Evidence
6 evidence entries recorded; each entry has a stable permalink (#ev-1 … #ev-6).
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[1]NavSource Online: Amphibious Photo Archive, USS LST-1043 page - hull timeline transcribing DANFS/NVR data, ONI-1945 specification block, and commanding-officer table [other_primary]
- Locator
- Timeline block, 'Specifications (as reported by Office of Naval Intelligence-1945)', and Commanding Officers table
- Finding type
- vessel_history
- Finding
- LST-542-class tank landing ship: laid down 17 December 1944 at Dravo Corp., Pittsburgh, PA (Neville Island yard); launched 27 January 1945; commissioned 24 February 1945, LT Clifford Off, Jr., USNR in command. WWII service in the Asiatic-Pacific Theater under LST Flotilla 33 / LST Group 97 / LST Division 194; post-war occupation service in the Far East 11-20 September 1945; decommissioned 22 July 1946; struck from the Naval Register 28 August 1946; sold for scrapping 10 December 1947 to the Learner Co., Oakland, CA. ONI-1945 specifications carried: 1,625 t light / 4,080 t full; 328 ft oa x 50 ft; 12 kts max; 7 officers / 104 enlisted plus troop accommodations of 16 officers / 147 enlisted; two GM 12-567 900-hp diesels, two propellers, twin rudders. Awards: American Campaign Medal, Asiatic-Pacific Campaign Medal, World War II Victory Medal, Navy Occupation Medal (Asia clasp).
- Verification
- verified
- Role
- supporting
- Documentation level
- ship_specific
- Accessed
- 2026-10-02
- Study period
- 1944-1948
- Population
- Ship's company (7 officers / 104 enlisted) plus embarked troops (up to 16 officers / 147 enlisted); Dravo Neville Island construction workforce
- Limitations
- NavSource is a volunteer-edited archive transcribing DANFS/Naval Vessel Register data; the canonical NHHC DANFS page for this hull (history.navy.mil/research/histories/ship-histories/danfs/l/lst-1043.html) returns HTTP 404, so NavSource is the accessible per-hull record. Establishes identity and service history only - contains no asbestos content.
- Atlas source
- true
- Evidence ID
- ev-uss-lst-1043-lst1043-01
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[2]ShipbuildingHistory.com, 'Landing Ships, Tank - LST, Part 3 of 4 - LST 797 through LST 1155' (compiled from Maritime Commission/yard production records) [other_primary]
- Locator
- LST-1043 table row
- Finding type
- historical_record
- Finding
- ShipbuildingHistory (Tim Colton) LST production table Part 3 (LST 797-1155): LST-1043 - Dravo Corp., Pittsburgh PA; FY1944 contract; keel laid 17-Dec-44; launched 27-Jan-45; delivered 24-Feb-45; 41 days on the ways, 28 days fitting out, 69 days total; disposition 'Scrapped 1947'. Independently corroborates the NavSource timeline and the builder attribution.
- Verification
- verified
- Role
- supporting
- Documentation level
- ship_specific
- Accessed
- 2026-10-02
- Study period
- 1944-1947
- Population
- Dravo Neville Island construction workforce
- Limitations
- Secondary compilation of production records - corroborates dates and builder, not an asbestos record. Conflicts with the uboat.net/pt-Wikipedia laid-down date of 17 November 1944 (NavSource and ShipbuildingHistory both give 17 December 1944; discrepancy carried in gaps).
- Atlas source
- true
- Evidence ID
- ev-uss-lst-1043-lst1043-02
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[3]Consolidated era/design inference - ONI-1945 machinery data for this class via the NavSource page (ev-01) and BuShips Ships' Data U.S. Naval Vessels Vol. 2 (Jan 1945) LST design group data as transcribed in the batch class profile (lst-1-class.class.json) [other_primary]
- Locator
- ONI-1945 specifications block (propulsion); class profile ev-lst-1-class-01/-03
- Finding type
- asbestos_application
- Finding
- Era/design inference for this diesel-powered LST-542-group hull: no boilers, so asbestos-relevant applications for the type concentrated in GM diesel exhaust lagging and gaskets, engine-room thermal and acoustic insulation, deck coverings/tile, bulkhead and accommodation-space insulation, and winch/crane brake linings. Wartime-era shipboard insulation, gasketing, and deck-covering products of the period were commonly manufactured with asbestos fiber.
- Verification
- inferred
- Role
- supporting
- Documentation level
- class_or_era
- Accessed
- 2026-10-02
- Study period
- 1944-1948
- Population
- Construction trades (Dravo Neville Island, Dec 1944-Feb 1945); engine-room crew; embarked troops
- Limitations
- Class/era inference only - no hull-specific material schedule, survey, or work package names this vessel, and no source states 'asbestos' for LST-1043 itself. The shipscribe.com scan of BuShips SDB-1945 v2 cited by the class profile (SDB1945v2.pdf) returned HTTP 404 on 2026-10-02 - link rot logged; ONI-1945 machinery data verified live via NavSource. Establishes no quantities, no present-day presence, and no individual exposure.
- Atlas source
- true
- Evidence ID
- ev-uss-lst-1043-lst1043-03
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[4]Christman v. Dravo Corp., 319 Pa. Super. 378, 466 A.2d 209 (Pa. Super. Ct. 1983) (CourtListener opinion 1971341) [court_record]
- Locator
- Opinion text quoting complaint paragraph Fourth and interrogatory answers (ship-hold insulation, 1942-45)
- Finding type
- litigation_documented
- Finding
- Christman v. Dravo Corp., 319 Pa. Super. 378, 466 A.2d 209 (Pa. Super. Ct. 1983): the estate of Jacob F. Christman alleged he worked for Dravo 1942-1945 as a mechanic/welder at the Neville Island shipyard (East Yard outfitting dock), 'in hold of ship where they were putting up insulation, the asbestos was from Johns-Manville,' developing mesothelioma (diagnosed May 1978, died February 1979). The Superior Court affirmed summary judgment for Dravo on exclusive-remedy grounds - the Pennsylvania Workmen's Compensation Act / federal LHWCA barred a tort action against the employer. The exposure claim was never adjudicated; the ruling turned on employer immunity.
- Verification
- verified
- Role
- context
- Documentation level
- class_or_era
- Accessed
- 2026-10-02
- Study period
- 1942-1945 (alleged exposure); 1979-1983 (litigation)
- Population
- Dravo Neville Island shipyard workers, 1942-1945 (allegation-level)
- Limitations
- Yard-level litigation context, not a hull record: the opinion names the Dravo Neville Island yard and allegation-era 'ships' generically, never LST-1043. Pleading-stage allegation only - summary judgment was affirmed on exclusive-remedy/employer-immunity grounds; no court made an asbestos-exposure finding for the worker or the yard. Establishes that asbestos exposure at this builder's yard during this hull's construction window was litigated, not that it occurred aboard this vessel. Note: CourtListener's court metadata labels this 'Supreme Court of Pennsylvania' but the reporter citation (319 Pa. Super. 378) and opinion header identify the Superior Court of Pennsylvania.
- Atlas source
- true
- Evidence ID
- ev-uss-lst-1043-lst1043-04
-
[5]In re Dravo LLC, 307 A.3d 146 (Pa. Super. 2023), rev'd, No. 33 WAP 2024 (Pa. May 22, 2026) (official PACourts opinion PDFs) [court_record]
- Locator
- Pa. Supreme Court opinion J-79A-2025 (background section describing the Asbestos Claims); Superior Court opinion J-A15029-23 at https://www.pacourts.us/assets/opinions/Superior/out/J-A15029-23o%20-%20105775143249621982.pdf
- Finding type
- litigation_documented
- Finding
- In re Dravo LLC - Derivative Claims Against Carmeuse Lime, Inc.: the Superior Court (307 A.3d 146, Dec. 19, 2023, No. 1210 WDA 2022) reversed summary judgment for Carmeuse Lime on a corporate veil-piercing theory for asbestos liabilities of dissolved Dravo LLC; the Supreme Court of Pennsylvania (Nos. 33-34 WAP 2024, J-79A/79B-2025, decided May 22, 2026) reversed, holding veil-piercing is unavailable to revive tort claims against a dissolved LLC's parent where the claims are time-barred under the Pennsylvania Uniform LLC Act. The opinions record that plaintiffs sued Dravo beginning in the early 1990s alleging asbestos-related injuries from exposure 'during Dravo's operations' (heavy industry incl. watercraft manufacture). The consolidated proceeding addressed successor/parent liability only; the underlying asbestos claims remained unadjudicated allegations extinguished procedurally.
- Verification
- verified
- Role
- context
- Documentation level
- context_only
- Accessed
- 2026-10-02
- Study period
- 2018-2026 (dissolution and litigation); underlying alleged exposure era 1940s-1980s
- Population
- Asbestos claimants against Dravo entities (corporate context)
- Limitations
- Corporate-level successor-liability proceeding - no exposure adjudication for any worker, vessel, or site. Both reversals turned on Pennsylvania LLC-dissolution/veil-piercing law, not asbestos merits; the underlying claims remain pleading-level allegations procedurally extinguished. Documents that the builder of this hull faced asbestos litigation arising from its wartime-through-1980s operations; establishes nothing about this hull.
- Atlas source
- true
- Evidence ID
- ev-uss-lst-1043-lst1043-05
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[6]Batch-6531 search ledger (this record): NavSource per-hull page; NHHC DANFS (404); ShipbuildingHistory production table; CourtListener API v4 opinion and docket sweeps; NARA catalog; NVR; secondary-web sweeps [other_primary]
- Locator
- search_ledger rows sl-uss-lst-1043-lst1043-01 through -12
- Finding type
- historical_record
- Finding
- No qualifying ship-specific asbestos record located: no asbestos survey, abatement record, hazmat disclosure, or docketed case naming LST-1043 / USS LST-1043 was found in the public sources searched (see search_ledger). The hull was sold for scrapping in December 1947 - decades before Navy asbestos surveys, MARAD reserve-fleet preservation, or museum documentation programs existed for LSTs.
- 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 - era construction practice and yard-level litigation (ev-04) make asbestos use at the builder plausible, but nothing documents it aboard this hull. Deck logs (NARA RG 24) and scrapping-contract records (Learner Co., Oakland) are undigitized leads. Does not establish or defeat any claim of exposure or legal eligibility.
- Atlas source
- true
- Evidence ID
- ev-uss-lst-1043-lst1043-06