Evidence
9 evidence entries recorded; each entry has a stable permalink (#ev-1 … #ev-9).
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[1]research packet 592-packet.md (1 sources cited) [museum_official]
- Finding type
- vessel_history
- Finding
- Identity packet verdict: **VERIFIED
- Verification
- verified
- Role
- supporting
- Documentation level
- ship_specific
- Evidence ID
- uss-lsm-65-lsm65-pkt-592-packet-md
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[2]NavSource Online: Amphibious Photo Archive, USS LSM-65 - construction milestones, commanding officer, campaign table, disposal, spec block, commanding-officer roster, photo captions (history text credited to LSM-LSMR Amphibious Forces, Vol. II, Turner Publishing, 1997) [other_primary]
- Locator
- NavSource 10/14/14065.htm header block, campaign table, spec block, CO roster, photo captions
- Finding type
- vessel_history
- Finding
- Documented for this hull: laid down 14 July 1944 at Brown Ship Building Co., Houston, TX; launched 5 August 1944; commissioned USS LSM-65 on 3 September 1944, LT Leonard D. Stephens USN in command. Asiatic-Pacific campaign assignments: Lingayen Gulf landings, 9 January 1945 (Luzon operation); Zambales-Subic Bay operation, 31 January 1945 (Manila Bay-Bicol operations) - with a contemporaneous NARA-captioned photograph (80-G-K-3153) showing her preparing to beach at Nasugbu, Luzon on that date alongside LSM-54 and LCI(L)-963; Palawan Islands landings, 28 February - 1 March 1945, and Visayan Island landings, 18-19 March and 26 March - 1 April 1945 (consolidation and capture of the southern Philippines); Brunei Bay operation, 10-14 June 1945 (Borneo). Four battle stars. Awards ribbon display: American Campaign Medal; Asiatic-Pacific Campaign Medal (4); World War II Victory Medal; Philippines Presidential Unit Citation; Philippines Liberation Medal (2). Decommissioned 8 April 1946; struck from the Naval Register, date unknown; sold 14 August 1947 to Sturgeon Bay Shipbuilding & Drydock Co., Sturgeon Bay, WI; final disposition, fate unknown. Radio call sign NVEZ. Spec block: 520 t. light / 743 t. landing / 1,095 t. fully loaded; 203'6" ovl x 34'6" beam; 13.2 kts max at 928 t.; complement 5 officers + 54 enlisted; one twin bow-mounted 40mm, four single 20mm; capacity 5 medium or 3 heavy tanks, 6 LVTs, or 9 DUKWs; troop accommodations 2 officers + 46 enlisted; endurance 4,900 miles at 12 kts.; two Fairbanks-Morse 38D81/8X10 reversible diesels, direct drive, 1,440 BHP each at 720 rpm, twin propellers, 2,800 shp; two 100 kW 450V AC and one 20 kW 120V DC diesel-drive generators; 10-lb STS splinter shield to gun mounts, pilot house, conning station. CO roster: LT Leonard D. Stephens USNR (3 Sep 1944 - 29 Jul 1945); LT Sidney L. Horman USNR (29 Jul 1945 - 6 Nov 1945); LTjg Malcolm C. McGary USNR (6 Nov 1945 - 8 Apr 1946).
- Verification
- verified
- Role
- context
- Documentation level
- ship_specific
- Accessed
- 2026-10-02
- Study period
- 1944-1947
- Population
- Brown Shipbuilding construction trades (1944); commissioned crew 5 officers + 54 enlisted plus embarked troops (1944-46); post-sale commercial or shipbreaking population undocumented
- Limitations
- NavSource is a volunteer secondary compilation, not a primary registry - its history text is credited to the Turner Publishing LSM-LSMR volume, and its milestones cross-check exactly against the builder's production ledger (ev-02). Ship-specific history only; contains no asbestos or material content. Campaign-table label 'Zambales-Subic Bay operation, 31 January 1945' and the photo-documented Nasugbu beaching of the same date are both carried - adjacent near-simultaneous sub-operations of the Manila Bay-Bicol campaign. Struck date 'unknown' conflicts with the 1946 date in secondary navypedia - unresolved (see gaps).
- Atlas source
- true
- Evidence ID
- ev-uss-lsm-65-lsm65-01
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[3]Shipbuilding History (T. Colton), Brown Shipbuilding yard production ledger, Houston TX; corroborated by the same site's LSM summary list at shipbuildinghistory.com/smallships/lsm.htm [other_primary]
- Locator
- Brown Shipbuilding ledger, hull 170 row; LSM summary list, LSM-65 row
- Finding type
- vessel_history
- Finding
- Builder's production ledger for this hull: yard hull no. 170, original number LSM 65, type Landing Ship; keel laid 14 July 1944, launched 5 August 1944, delivered 3 September 1944; disposition 'Sold to Sturgeon Bay Shipbuilding 1947' - matching NavSource on every date and on the 1947 sale. Yard context: Brown Shipbuilding was built in 1941 by George and Herman Brown at the junction of Green's Bayou and the Houston Ship Channel with $9 million in Navy funding; total four-year output 359 vessels (12 PCs, 32 LCI(L)s, 61 DEs, 254 LSMs); leased to Todd Shipyards as Houston Division 1949-1984.
- Verification
- verified
- Role
- context
- Documentation level
- ship_specific
- Accessed
- 2026-10-02
- Study period
- 1944-1947
- Population
- Brown Shipbuilding construction trades (1941-46)
- Limitations
- Shipbuilding History is a respected independent production reference (Colton), not a primary builder document - dates here corroborate NavSource exactly. 'Delivered' 3 September 1944 equals NavSource's commissioning date. No asbestos or material content. The yard closed to shipbuilding in 1946 and the 1947 sale says nothing about the buyer's intent - scrap, conversion, or resale are all undocumented.
- Atlas source
- true
- Evidence ID
- ev-uss-lsm-65-lsm65-02
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[4]U.S. National Archives photograph 80-G-K-3153 (a U.S. Navy photo in NARA collections) as captioned in the NavSource LSM-65 photo block; additional NavSource-captioned photography from LSM-54 and LSM-125 crew collections [other_primary]
- Locator
- NavSource 10/14/14065.htm photo block, three captions; NARA photo ID 80-G-K-3153
- Finding type
- historical_record
- Finding
- NARA-held photography documents this hull preparing to beach at Nasugbu, Luzon, P.I., 31 January 1945, alongside USS LSM-54 and USS LCI(L)-963 (photo 80-G-K-3153, contributed via the USS LSM/LSMR Association). Crew-captioned photography further places her beached at Mindoro, P.I., circa February 1945 alongside USS LSM-53, and at San Diego circa January-February 1946 alongside USS LSM-364 - consistent with post-war West Coast inactivation ahead of her 8 April 1946 decommissioning.
- Verification
- partial
- Role
- archival_lead
- Documentation level
- ship_specific
- Accessed
- 2026-10-02
- Study period
- 1945-01-31 to 1946-02
- Population
- Crew and embarked troops at Nasugbu (Jan 1945) and Mindoro (Feb 1945); inactivation-era crew at San Diego (Jan-Feb 1946)
- Limitations
- Archival lead only: photographs establish physical presence at documented places and dates, not work performed or conditions aboard. The NARA catalog (catalog.archives.gov) is JS-rendered and could not be fetched this session - the NAID for 80-G-K-3153 and any digitized LSM-65 deck logs (RG 24) remain unverified open leads. No asbestos content.
- Atlas source
- true
- Evidence ID
- ev-uss-lsm-65-lsm65-03
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[5]Era inference built on: NavSource LSM-1-class spec block (twin Fairbanks-Morse diesels, direct drive - no steam plant); Shipbuilding History class/builder production records (558 LSMs from seven yards, May 1944 - Apr 1946); GAO HRD-80-2 Navy asbestos-program documentation (see ev-05) [other_primary]
- Locator
- NavSource spec block (propulsion section); shipbuildinghistory.com LSM class list; GAO HRD-80-2 product page
- Finding type
- asbestos_application
- Finding
- A diesel-powered LSM-1-class landing ship delivered September 1944 sits inside the Navy's documented asbestos-use era (GAO: asbestos insulation used extensively aboard ships until substitution began in the early 1970s). Era-standard applications aboard a diesel amphibious ship of this type and period were thermal insulation on exhaust runs and hot machinery surfaces, gaskets, valve packing, electrical insulation, insulation panels in accommodation spaces and around the galley, deck coverings, and brake linings on winches and the windlass. As a direct-drive diesel ship she carried no boilers or steam turbines - the boiler/turbine lagging pathway of steam vessels does not apply; the small-ship confined-space exposure dynamic applies within engine, tank-deck, and accommodation spaces.
- Verification
- inferred
- Role
- supporting
- Documentation level
- class_or_era
- Accessed
- 2026-10-02
- Study period
- 1944-1947+
- Population
- Brown Shipbuilding construction trades (1944); crew and embarked troops (1944-46); 1947+ conversion or breaking trades undocumented
- Limitations
- Class/era inference only - no hull-specific insulation survey, material list, or work package located for LSM-65. 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-65-lsm65-04
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[6]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 (1944) and commissioned service (1944-46).
- Verification
- verified
- Role
- context
- Documentation level
- class_or_era
- Accessed
- 2026-10-02
- 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 2026-10-02) - content via product-page description.
- Atlas source
- true
- Evidence ID
- ev-uss-lsm-65-lsm65-05
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[7]NHHC, 'The Navy's Happy Medium' exhibit page (Wayback capture 2025-02-18; live page returned 404 on 2026-10-02 - archived copy cited and labeled) [nhhc_danfs]
- Locator
- NHHC exhibit page body text (Wayback capture 20250218061440)
- Finding type
- historical_record
- Finding
- Official NHHC exhibit text describing the LSM type: '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 type's design rationale and size class from an official source.
- Verification
- verified
- Role
- context
- Documentation level
- class_or_era
- Accessed
- 2026-10-02
- Study period
- WWII design program
- Limitations
- Type-level context only - the page does not name LSM-65 or any individual hull, and contains no asbestos or material content. Live NHHC URL returned 404 on 2026-10-02; the Wayback capture is cited as the archived copy, not presented as the live source.
- Atlas source
- true
- Evidence ID
- ev-uss-lsm-65-lsm65-06
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[8]Batch-6356 search ledger (this record): NavSource vessel page; Shipbuilding History LSM list and Brown yard ledger; NHHC DANFS URL attempts; NHHC exhibit page via Wayback; NARA catalog attempts; NVR check; CourtListener API v4 (authenticated, 6 queries); secondary web sweep [other_primary]
- Locator
- search_ledger rows sl-uss-lsm-65-lsm65-01 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-65 (LSM-65) was found in the public sources searched. CourtListener (authenticated API v4, 2026-10-02): quoted "LSM-65", "USS LSM-65", and "LSM 65" returned zero opinion results; quoted "LSM-65" returned zero docket results; the unquoted LSM-65 opinion query returned 32 results, all OCR-noise or incidental string collisions (criminal appeals, postal-service, contract, and administrative cases) - none naming this or any vessel. Secondary web sweep surfaced no qualifying case and no 'asbestos aboard LSM-65' marketing material of the kind seen on sister hulls; the only litigation-relevant surface is the generic LSM-class presence on law-firm ship lists - excluded by source policy.
- Verification
- verified
- Role
- negative_finding
- Documentation level
- ship_specific
- Accessed
- 2026-10-02
- Study period
- 2026-10-02
- Limitations
- Absence of a located public record does not prove absence of asbestos aboard - and a two-year commission sold into unknown commercial fate leaves thinner traces than a museum or long-service hull. NARA deck logs (RG 24) and any 1947 sale/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-65-lsm65-07
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[9]Shipbuilding History LSM master list, LSM-236 row (Philippine Navy transfer); corroborated by Philippine-service secondary listings [other_primary]
- Locator
- shipbuildinghistory.com/smallships/lsm.htm, LSM-236 disposition row
- Finding type
- historical_record
- Finding
- CORRECTION / collision control: a second hull carried the pennant number LSM-65. Ex-USS LSM-236 (built Western Pipe and Steel, San Pedro, CA, delivered 2 September 1944) was transferred to the Philippines in 1960 and served as BRP Batanes (LSM-65) until wrecked in 1971. Search hits for 'LSM-65' in Philippine or post-1960 contexts refer to that hull, not to this record's subject (ex-USS LSM-65, Brown yard hull 170, sold to Sturgeon Bay Shipbuilding 14 August 1947).
- Verification
- partial
- Role
- correction
- Documentation level
- ship_specific
- Accessed
- 2026-10-02
- Study period
- 1960-1971 (collision window)
- Limitations
- Corrects a hull-number collision, not a material claim for this hull. The Philippine Batanes service record itself rests on secondary compilation (Shipbuilding History disposition column); no primary transfer document was pulled.
- Atlas source
- true
- Evidence ID
- ev-uss-lsm-65-lsm65-08