Evidence
8 evidence entries recorded; each entry has a stable permalink (#ev-1 … #ev-8).
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[1]DANFS, Maurice River (LSMR-514), Vol. 4 (1969) p. 278 - construction, commissioning, nine-year Atlantic Fleet service, decommissioning, naming, striking, disposal (verbatim transcription; live NHHC page returned 404) [nhhc_danfs]
- Locator
- DANFS Vol. 4 p. 278, Maurice River (LSMR-514) entry - service narrative and spec block
- Finding type
- vessel_history
- Finding
- Documented for this hull: 'LSMR-514 was originally authorized as LSM-514. Reclassified LSMR-514 on 9 February 1945, she was laid down 21 April by Brown Shipbuilding Co., Houston, Tex.; launched 19 May 1945 and commissioned 14 July 1945, Lt. Philip H. Alston, Jr., in command. At the end of World War II, LSMR-514 was outfitting at the Charleston, S.C., Navy Yard. She steamed to Little Creek, Va., 17 August where she reported to Amphibious Forces, Atlantic Fleet on the 20th. Following training in Chesapeake Bay, she departed the Norfolk area 4 October for a good will tour of the Great Lakes, returning to Little Creek 14 November. For the next 9 years, she operated out of Little Creek, cruising primarily off the middle Atlantic coast. She deployed annually to the Caribbean for extended training operations and twice, in 1947 and 1949, she steamed north for exercises off Newfoundland and Labrador. LSMR-514 departed Little Creek 22 May 1954 and arrived at Mayport, Fla., on the 29th. She moved to Jacksonville 3 days later and on 15 June was towed to Green Cove Springs, Fla. Decommissioned 30 July 1954, she was berthed at Green Cove Springs as part of the Atlantic Reserve Fleet. While still in reserve, LSMR-514 was named MAURICE RIVER on 1 October 1955. Struck from the Naval Vessel Register 1 February 1960, she was sold to Atlas Iron & Metals Corp., 5 July 1960 and towed away for scrapping on 9 August.' Namesake: 'A river about 40 miles long which flows through south-western New Jersey and empties into Delaware Bay.' Spec block: 'Displacement: 1,084 t. Length: 206'3" Beam: 34'6" Draft: 7'2" (mean) Speed: 13 k. Complement: 138 Armament: 1 5"; 4 4.2"; 4 40mm; 10 rocket launchers Class: LSMR-401.'
- Verification
- verified
- Role
- context
- Documentation level
- ship_specific
- Accessed
- 2026-09-30
- Study period
- 1945-1960 (entry coverage)
- Population
- Brown Shipbuilding construction trades (Apr-Jul 1945); commissioning and Atlantic Fleet crew (1945-54)
- Limitations
- Ship-specific history only; no asbestos or material content. DANFS spec block classes her 'cl. LSMR-401' while NavSource and class references carry her as LSM(R)-501 class - noted in gaps. Live NHHC DANFS page (history.navy.mil/research/histories/ship-histories/danfs/m/maurice-river.html) returned 404 on 2026-09-30 (standing NHHC link-rot defect); verbatim transcription cited.
- Atlas source
- true
- Evidence ID
- ev-uss-lsm-r-514-lsmr514-01
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[2]NavSource Online: Amphibious Photo Archive, USS Maurice River (LSMR-514) ex USS LSM(R)-514 - milestone timeline, organizational assignment, awards, specifications, commanding-officer roster, photo captions, disposal [other_primary]
- Locator
- NavSource 10/06/06514.htm header block, awards line, specifications block, Commanding Officers roster, photo captions (incl. NH 84997)
- Finding type
- vessel_history
- Finding
- NavSource timeline for this hull: laid down 21 April 1945 at Brown Ship Building Co, Houston TX; launched 19 May 1945; commissioned USS LSM(R)-514 14 July 1945, Lt. Philip H. Alston, Jr., USNR in command; WWII assignment listed as Asiatic-Pacific Theater, LSM(R) Flotilla Eighteen (Capt. C. F. Macklin USN), LSM(R) Group Forty-Four, LSM(R) Division One Hundred Seven; awards line: American Campaign Medal, Asiatic-Pacific Campaign Medal, World War II Victory Medal. Decommissioned 30 July 1954 at Green Cove Springs FL; laid up Atlantic Reserve Fleet, Florida Group, Green Cove Springs; named USS Maurice River LSM(R)-514, 1 October 1955; struck from the Naval Register 1 February 1960; sold to Atlas Iron and Metal Corp., Cleveland OH, 5 July 1960, for scrapping. Commanding-officer roster: LT Philip Henry Alston, USNR (14 Jul 1945 - 24 Oct 1945); LT William N. Peach, USNR (24 Oct 1945 - Jan 1946); LTjg Howard Bucknell III, USN (Jan-Sep 1946); LTjg Charles Reid Joyce, USN (Sep 1946 - ?); LT Robert Gronendyke Hutzel, USN (Nov 1949 - Jul 1951); LT John Martin DeLargy, USN, later RADM (1953 - ?). Photo captions document the hull moored pierside at US Naval Submarine Base, New London CT, 3 July 1948 (US Navy photo NH 84997, US Naval Historical Center) and firing rockets as last in line of five LSMRs in a training exercise (date/location unknown). Specifications: displacement 758 t. light / 993 t. attack / 1,175 t. full; length 206'3"; beam 34'6"; complement 6 officers, 137 enlisted; propulsion two General Motors 16-278A diesels 1,440 BHP each direct drive, twin screws 2,800 shp.
- Verification
- verified
- Role
- context
- Documentation level
- ship_specific
- Accessed
- 2026-09-30
- Study period
- 1945-1960
- Population
- Brown Shipbuilding trades (1945); crew (1945-54); reserve-fleet caretakers, Florida Group Green Cove Springs (1954-60); Atlas Iron & Metal scrappers (1960)
- Limitations
- NavSource is a volunteer secondary compilation, not a primary registry - its milestone dates concur with DANFS on every point for this hull. The Asiatic-Pacific organizational listing and campaign ribbon are administrative/class-level (the flotilla the hull was assigned to); the DANFS narrative documents that her actual operating area was entirely Atlantic (Charleston outfitting, Little Creek homeport, Chesapeake Bay training, Great Lakes goodwill tour, annual Caribbean deployments, Newfoundland/Labrador exercises) - she never deployed to the Pacific. Contains no asbestos content.
- Atlas source
- true
- Evidence ID
- ev-uss-lsm-r-514-lsmr514-02
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[3]Era inference built on: NavSource LSM(R)-501-class specification block (diesel propulsion, GM diesels, direct drive); DANFS spec block (13 k., cpl. 138); GAO HRD-80-2 program documentation (Navy asbestos-insulation era); construction window April-July 1945 [other_primary]
- Locator
- NavSource specifications block; DANFS spec block; GAO HRD-80-2 product page
- Finding type
- asbestos_application
- Finding
- A diesel-driven amphibious landing ship built in the second quarter of 1945 sits squarely inside the Navy's documented asbestos-insulation era. Era-standard applications aboard a vessel of this type and period were thermal insulation on hot machinery and exhaust runs, diesel-exhaust lagging, gaskets, valve packing, and electrical insulation in a compact, poorly ventilated hull. As a direct-drive diesel vessel she carried no steam plant - the boiler/turbine lagging pathway of steam vessels does not apply.
- Verification
- inferred
- Role
- supporting
- Documentation level
- class_or_era
- Accessed
- 2026-09-30
- Study period
- 1945-1960
- Population
- Brown Shipbuilding construction trades (1945); crew (1945-54); reserve-fleet caretakers (1954-60); 1960 shipbreakers
- Limitations
- Class/era inference only - no hull-specific insulation survey, material list, specification sheet, or work package located for this hull. 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-r-514-lsmr514-03
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[4]GAO, Navy Efforts To Protect Workers From Asbestos Exposure, HRD-80-2 (Oct 18, 1979) [gao]
- Locator
- GAO product page HRD-80-2, Highlights section (live 403; Wayback capture 20250402135701)
- 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, specifically 'the use of asbestos in Navy ships, the cost of removing asbestos from Navy ships, and compensation programs for asbestos-related disabilities.' Per the published highlights, the Navy's 1975 policy was to remove and replace with nonasbestos materials only insulation that was damaged or had to be removed for repairs, modified in 1979 to include selectively replacing asbestos insulation in high-maintenance areas - i.e., asbestos insulation was still in place aboard Navy ships decades after this hull's 1945 construction and spanning her entire Navy-service era (1945-60).
- Verification
- verified
- Role
- context
- Documentation level
- class_or_era
- Accessed
- 2026-09-30
- 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. Live gao.gov page returns HTTP 403 to automated fetch (confirmed 2026-09-30); content verified via Wayback capture of the product page (2025-04-02). Full report text not retrieved.
- Atlas source
- true
- Evidence ID
- ev-uss-lsm-r-514-lsmr514-04
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[5]U.S. Naval Institute, Naval History magazine, 'The Brown Shipbuilding Company's Rise During World War II' (Eric Pearson, June 2025) [reputable_press]
- Locator
- Naval History June 2025, Vol. 39 No. 3 - yard founding, workforce-scale, and production-statistics paragraphs
- Finding type
- historical_record
- Finding
- Builder documentation: Brown Shipbuilding Company was established in 1941 by George and Herman Brown of Brown and Root on Greens Bayou off the Houston Ship Channel; at its peak it employed more than 25,000 workers starting in late 1942; it built 12 PC-461-class submarine chasers, 61 destroyer escorts (38 Edsall-class, 23 John C. Butler-class), 32 Landing Craft Infantry, and 254 Landing Ship Medium amphibious craft - including the LSM(R)-501 class hulls. In 1949 the yard was leased to the Todd Shipyards Corporation as a ship repair facility (the 'Todd Houston' division).
- Verification
- verified
- Role
- context
- Documentation level
- class_or_era
- Accessed
- 2026-09-30
- Study period
- 1941-1949 (article coverage of construction era)
- Population
- Brown Shipbuilding workforce (peak >25,000, late 1942 onward); this hull's construction cohort Apr-Jul 1945
- Limitations
- Yard-level history, not a hull record - names this hull's builder and documents the wartime workforce scale, but makes no asbestos statement for the yard or this hull. usni.org returns 403 to automated fetch; content verified via Wayback capture of the live URL (2026-05-03). Todd-era asbestos litigation cohort documented in the Atlas yard dataset (todd-shipyards) is post-1949 and not attributable to 1945 Brown construction.
- Atlas source
- true
- Evidence ID
- ev-uss-lsm-r-514-lsmr514-05
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[6]Miller v. Brown Shipbuilding Co., 71 F. Supp. 672 (S.D. Tex. May 2, 1947) (Kennerly, J.); affirmed per curiam, 5th Cir. 1948 (No. 12097) [court_record]
- Locator
- 71 F. Supp. 672, paragraphs 1-4 (trade list), 10 (dismissal); 5th Cir. per curiam affirmance No. 12097 (1948)
- Finding type
- historical_record
- Finding
- A wartime federal court record documents the builder's workforce and trades: plaintiffs William Paul Miller and LaSalle Bryant sued for themselves and approximately 800 similarly situated Black employees of Brown Shipbuilding, pleading that they were classified and paid as common laborers while performing duties 'as sandblasters, sander's helpers, buffers, carpenter shop helpers, welder's helpers, timekeeper assistants, material checkers, tank cleaners, tool department clerks, sheering machine operators, etc.' under Navy shipbuilding and repair contracts. The district court dismissed for want of jurisdiction; the Fifth Circuit affirmed per curiam.
- Verification
- verified
- Role
- context
- Documentation level
- class_or_era
- Accessed
- 2026-09-30
- Study period
- 1942-1947 (alleged employment period; opinion 1947, affirmed 1948)
- Population
- Brown Shipbuilding wartime workforce (~800 plaintiffs in the alleged class; skilled/semi-skilled trades named)
- Limitations
- Pleading-stage allegations only, at the lowest litigation stage: the complaint's trade list was never adjudicated - the case was dismissed on jurisdictional grounds and affirmed without reaching the merits. Not asbestos litigation and not a hull record: documents the construction-era labor population at this hull's builder (the yard active 1941-46, covering this hull's Apr-Jul 1945 build) as alleged by the plaintiffs. No asbestos, material, or exposure finding.
- Atlas source
- true
- Evidence ID
- ev-uss-lsm-r-514-lsmr514-06
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[7]U.S. Navy, LSM Class Manual, 1 March 1944, Serial No. 1766, issued to USS LSM-294 - scanned complete section set on NavSource (Ship's Organization; Ordnance; Main Propelling Machinery; Auxiliary Machinery incl. boilers; Pumps/Tanks/Piping; Ventilation) [other_primary]
- Locator
- NavSource LSM Class Manual index, archives/10/14/lsm manual/ - lsm01-00 through lsm05-xx section PDFs
- Finding type
- historical_record
- Finding
- A period U.S. Navy class manual for the LSM family (the parent design of the LSM(R)-501 class) is digitized on NavSource: a complete scanned section set covering organization, ordnance, main propelling machinery, auxiliary machinery, piping systems, and ventilation - index verified live this session. Per the batch-5864 OCR pass (sister hull LSM(R)-505), the scans are image-only (no OCR text layer); a keyword pass over the Main Propelling Machinery, Auxiliary Machinery, Piping, and Ventilation sections extracted no text and found no readable asbestos/insulation material specifications.
- Verification
- partial
- Role
- archival_lead
- Documentation level
- class_or_era
- Accessed
- 2026-09-30
- Study period
- 1944 (issue)
- Population
- LSM-family crews and maintenance trades (reference document)
- Limitations
- Archival lead only: the manual was issued to USS LSM-294 for the base LSM transport design, not the LSM(R) rocket variant (enclosed superstructure aft, no open well deck) - applicability to this hull is at class-family level only. Image-only scans mean material specifications cannot be keyword-searched; absence of extracted asbestos mentions is a limitation of the scan, not evidence of absence in the manual. Full manual OCR is the open lead.
- Atlas source
- true
- Evidence ID
- ev-uss-lsm-r-514-lsmr514-07
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[8]Batch-5873 search ledger (this record): DANFS transcription; NavSource hull page and class index; USNI builder history; Miller v. Brown Shipbuilding opinion (vLex); LSM Class Manual (NavSource); GAO product page; NVR; NARA catalog; CourtListener (partial - hull-number queries only); secondary web litigation sweep [other_primary]
- Locator
- search_ledger rows sl-uss-lsm-r-514-lsmr514-01 through -10
- Finding type
- historical_record
- Finding
- No qualifying ship-specific asbestos record located: no asbestos survey, abatement contract, hazmat disclosure, museum record, or verified litigation naming USS LSM(R)-514 / Maurice River (LSMR-514) was found in the public sources searched (see search_ledger). CourtListener opinion search returned zero hits for the hull numbers ('"LSMR-514"' and '"LSM(R)-514" OR "LSM-514" OR "LSMR-514"', both type=o); the '"Maurice River"' name query and docket (type=r) searches could not be completed this session - the authenticated helper returned fleet-pacing 'budget momentarily spent' on those attempts; logged as partial/blocked in search_ledger, not a complete negative result. Secondary web sweeps surfaced only law-firm marketing content asserting asbestos generally at the builder's yard (mesotheliomalawyercenter.org 'Brown Shipbuilding (Todd Houston Shipyard) and Asbestos' and similar) - excluded by source policy.
- Verification
- verified
- Role
- negative_finding
- Documentation level
- ship_specific
- Accessed
- 2026-09-30
- Study period
- 2026-09-30
- Limitations
- Absence of a located public record does not prove absence of asbestos aboard - wartime amphibious construction is consistent with retained era materials - and the litigation repository search is partially open (name and docket queries fleet-paced, not run). Deck logs (RG 24, 1945-54), builder work packages, and the 1960 Atlas Iron & Metal scrapping contract are undigitized leads. Does not establish or defeat any claim of exposure or legal eligibility.
- Atlas source
- true
- Evidence ID
- ev-uss-lsm-r-514-lsmr514-08