navy crew (1945-46)
- Limitations
- Ship-specific history compiled from official movement cards and deck logs - strong itinerary documentation but no asbestos or material content. NHHC hosts no dedicated DANFS entry for LSM-457 (both candidate URLs returned 404 on 2026-10-01); this is the NavSource-hosted DANFS spec block plus a crew-submitted movement narrative, so it is one step removed from the published DANFS text.
- Atlas source
- true
- Evidence ID
- ev-uss-lsm-457-01
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[2]NavSource Online: Amphibious Photo Archive, USS LSM-457 - specifications, commanding officers, awards, ROC-era timeline, photographs at Tientsin and Taku, China (1945-46) [other_primary]
- Locator
- NavSource 10/14/14457.htm header, award/assignment block, specifications, CO table, photo captions
- Finding type
- vessel_history
- Finding
- NavSource record for this hull: LSM-1-class Landing Ship Medium; assigned in WWII to LSM Flotilla Fourteen (LCDR W. R. McCaleb), LSM Group Forty-Two, LSM Division Eighty-Four (note: NHHC's 1 May 1945 fleet organization lists her under LSM Division 83 - see gaps). Awards: China Service Medal (extended), American Campaign Medal, Asiatic-Pacific Campaign Medal, World War II Victory Medal, Navy Occupation Service Medal with Asia clasp; occupation/China service periods 11-27 September 1945 and 28 September 1945 - 12 June 1946. Decommissioned and struck from the Naval Register 12 June 1946 at Tsingtao, China; transferred the same day to the Republic of China, named ROCS Mei-Song (LSM-347); escaped to Taiwan October 1949; rebuilt and reconfigured 1969/73; redesignated LSM-694 in 1978/79; decommissioned 1 June 2005 at Kaohsiung Harbour, Taiwan. Specifications: 520 t. light / 743 t. landing / 1,095 t. fully loaded; 203 ft 6 in; two General Motors 16-278A diesels (reversible with hydraulic clutch per this table; 'non-reversible w/airflex clutch' in the DANFS block - see gaps), direct drive 1,440 BHP each at 720 rpm, twin screws; complement 5 officers, 54 enlisted (DANFS block prints 4 officers). Commanding officers: LT Thomas M. Hoban USNR (28 Mar-Jun 1945), LT/LTjg Theodore P. Nelson USNR (Jun-Nov 1945), LTjg Joseph N. Vranish USNR (Nov 1945-Mar 1946), LTjg Harry E. Hammer USNR (Mar-12 Jun 1946). Crew photography places her at Tientsin in 1945 and aground in the Hai River near Taku, winter 1946.
- Verification
- verified
- Role
- context
- Documentation level
- ship_specific
- Accessed
- 2026-10-01
- Study period
- 1944-2005
- Population
- U.S. Navy crew (1945-46); ROC Navy crew (1946-2005); dockyard trades during 1969-73 rebuild
- Limitations
- NavSource is a volunteer secondary compilation that tracks official registries; milestone dates match the DANFS/movement-card narrative. Contains no asbestos content. Its ROC pennant-at-transfer statement ('LSM-347') is contradicted by Taiwan's National Human Rights Museum record, which documents pennant 247 at transfer with 347 adopted in 1965 - the NHRM sequence is carried in the record. 'Final Disposition, fate unknown' on this page is superseded by the ROC Navy official post (ev-06).
- Atlas source
- true
- Evidence ID
- ev-uss-lsm-457-02
-
[3]NARA, RG 38 'World War II War Diaries, Other Operational Records and Histories': USS LSM-457 War Diaries for June 1945 (NAID 77468699, Roll A1753, images 29-31), July 1945 (NAID 101766817, Roll A1780), and August 1945 (NAID 77490176, Roll A1871, images 335+); all digitized and read in scan [other_primary]
- Locator
- NAID 77468699 images 0029-0031 (June); NAID 101766817 first image (July); NAID 77490176 image 0335 (August)
- Finding type
- vessel_history
- Finding
- The ship's own war diaries are digitized and were read directly. June 1945 diary (submitted 1 July 1945, signed Lt.(jg) Theodore P. Nelson, USNR): berthed Middle Loch, Pearl Harbor 1-12 June; buoy availability alongside YO-40 7-10 June ('minor repairs and radio installations made. NAN gear installed'); training off Maui with LC(FF) 792 and LSMs 292, 344, 426, 427, 433, 431 (stern anchor fairlead disabled when LC(FF) rammed her stern 12 June); drone firing practice 14 June (120 rds 40mm, 375 rds 20mm, 600 rds .50 cal); LVT/DUKW exercises Maunalua Bay 19-20 June; and 21-24 June 'moored alongside DE docks, Pearl Harbor Navy Yard for availability during which period stern anchor fairlead was replaced.' July diary documents the TU 13.11.50 transit to Eniwetok (Comdr. R. D. Higgins OTC aboard LST 226) carrying three picket boats for Samar. August 1945 diary (Serial 033, dated 31 August): picket-boat cargo unloaded at Calicoan, Samar, 1 August; San Pedro Bay, Leyte Gulf through 12 August ('at 2100 on 10 August word was received of Japan's surrender offer'); and 13-18 August 'moored alongside the U.S.S. AJAX (AR6)' availability during which the ship 'completed minor repairs and converted two fuel tanks for additional bulk stowage of fog oil.'
- Verification
- verified
- Role
- context
- Documentation level
- ship_specific
- Accessed
- 2026-10-01
- Study period
- 1945-06 to 1945-08
- Population
- LSM-457 crew; Pearl Harbor Navy Yard trades (21-24 June 1945 availability); USS Ajax (AR-6) repair personnel (13-18 August 1945 availability)
- Limitations
- Primary-source ship documents - the strongest records in this file. War diaries document operations and two repair availabilities (Pearl Harbor Navy Yard alongside DE docks; repair ship USS Ajax) at which non-crew trades worked aboard, but they contain no asbestos or material content and do not establish what materials were disturbed. Deck logs and muster rolls are the complementary personnel record (see ev-11).
- Atlas source
- true
- Evidence ID
- ev-uss-lsm-457-03
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[4]NHHC, United States Pacific Fleet Organization, 1 May 1945 (official fleet organization table) [nhhc_danfs]
- Locator
- Fleet organization table, LSM Flotilla Fourteen section
- Finding type
- vessel_history
- Finding
- The official 1 May 1945 Pacific Fleet organization lists LSM 457 under LSM Flotilla FOURTEEN, LSM GROUP FORTY-TWO, LSM DIVISION 83 - with sister ships LSM 453, 454, 455, 456, and 458 in the same division.
- Verification
- verified
- Role
- context
- Documentation level
- ship_specific
- Accessed
- 2026-10-01
- Study period
- 1945-05-01
- Population
- LSM-457 crew (May 1945)
- Limitations
- Organizational listing only; contains no material or asbestos content. Conflicts with the NavSource header's 'LSM Division Eighty-Four' for this hull - the NHHC table and the DANFS-derived narrative ('83rd Division, 42nd Squadron, 14th Flotilla') both support Division 83; see gaps.
- Atlas source
- true
- Evidence ID
- ev-uss-lsm-457-04
-
[5]Taiwan National Human Rights Museum (國家人權記憶庫), event record 134: 'Navy Mei Sung warship - Mao Quefei et al. case' (海軍美頌軍艦毛却非等案), sourced to the Ministry of National Defense Navy General HQ case file in Taiwan's National Archives Administration [other_primary]
- Locator
- NHRM TopicExploration event 134, event-content tab
- Finding type
- historical_record
- Finding
- Taiwan government memorial-archive record for this hull after transfer: the ship (USN LSM-457) was handed to the Republic of China at Qingdao on 12 June 1946 under the Sino-American Lend-Lease framework, named Mei Sung (美頌) and numbered 247 (renumbered 347 by Navy General HQ order in 1965). She served the ROC Navy carrying military transport, troop rotation and combat-support missions, and participated in the 1958 '823 Artillery Battle' (Second Taiwan Strait Crisis). The record documents the October 1949 case aboard this hull: captain Mao Quefei conspired in Hong Kong to defect and deliver the ship to the Chinese Communists (the 'Mei Sung mutiny'); engineering officer Xie Heng and others preemptively secured weapons and confined the plotters without bloodshed; the ship sailed from Hong Kong 20 October and reached Zuoying, Taiwan, 30 October 1949. Mao Quefei and Zhang Jijun were sentenced to death, five others received 5-15 year sentences, and 20 were acquitted; eleven related parties later received White Terror-era compensation.
- Verification
- verified
- Role
- context
- Documentation level
- ship_specific
- Accessed
- 2026-10-01
- Study period
- 1946-1965+ (record coverage)
- Population
- ROC Navy crew and embarked passengers (1946-2005; 1949 mutiny personnel)
- Limitations
- Authoritative ROC/Taiwan government archive (named primary case-file source) documenting the ship's ROC-era identity and a documented historical event aboard. It carries no asbestos or material content, and it asserts Charleston Navy Yard as builder - a conflict with the U.S. sources' Western Pipe and Steel, Wilmington attribution, carried as a correction (ev-12) and in gaps.
- Atlas source
- true
- Evidence ID
- ev-uss-lsm-457-05
-
[6]Republic of China Navy (official account, ROCNAVY.tw) history post: 'Mei Sung warship (LSM-347) history' (老軍艦的故事續集 - 美頌軍艦LSM-347沿革史) [other_primary]
- Locator
- ROCNAVY.tw Facebook post, Mei Sung (LSM-347) history text
- Finding type
- vessel_history
- Finding
- The ROC Navy's official history post for this hull states: the ship was numbered LSM-457 during U.S. service, was decommissioned from ROC service on 1 June 2005 (民國94年6月1日) at Shinbin pier, Kaohsiung harbor, after being considered at one point for transfer to South Africa; she then lay at the Cijin pier, and on 6 September 2012 '347 Mei Sung' was sunk at bearing 167 degrees, 16 nautical miles off Eluanbi, coming to rest on the floor of the Bashi Channel - i.e., expended as a warship reef/artificial reef under Taiwan's Fisheries Agency warship-reef program.
- Verification
- partial
- Role
- context
- Documentation level
- ship_specific
- Accessed
- 2026-10-01
- Study period
- 2005-2012
- Population
- ROC Navy personnel at disposal; reef-site environment (contemporary)
- Limitations
- Official ROC Navy social-media post - authoritative in intent but single-sourced for the 2012 sinking details (date, bearing, distance); no press or Fisheries Agency page naming the wreck was located to corroborate. The same post asserts Charleston Naval Shipyard as builder, which conflicts with U.S. hull records (Western Pipe and Steel, Wilmington) - see ev-12. NavSource carries 'final disposition, fate unknown'; this post supersedes it.
- Atlas source
- true
- Evidence ID
- ev-uss-lsm-457-06
-
[7]Era inference built on: DANFS/NavSource spec blocks (LSM-1-class diesel amphibious ship, two GM 16-278A diesels, 1944-45 build); documented asbestos-era shipbuilding at the builder's corporate family (Franklin v. USX Corp., ev-08); Navy program-level asbestos use (GAO HRD-80-2, ev-09) [other_primary]
- Locator
- DANFS/NavSource spec block (propulsion, 1945 build); Franklin v. USX yard record; GAO HRD-80-2 program window
- Finding type
- asbestos_application
- Finding
- A welded-steel diesel-driven landing ship built December 1944 - March 1945 at a U.S. wartime shipyard sits inside the documented asbestos-use era for U.S. shipbuilding. Era-standard applications aboard a small diesel amphibious ship of this period were machinery and diesel-exhaust insulation in the engine room and uptake spaces, gaskets and valve packing, electrical insulation, and deck/cabin coverings. As a diesel ship she carried no steam plant - the boiler and steam-line lagging pathway of steam-driven ships does not apply.
- Verification
- inferred
- Role
- supporting
- Documentation level
- class_or_era
- Accessed
- 2026-10-01
- Study period
- 1944-2012
- Population
- Western Pipe and Steel construction trades (1944-45); U.S. Navy crew (1945-46); Pearl Harbor Navy Yard and USS Ajax availability trades (1945); ROC Navy crew and rebuild trades (1946-2005, esp. 1969-73 rebuild); reef-sinking prep crews (2012)
- Limitations
- Class/era inference only - no hull-specific insulation survey, material list, work package, or builder contract schedule located for LSM-457. Names era-standard applications, not confirmed installed materials; no quantity; no manufacturer attribution. The 1969-73 ROC rebuild may have removed or added materials - undocumented.
- Atlas source
- true
- Evidence ID
- ev-uss-lsm-457-07
-
[8]Franklin v. USX Corp., 87 Cal. App. 4th 615, 105 Cal. Rptr. 2d 11 (Cal. Ct. App. 2001) - published opinion (Justia full text) [court_record]
- Locator
- Opinion, General Background and Trial Court Proceedings sections (87 Cal. App. 4th at 618-625)
- Finding type
- litigation_documented
- Finding
- An adjudicated case documents asbestos conditions at the builder's corporate family during WWII: WPS's Maritime Commission contract 'required the use of ship building materials containing asbestos,' and plaintiff Jeannette Franklin's parents worked at the WPS South San Francisco yard 1942-45 where asbestos was present - childhood take-home exposure led to peritoneal mesothelioma and a jury verdict exceeding $5 million for plaintiffs. Disposition exactly: the Court of Appeal did not reach the verdict's merits - it REVERSED, holding USX was not WPS's successor in interest (no assumption of liabilities, no de facto merger, no mere continuation, no product-line exception); the exposure findings stand at the trial stage for that plaintiff while the case resolved for the defendant on successor-liability law.
- Verification
- verified
- Role
- context
- Documentation level
- class_or_era
- Accessed
- 2026-10-01
- Study period
- 1942-1945 exposure; 2001 opinion
- Population
- WPS shipyard workers (1942-45, South San Francisco yard) and household members
- Limitations
- Company-level context, not a hull record: the opinion documents asbestos at Western Pipe & Steel's SOUTH SAN FRANCISCO yard under Maritime Commission contracts; LSM-457 was built at WPS's Wilmington (San Pedro) yard under Navy contract - the opinion's asbestos-contract finding is not shown to cover the building yard. No ship, let alone LSM-457, is named in the opinion. Does not establish materials aboard this hull.
- Atlas source
- true
- Evidence ID
- ev-uss-lsm-457-08
-
[9]GAO, Navy Efforts To Protect Workers From Asbestos Exposure, HRD-80-2 (published Oct 18, 1979) [gao]
- Locator
- GAO product page HRD-80-2 Highlights
- Finding type
- gov_survey
- Finding
- GAO reviewed the Navy's efforts to protect workers from asbestos exposure at the Long Beach and Norfolk Naval Shipyards, including the use of asbestos in Navy ships and the cost of removing it - the product page records the Navy's 1975 policy (remove/replace only damaged insulation or insulation requiring removal for repairs) and its 1979 modification (selective replacement in high-maintenance areas). Program-level documentation of Navy asbestos use aboard ships spanning this hull's 1944-45 construction.
- 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 26-page PDF not retrieved (gao.gov asset URL blocks direct automated fetch, HTTP 403, confirmed 2026-10-01); content via the live product-page Highlights.
- Atlas source
- true
- Evidence ID
- ev-uss-lsm-457-09
-
[10]Batch-6269 search ledger (this record): NavSource DANFS transcription + photo archive; NHHC fleet organization; NARA RG 38 war diaries (3 file units, scans read); Taiwan NHRM event 134; ROC Navy official post; CourtListener API v4 (three authenticated zero-result queries); secondary litigation/name sweeps [other_primary]
- Locator
- search_ledger rows sl-uss-lsm-457-01 through sl-uss-lsm-457-12
- Finding type
- historical_record
- Finding
- No qualifying ship-specific asbestos record located: no asbestos survey, abatement contract, hazmat disclosure, or litigation naming USS LSM-457 / LSM-457 was found in the public sources searched. CourtListener returned zero results for '"LSM-457"' opinions, '"USS LSM-457"' opinions, and '"LSM 457"' RECAP dockets on 2026-10-01 (authenticated, HTTP 200). Secondary web sweeps surfaced no qualifying case; the only 'asbestos aboard LSM' material found is law-firm marketing content (asbestos-ships.com-type listicles naming other LSMs) - 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 - the hull was built inside the documented wartime asbestos-use window, and a 59-year ROC career including a 1969-73 rebuild is undocumented for materials. ROC Navy records, the 2012 reef-prep file, and RG 24 deck logs/muster rolls are unexamined leads. Does not establish or defeat any claim of exposure or legal eligibility.
- Atlas source
- true
- Evidence ID
- ev-uss-lsm-457-10
-
[11]Fold3 / NARA RG 24 'US, World War II Navy Muster Rolls, 1938-1949': USS LSM-457 muster roll, muster date 31 October 1945 (metadata verified; image paywalled); NARA RG 24 deck-log file units for this hull not surfaced in the catalog [other_primary]
- Locator
- Fold3 publication 829, document 305127225 (muster date 31 Oct 1945)
- Finding type
- historical_record
- Finding
- A muster roll for USS LSM-457 dated 31 October 1945 exists in the NARA RG 24 series (delivered via Fold3): ship station/activity 'LSM 457,' US Navy, WWII. Crew-roster documentation for the ship's Taku/Tientsin service period - an archival lead for the crew population aboard.
- Verification
- partial
- Role
- archival_lead
- Documentation level
- ship_specific
- Accessed
- 2026-10-01
- Study period
- 1945-10-31
- Population
- USS LSM-457 crew, October 1945
- Limitations
- Metadata-level verification only - the roll image is behind Fold3's paywall and was not read; listed personnel not extracted. RG 24 logbooks/deck logs for LSM-457 were not surfaced in NARA catalog search and may be undigitized. No asbestos content.
- Atlas source
- true
- Evidence ID
- ev-uss-lsm-457-11
-
[12]Builder-attribution cross-check: U.S. hull records (DANFS-derived NavSource narrative; navalmarinearchive.com LSM table; warshipsresearch.blogspot.com) all give Western Pipe and Steel Co., Wilmington/San Pedro, CA; Taiwan official sources (NHRM event 134; ROC Navy history post) assert 'Charleston Navy Yard' as builder [other_primary]
- Locator
- NHRM event 134 and ROCN post (Charleston claim) vs NavSource 14457h.htm narrative and 14457.htm header (WPS claim)
- Finding type
- historical_record
- Finding
- CORRECTION/CONFLICT: Taiwanese official records describe this hull as built at Charleston Navy Yard, while every U.S. source - including the movement-card/deck-log-compiled narrative and NavSource - gives Western Pipe and Steel Company, Wilmington (San Pedro), California. The U.S. attribution is carried (multiple U.S. sources agree on builder and the 4 Dec 1944 / 17 Mar 1945 dates); the Taiwan-source claim is logged as a documented conflict, likely a ROC records error, not resolved with certainty.
- Verification
- partial
- Role
- correction
- Documentation level
- ship_specific
- Accessed
- 2026-10-01
- Study period
- 1944-45 build; conflicting secondary records
- Limitations
- Corrects/flags a builder-attribution conflict between the two navies' records; not a material claim. Note also uboat.net's 'San Francisco' yard label and conflicting launch (28 Jan 1945) and end-service (12 Jul 1946) dates - secondary errors logged in gaps.
- Atlas source
- true
- Evidence ID
- ev-uss-lsm-457-12