Evidence
9 evidence entries recorded; each entry has a stable permalink (#ev-1 … #ev-9).
-
[1]research packet xv-packet.md [other_primary]
- Finding type
- vessel_history
- Finding
- Identity packet verdict: VERIFIED
- Verification
- verified
- Role
- supporting
- Documentation level
- ship_specific
- Evidence ID
- uss-lst-204-lst204-pkt-xv-packet-md
-
[2]Naval History and Heritage Command, DANFS entry 'LST-204' (published 2015-07-30) [nhhc_danfs]
- Locator
- NHHC DANFS page, 'LST-204' entry text (full entry)
- Finding type
- vessel_history
- Finding
- DANFS entry for LST-204: laid down 24 July 1942 at Seneca, Ill., by Chicago Bridge & Iron Co.; launched 3 April 1943, sponsored by Mrs. Florence S. Jacobs; commissioned 27 April 1943. Assigned to the Asiatic-Pacific theater; operations: Eastern New Guinea (Finschhafen occupation September 1943; Saidor occupation January-February 1944); Bismarck Archipelago (Cape Gloucester, New Britain, December 1943-March 1944); Hollandia (April-May 1944); Western New Guinea (Biak June 1944, Noemfoor July 1944, Cape Sansapor July-August 1944, Morotai September 1944); Leyte landings October-November 1944; Lingayen Gulf landing January 1945; Mindanao landings March-April 1945. Decommissioned 23 February 1946; struck from the Navy list 5 June 1946; sold 8 October 1947 to the New Orleans Shipwrecking Corp., of Chicago, Ill., for scrapping. Earned seven battle stars for WWII service.
- Verification
- verified
- Role
- supporting
- Documentation level
- ship_specific
- Accessed
- 2026-10-02
- Study period
- 1942-1947
- Limitations
- Authoritative for identity, construction, campaign participation, and disposal. Contains no asbestos, materials, crew-figure, or manning-service statement. ACCESS NOTE: history.navy.mil serves this page with an HTTP 404 status header while rendering full page content - verified live via Firecrawl scrape 2026-10-02; status code should not be read as a dead link.
- Atlas source
- true
- Evidence ID
- ev-uss-lst-204-01
-
[3]U.S. Coast Guard, 'The Coast Guard at War, Vol. VI: The Pacific' (official service history; HyperWar transcription), Finschhafen section pp. 35-37; Cape Gloucester section pp. 53-56 incl. 'COAST GUARD LST-204 SHOOTS DOWN PLANES'; Noemfoor section [other_primary]
- Locator
- USCG-VI-3.html (Finschhafen, pp. 35-37); USCG-VI-6.html (Cape Gloucester, pp. 53-56); USCG-VI-15.html (Noemfoor); volume index https://www.ibiblio.org/hyperwar/USCG/VI-Pacific/index.html
- Finding type
- vessel_history
- Finding
- The official Coast Guard war history documents LST-204 as Coast Guard-manned at three operations: (a) Finschhafen - on 21 September 1943 'the LST-204, Coast Guard manned, departed Lae, New Guinea with a combat load of 500 Australian troops of the 9th Division,' beached at Scarlet Beach 0656 on the 22nd, unloaded by 0925, survived a lone Zero bombing and a subsequent multi-bomber attack with no casualties; (b) Cape Gloucester - 'Coast Guard manned LST-204' beached 26 December 1943 carrying 32 Marine Corps officers, 531 enlisted, 237 tons of bulk stores and 117 vehicles in an all-Coast Guard echelon (flagship LST-466 plus LSTs 18, 66, 67, 68, 202, 204), then shot down one 'Val' dive bomber and scored damaging hits on two more during the 1435-1450 air attack, suffering no casualties; (c) Noemfoor - on 2 July 1944, LST-204 was one of four Coast Guard-manned LSTs (18, 66, 67, 204) unloading over the coral reef via LCT shuttle.
- Verification
- verified
- Role
- supporting
- Documentation level
- ship_specific
- Accessed
- 2026-10-02
- Study period
- 1943-1944
- Population
- USCG ship's company; embarked troops (500 Australian 9th Div troops at Finschhafen; 32 officers + 531 enlisted Marines at Cape Gloucester)
- Limitations
- Official USCG historical publication - authoritative for Coast Guard manning and ship operations described. Establishes embarked-troop populations (500 Australian troops at Finschhafen; 563 Marines aboard at Cape Gloucester) relevant to any exposure-population analysis, but contains no asbestos or materials statement. Transcription is the HyperWar mirror of the official print volume.
- Atlas source
- true
- Evidence ID
- ev-uss-lst-204-02
-
[4]U.S. Maritime Administration, ShipHistory database - LST-204, Ship History Detail 9285, incl. digitized vessel status card [marad_nrc]
- Locator
- ShipHistory Detail 9285 fields and Status Cards scan https://vesselhistory.marad.dot.gov/cards/450_01.png (a second linked card, 45O_01.png, is LST-265's card - a mislabeled association on the MARAD page, not this hull)
- Finding type
- vessel_history
- Finding
- MARAD ShipHistory record (Detail 9285) for LST-204: Naval Combatant / 'LST Tank Landing Ship', fate 'Sold - No Further Info', no historical narrative, no milestones or documents. The linked MARAD vessel status card (card scan 450_01.png) records the hull 'LST 204' under 'Surplus of Department of Navy': operator 'New Orleans Shipwrecking Co.', form of agreement 'Pur.' (purchase), delivered 10/8/47 - corroborating DANFS's 8 October 1947 sale date.
- Verification
- verified
- Role
- supporting
- Documentation level
- ship_specific
- Accessed
- 2026-10-02
- Study period
- 1947
- Limitations
- Authoritative for the surplus-sale milestone; the card's 'Date Allocated' notation ('sp act 19--') is handwritten and only partially legible, and the port-of-delivery cell is blank. Status card contains no asbestos, materials, or condition information; supports no asbestos claim.
- Atlas source
- true
- Evidence ID
- ev-uss-lst-204-03
-
[5]NavSource Online: Amphibious Photo Archive, USS LST-204 page (volunteer-compiled reference; photo captions cite NARA/USCG/NHHC catalog identifiers) [other_primary]
- Locator
- 160204.htm - specs, CO table, campaign table, ribbon display, photo captions
- Finding type
- vessel_history
- Finding
- NavSource Amphibious Photo Archive page for USS LST-204 (verified live at navsource.net, last updated 2025-05-02): states the ship was US Coast Guard-manned; assigns her to LST Flotilla Seven, LST Group Twenty-One, LST Division Forty-Two; lists commanding officers LT Arthur I. Roberts USCG (27 Apr 1943-1944), LT Charles W. Radke USCG (1944-5 Jan 1945), LT Richard D. Irvin USCGR (5 Jan 1945); spec block (1,625 t light / 4,080 t full / 2,366 t beaching; 328 ft oa; 50 ft beam; 11.6 kt trial; 13 officers / 104 enlisted; troop accommodations 16/147; 2 LCVP; ultimate armament 2 twin + 4 single 40mm, 12 single 20mm; 2 GM 12-567A 900 hp diesels, Falk reduction gear, 3 diesel-drive 100 kW generators); campaign table with per-operation dates; ribbon display including Philippine Presidential Unit Citation and Philippine Liberation Medal (2).
- Verification
- partial
- Role
- supporting
- Documentation level
- ship_specific
- Accessed
- 2026-10-02
- Study period
- 1942-1947
- Population
- USCG officers/crew (per CO table); embarked troops
- Limitations
- NavSource is a private volunteer archive, not an official Navy source - used here for specs, flotilla assignment, CO table, and awards detail that DANFS omits; all dates/disposition corroborated by DANFS. Spec/complement figures are class-typical values presented per-hull and are not independently hull-verified. Irvin's tenure end ('5 January 1945 - 5 January 1945') is a truncated table value. No asbestos content; supports no asbestos claim.
- Atlas source
- true
- Evidence ID
- ev-uss-lst-204-04
-
[6]Class/era inference consolidated from: Bureau of Ships, Ships' Data U.S. Naval Vessels Vol. 2 (Jan 1945) LST design table (shipscribe.com scan); Corn & Starr, 'Historical perspective on asbestos... World War II shipbuilding,' Am. J. Ind. Med. 11(3):359-373 (1987) [other_primary]
- Locator
- SDB1945v2 LST design table (machinery: 2 GM 12-567A diesels); AJIM 11(3):359-373 https://doi.org/10.1002/ajim.4700110311
- Finding type
- asbestos_application
- Finding
- Era/design inference for this diesel-powered LST-1-class hull: with no boilers, the asbestos-relevant applications aboard a 1942-43 LST were GM diesel exhaust lagging and gaskets, engine-room thermal/acoustic insulation, deck coverings/tile, bulkhead and accommodation insulation, and winch/crane brake linings; WWII-era naval and merchant construction used asbestos extensively for fireproofing and insulation during the period this hull was built.
- Verification
- inferred
- Role
- supporting
- Documentation level
- class_or_era
- Accessed
- 2026-10-02
- Study period
- 1942-1948
- Population
- Construction trades at Chicago Bridge & Iron Seneca yard (1942-43); USCG ship's company; embarked troops
- Limitations
- Class/era inference only - no ship-specific document establishes asbestos aboard this hull. The diesel plant (no boilers) narrows the steam-lagging pathway relative to steam vessels but does not eliminate era-typical asbestos applications. Establishes no quantity, condition, individual exposure, or causation.
- Atlas source
- true
- Evidence ID
- ev-uss-lst-204-05
-
[7]National Archives Catalog - NAID 205584237 'Near Miss at Cape Gloucester' (verified); additional NARA/USCG/USN photo identifiers per NavSource captions; N.A. 78309501 action-report reference (NavSource citation, not independently retrieved) [other_primary]
- Locator
- catalog.archives.gov/id/205584237 (live); NavSource photo captions for NAIDs 205586203, 205586229, 80-G-59509, and the action-report reference
- Finding type
- historical_record
- Finding
- Verified archival records naming the hull exist at NARA: still photo 'Near Miss at Cape Gloucester' (NAID 205584237, local ID 26-G-3057, Coast Guard series 'Photographs of Activities, Facilities, and Personalities' 1939-1967, verified live in the NARA catalog); Noemfoor photos NAIDs 205586203 and 205586229; Navy photo 80-G-59509 of LST-204 with LSM-23 at Leyte 20 October 1944; and an 'LST-204 AA Action Report' referenced on the NavSource page as N.A. 78309501. Deck logs and the Chicago Bridge & Iron contract/outfitting specifications (NARA RG 24/RG 19 series) are the remaining hull-level materials-documentation path.
- Verification
- partial
- Role
- archival_lead
- Documentation level
- ship_specific
- Accessed
- 2026-10-02
- Study period
- 1943-1944 records
- Limitations
- Record-level catalog verification performed for NAID 205584237 only; the other identifiers are cited from NavSource captions and were not individually pulled. None of these photographic/operational records is expected to contain asbestos statements; they establish wartime presence, not materials. No spend authorized for reproduction orders.
- Atlas source
- true
- Evidence ID
- ev-uss-lst-204-06
-
[8]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 returns HTTP 403 to automated fetch; content via product-page description - standing limitation from the class research)
- Finding type
- gov_survey
- Finding
- GAO documented the Navy's asbestos-protection program: standing policy (1975) removed asbestos insulation only when damaged or required for repairs, modified 1979 to selective replacement in high-maintenance areas. For this hull the context is purely negative-space: LST-204 was scrapped in 1947-48, decades before the documented policy window, so no postwar abatement or survey record could ever have been generated.
- Verification
- verified
- Role
- context
- Documentation level
- context_only
- Accessed
- 2026-10-02
- Study period
- 1975-1979 policies; hull scrapped 1947-48
- Population
- Navy shipyard workers (program scope)
- Limitations
- Program-level documentation, not vessel-specific; cited to explain why a hull disposed of in 1947 has no abatement paper trail. Does not bear on whether asbestos was aboard.
- Atlas source
- true
- Evidence ID
- ev-uss-lst-204-07
-
[9]Batch-6752 search ledger (this record): NHHC DANFS; NavSource 160204; USCG 'Coast Guard at War' VI-Pacific; MARAD ShipHistory 9285 + status card; NARA catalog NAID 205584237; CourtListener (status in ledger); Naval Vessel Register (not listed - disposed pre-1987) [other_primary]
- Locator
- search_ledger rows sl-uss-lst-204-01 through sl-uss-lst-204-10
- Finding type
- historical_record
- Finding
- No qualifying ship-specific asbestos record located for LST-204: no asbestos survey, abatement contract, hazmat disclosure, materials schedule, or docketed case naming this hull was found in the public sources searched - DANFS, the USCG official history, the MARAD record/status card, and NavSource contain no asbestos or insulation-material statement; an authenticated CourtListener opinion search for the exact string "LST-204" returned zero results (the docket-level sweep remained unrun when the fleet pacing budget closed again - see ledger). The hull's direct disposal (decommissioned 1946, sold for scrapping 1947) foreclosed the usual post-service documentation pathways. A class-level LST asbestos sweep (see lst-1-class profile, ev-lst-1-class-04) located only an incidental 'USS LST 579' mention inside a scanned reunion-notice exhibit in Gitto v. A.W. Chesterton (S.D.N.Y. 1:07-cv-04771) - not an exposure record for any hull.
- 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 - a 1942-43 hull is era-consistent with installed asbestos-containing materials, and this record cannot rule exposure in or out for any individual. Does not establish presence, absence, exposure, causation, or legal eligibility.
- Atlas source
- true
- Evidence ID
- ev-uss-lst-204-08