Evidence
11 evidence entries recorded; each entry has a stable permalink (#ev-1 … #ev-11).
-
[1]research packet 666-packet.md (3 sources cited) [nhhc_danfs]
- Finding type
- vessel_history
- Finding
- Identity packet verdict: VERIFIED (minor battle-star count conflict disclosed)
- Verification
- verified
- Role
- supporting
- Documentation level
- ship_specific
- Evidence ID
- uss-lst-357-lst357-pkt-666-packet-md
-
[2]DANFS, LST-357 (NHHC live page, verified 2026-10-02) - construction, sponsor, commissioning, theater service, disposal, battle stars [nhhc_danfs]
- Locator
- DANFS entry text (single-paragraph ship history)
- Finding type
- vessel_history
- Finding
- Documented for this hull: laid down 24 October 1942 at the Charleston (S.C.) Navy Yard; launched 14 December 1942, sponsored by Mrs. Richard Wilder Smith; commissioned 8 February 1943, Lt. J. C. Reynolds in command. WWII service in the Mediterranean and European theaters: invasions of Sicily (July 1943) and Salerno (September 1943) and the invasion of Normandy (June 1944). Occupation duty in the Far East October-November 1945. Decommissioned 8 June 1946; stricken from the Navy list 31 July 1946; sold 1 April 1948 to Bethlehem Steel Co., Bethlehem, Pa., and subsequently scrapped. Earned three battle stars for WWII service.
- Verification
- verified
- Role
- context
- Documentation level
- ship_specific
- Accessed
- 2026-10-02
- Study period
- 1942-1948
- Population
- Charleston Navy Yard construction trades (1942-43); ship's company and embarked troops (1943-46)
- Limitations
- Ship-specific history only; contains no asbestos, materials, or condition information. The DANFS commissioning CO (Lt. J. C. Reynolds) conflicts with NavSource's CO table (Lt. George Vaughn USN, Feb 1943-May 1944) - see gaps. DANFS decommissioning date (8 June 1946) conflicts with NavSource (17 June 1946) - DANFS carried as controlling.
- Atlas source
- true
- Evidence ID
- ev-uss-lst-357-01
-
[3]Bureau of Ships, Ships' Data, U.S. Naval Vessels, Vol. 2 (Jan 1945) - LST roster entry and machinery design table (shipscribe.com scan) [other_primary]
- Locator
- SDB1945v2 LST roster (LST357 ex-ATL357 row, Charleston Navy Yard builder block); machinery summary table (LST1-490 group row)
- Finding type
- vessel_history
- Finding
- The official BuShips roster lists 'LST357 (ex-ATL357)' built at Navy Yard, Charleston, S.C.: laid down 24 Oct 1942, launched 14 Dec 1942, commissioned 8 Feb 1943 - matching DANFS on all three milestones and documenting her original ATL-357 designation. The same volume's machinery table places the LST1-490 design group (which includes this hull) at 2 x G.M. Diesel 12-567A engines, 1,700 shp - a diesel plant, no boilers.
- Verification
- verified
- Role
- supporting
- Documentation level
- ship_specific
- Accessed
- 2026-10-02
- Study period
- 1942-1945
- Population
- Charleston Navy Yard construction trades (1942-43)
- Limitations
- Primary BuShips documentation for build milestones and class machinery; the roster row is ship-specific, the machinery row is design-group level (LST1-490). Contains no asbestos or materials statement - the diesel-plant finding constrains exposure pathways (no boiler lagging) but names no installed material.
- Atlas source
- true
- Evidence ID
- ev-uss-lst-357-02
-
[4]NavSource Online: Amphibious Photo Archive, USS LST-357 (10/16/160357) - timeline, campaign table, specifications, CO list, nickname, personnel awards (verified live on navsource.net 2026-10-02) [other_primary]
- Locator
- NavSource header timeline block, campaign table, personnel-awards line, CO table, specifications block, Peacock crew quote
- Finding type
- vessel_history
- Finding
- NavSource documents for this hull: nickname 'Palermo Pete'; call sign NZDG; campaign table - Sicilian occupation Licata Sicily 10 July 1943, Salerno landings 9 September 1943, Invasion of Normandy Omaha Beach 6 June 1944; Far East occupation service 13 October - 13 November 1945; decommissioned 17 June 1946 (conflicts with DANFS 8 June - see gaps); struck 31 July 1946; three battle stars; sold for scrapping 1 April 1948 to Bethlehem Steel Co., Bethlehem, PA. Personnel awards: Navy Cross and Purple Heart to LTjg Warren C. Gill USCG, 9 September 1943, Salerno (~90 WIA/KIA line entry). Commanding-officer table: LT George Vaughn USN (8 Feb 1943 - May 1944), LT James J. MacLeod USNR, LT John C. Reynolds, LT James R. Blackburn USNR, LTjg Fred L. Rosenberg USNR, LTjg Stanley W. Plotz USNR (to 17 Jun 1946). Crew account (Quartermaster William M. Peacock) describes ~90 casualties at Salerno including skipper Lt. Vaughn. Specifications: 328' oa, 50' beam, 11.6 kt, complement 13 officers/104 enlisted plus 16 officers/147 enlisted troops; 2 x GM 12-567A 900hp diesels, Falk reduction gears, 3 x 100kW diesel generators, 1,700 shp, twin rudders.
- Verification
- verified
- Role
- context
- Documentation level
- ship_specific
- Accessed
- 2026-10-02
- Study period
- 1942-1948
- Population
- Ship's company and embarked troops (1943-46); Salerno landing force (90 WIA/KIA line)
- Limitations
- NavSource is a volunteer secondary compilation, not a primary registry - milestones generally track DANFS/NVR but conflict here on decommission date (17 vs 8 June 1946) and commissioning CO. Casualty figure (~90) and nickname rest on contributed material, not official records. Contains no asbestos content.
- Atlas source
- true
- Evidence ID
- ev-uss-lst-357-03
-
[5]NHHC photo catalog: 80-G-82347 'Salerno Invasion, September 1943' and USA C-708 'Normandy Invasion Preparations, 1944' (both name USS LST-357; verified live 2026-10-02) [nhhc_danfs]
- Locator
- NHHC catalog pages 80-G-82347 and USA C-708 (caption/description fields)
- Finding type
- historical_record
- Finding
- NHHC catalog record 80-G-82347: 'USS LST-357 shrouding herself in smoke while unloading on green beach, Salerno, 9 September 1943' (original date 9 Sep 1943; National Archives copyright owner). NHHC catalog record USA C-708: 'USS LST-357 loading vehicles in an English port, in preparation for the invasion of France, circa late May or early June 1944' (Army Signal Corps Collection, U.S. National Archives). Official photographic documentation of the hull at Salerno and in Normandy staging.
- Verification
- verified
- Role
- context
- Documentation level
- ship_specific
- Accessed
- 2026-10-02
- Study period
- 1943-1944
- Population
- Crew and embarked landing force, Sep 1943 and May-Jun 1944
- Limitations
- Photographic catalog records establishing presence and dates only; no condition, materials, or asbestos content.
- Atlas source
- true
- Evidence ID
- ev-uss-lst-357-04
-
[6]U.S. Coast Guard Historian's Office, 'The Long Blue Line: Warren Gill - Oregon's forgotten Navy Cross hero' (history.uscg.mil, official .mil source; verified live 2026-10-02) [other_primary]
- Locator
- Long Blue Line article, paragraphs on Salerno action and awards
- Finding type
- historical_record
- Finding
- USCG Historian's Office documents: LST-357 'was one of 76 Navy LSTs (Landing Ship-Tank) manned by the Coast Guard in World War II.' At Salerno, Lt. (j.g.) Warren C. Gill, USCG, officer in charge of small boats, was seriously wounded when an 88mm shell hit his landing craft during the first wave; the same shell wounded several crewmembers and 25 soldiers; Gill continued directing the assault flotillas until he collapsed, then spent three months in a British hospital in North Africa before transfer to Algiers, where Vice Admiral Henry Hewitt presented the Navy Cross. Gill was one of only six Coast Guardsmen to receive the Navy Cross in WWII and the only Coast Guard Reservist; he also received the Legion of Merit (Sicily) and Purple Heart.
- Verification
- verified
- Role
- context
- Documentation level
- ship_specific
- Accessed
- 2026-10-02
- Study period
- 1943
- Population
- USCG-manned ship's company; assault flotilla boat crews; embarked troops (Sep 1943)
- Limitations
- Official USCG historical article - personnel/action history only; no asbestos or material content. Establishes the Coast Guard-manned status of this hull, relevant to crew population framing; does not resolve the DANFS-vs-NavSource commissioning-CO conflict.
- Atlas source
- true
- Evidence ID
- ev-uss-lst-357-05
-
[7]Era inference built on: BuShips SDB 1945 v2 LST1-490 machinery row (2 x GM 12-567A diesels - no boilers); NavSource specifications; Atlas class profile lst-1-class (class-f worktree); Atlas shipyards.json asbestos-product inventory for charleston-naval-shipyard (builder yard) [other_primary]
- Locator
- SDB1945v2 machinery table (LST1-490); class-f/lst-1-class.class.json class notes; shipyards.json charleston-naval-shipyard product list
- Finding type
- asbestos_application
- Finding
- A diesel-powered LST-1-class tank landing ship built 1942-43 at a U.S. Navy yard sits inside the documented WWII asbestos-use era of U.S. shipbuilding. Because the plant is diesel (no boilers), the asbestos-relevant applications aboard a ship of this type and era were diesel-exhaust lagging, engine-room thermal/acoustic insulation, gaskets, machinery packing, deck coverings/tile, accommodation insulation, and brake linings on winches and deck machinery - not boiler or steam-line lagging.
- Verification
- inferred
- Role
- supporting
- Documentation level
- class_or_era
- Accessed
- 2026-10-02
- Study period
- 1942-1948
- Population
- Charleston Navy Yard construction trades (1942-43); engine-room crew (1943-46); Bethlehem Steel scrapping workforce (1948)
- Limitations
- Class/era inference only - no hull-specific insulation survey, material schedule, or work package located for LST-357. Names era-standard applications, not confirmed installed materials; no quantity, no manufacturer attribution. The diesel plant narrows but does not eliminate exposure-relevant systems.
- Atlas source
- true
- Evidence ID
- ev-uss-lst-357-06
-
[8]Corn, Jacqueline Karnell, and Jennifer Starr, 'Historical perspective on asbestos: Policies and protective measures in World War II shipbuilding,' American Journal of Industrial Medicine 11(3):359-373 (1987) - DOI verified via Crossref 2026-10-02 [other_primary]
- Locator
- AJIM 11(3):359-373; Crossref metadata check
- Finding type
- historical_record
- Finding
- Peer-reviewed historical study documenting that asbestos was used extensively as a fireproofing and insulating material in U.S. shipbuilding during WWII - the era and program under which this LST-1-class hull was mass-produced at a Navy yard (1942-43).
- Verification
- verified
- Role
- context
- Documentation level
- class_or_era
- Accessed
- 2026-10-02
- Study period
- 1940s era documented; article 1987
- Population
- WWII shipyard workers and ship crews (era context)
- Limitations
- Program/era-level scholarly documentation of asbestos use in WWII shipbuilding generally; does not name this vessel or class and establishes nothing about materials aboard this hull, quantity, exposure, or causation. DOI resolves via Crossref; publisher full text bot-blocked (HTTP 403) - abstract-level reliance.
- Atlas source
- true
- Evidence ID
- ev-uss-lst-357-07
-
[9]Batch-6896 search ledger (this record): NHHC DANFS live page; BuShips SDB1945v2 (shipscribe); NavSource 10/16/160357; NHHC photo catalog 80-G-82347 + USA C-708; USCG Historian Long Blue Line; CourtListener opinion+docket searches; NVR; VA BVA index; NPS LST document; secondary web litigation sweep [other_primary]
- Locator
- search_ledger rows sl-uss-lst-357-01 through sl-uss-lst-357-14
- Finding type
- historical_record
- Finding
- No qualifying ship-specific asbestos record located: no asbestos survey, abatement contract, material schedule, hazmat disclosure, or docketed case naming LST-357 was found in the public sources searched. CourtListener returned zero hits on all four queries: 'LST-357' and '"USS LST-357" OR "LST 357"' in both the opinion index and the docket/RECAP index. The VA BVA decision index is script-driven and could not be queried - blocked, not a negative. NVR carries no detail page (pre-1987 disposal exclusion).
- 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 Navy-yard build is era-consistent with asbestos-containing materials. The hull was scrapped in 1948, so no survey or abatement record should be expected to exist; scrapping-era material records were not located. Does not establish or defeat any claim of exposure or legal eligibility.
- Atlas source
- true
- Evidence ID
- ev-uss-lst-357-08
-
[10]NARA Guide to Federal Records: RG 24 (Bureau of Naval Personnel - WWII deck logs, NARA College Park), RG 181 (Records of Naval Districts and Shore Establishments - Charleston Navy Yard records), RG 38 (CNO records - ship action reports/war diaries) [other_primary]
- Locator
- https://www.archives.gov/research/guide-fed-records/groups/024.html ; groups/181.html ; groups/038.html
- Finding type
- historical_record
- Finding
- Archival leads not retrieved (research-room or reproduction order required; no spend authorized): WWII deck logs for LST-357 reside in RG 24 at NARA College Park (some WWII deck logs digitized on the NARA catalog, which was script-blocked this session); Charleston Navy Yard construction/outfitting records in RG 181 (NARA Atlanta holds Sixth Naval District records); ship action reports for the Sicily/Salerno/Normandy operations in RG 38. These are the likely repositories for any hull-specific material or condition documentation.
- Verification
- unverified
- Role
- archival_lead
- Documentation level
- context_only
- Accessed
- 2026-10-02
- Study period
- 1942-1946 records
- Limitations
- Record-group mapping only - no box-level retrieval performed; existence of asbestos-specific documents for this hull is unknown until surveyed in person. The NARA catalog is JS-rendered and returned no programmatic result this session. Nothing in this row is an asbestos finding.
- Atlas source
- true
- Evidence ID
- ev-uss-lst-357-09
-
[11]Cross-source discrepancy check: DANFS live page (launch 14 Dec 1942, decommission 8 Jun 1946, CO Reynolds, 3 battle stars); NavSource (launch 14 Dec 1942, decommission 17 Jun 1946, CO Vaughn, 3 battle stars); Wikipedia/Wikimedia Commons infobox (launch 16 Nov 1942); historycentral.com DANFS transcription (2 battle stars); BuShips SDB 1945 v2 roster (14 Dec 1942, 8 Feb 1943) [other_primary]
- Locator
- DANFS entry; NavSource timeline/CO table/photo captions; Wikipedia and Wikimedia Commons infoboxes (not cited as sources); historycentral.com/navy/patrol/19.html
- Finding type
- historical_record
- Finding
- CORRECTION of circulating secondary-source errors for this hull: (a) launch date - Wikipedia and Wikimedia Commons carry 16 November 1942, but DANFS, NavSource (with launch-photo captions dated 14 December 1942), and the BuShips SDB 1945 v2 roster all give 14 December 1942; the December date is carried. (b) Battle stars - the historycentral.com DANFS transcription says two; DANFS and NavSource both say three; three is carried. (c) Decommissioning - DANFS 8 June 1946 vs NavSource 17 June 1946 remains unresolved (DANFS carried). (d) Commissioning CO - DANFS Lt. J. C. Reynolds vs NavSource Lt. George Vaughn USN remains unresolved (both recorded).
- Verification
- verified
- Role
- correction
- Documentation level
- ship_specific
- Accessed
- 2026-10-02
- Study period
- 1942-1946
- Limitations
- Corrects publication-level errors in secondary sources; no asbestos content. The unresolved variants are logged in gaps rather than silently resolved.
- Atlas source
- true
- Evidence ID
- ev-uss-lst-357-10