USS LST-53

Evidence

12 evidence entries recorded; each entry has a stable permalink (#ev-1 … #ev-12).

1. [1]research packet 685-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-53-lst53-pkt-685-packet-md

2. [2]DANFS, LST-53 (NHHC live page, verified 2026-10-02) [nhhc_danfs]

   Locator

   DANFS entry, full text (single-paragraph LST-format entry)

   Finding type

   vessel_history

   Finding

   Documented for this hull: 'LST-53 was laid down on 24 September 1943 at Pittsburgh, Pa., by the Dravo Corp.; launched on 6 November 1943; sponsored by Mrs. Nicholas Spanard; and commissioned on 21 December 1943, Ens. Michael Stapleton in command. During World War II, LST-53 was assigned to the European theater and participated in the following operations: Invasion of Normandy - June 1944; Invasion of southern France - August and September 1944. She was then assigned to the Asiatic-Pacific theater and supported the occupation of Okinawa during May and June 1945. Immediately following the war, she was assigned to occupation duty in the Far East from September 1945 to January 1946. In September 1954, she was redesignated APL-59. She was transferred to the Republic of Korea in May 1955 and served that government as Chang Su (LST-811). LST-53 earned three battle stars for World War II service.'

   Verification

   verified

   Role

   context

   Documentation level

   ship_specific

   Accessed

   2026-10-02

   Study period

   1943-1955

   Population

   Crew (1943-1946); construction trades at Dravo Neville Island (1943)

   Limitations

   Milestone-level official entry only; contains no asbestos, material, complement, or machinery content. Gives no decommissioning or striking dates - those come from other rows.

   Atlas source

   true

   Evidence ID

   ev-uss-lst-53-01

3. [3]NavSource Online: Amphibious Photo Archive, APL-59 ex USS LST-53 (160053) - timeline, specifications, commanding officers, campaign ribbons (page live 2026-10-02; last updated 4 July 2014) [other_primary]

   Locator

   NavSource 10/16/160053.htm - header block, awards/campaigns table, flotilla assignment, specifications block, commanding officers table, photo captions

   Finding type

   vessel_history

   Finding

   NavSource page for this hull: LST-1 Class Tank Landing Ship; laid down 24 September 1943 at Dravo Corp., Neville Island, PA; launched 6 November 1943; placed in partial commission for ferrying to New Orleans for fitting out, 5-21 December 1943, LT. John W. Rogers USN in command (ferry command); placed in full commission as USS LST-53, 21 December 1943, ENS. Michael Stapleton USN in command; campaigns - Europe-Africa-Middle East: Invasion of Normandy 6-25 June 1944 and Invasion of Southern France 15 August-25 September 1944; Asiatic-Pacific: assault and occupation of Okinawa Gunto 17-30 June 1945; Asiatic-Pacific assignment under LST Flotilla Thirty-Nine (CAPT. D. H. Johnston), LST Group One Hundred-Five (CDR. E. P. Wilson), LST Division Two Hundred-Ten; occupation service in the Far East 20 September 1945-22 January 1946; decommissioned 22 January 1946 and transferred to COMNAVFE Shipping Control Authority for Japan (SCAJAP), redesignated Q021; laid up in Reserve Fleet (date unknown); redesignated non-self-propelled barracks ship APL-59 September 1954; struck from the Naval Register (date unknown); transferred to the Republic of Korea May 1955 and renamed ROKS Chang Su (LST-811); three battle stars; final disposition fate unknown. Spec block: displacement 1,625 t light / 4,080 t full / 2,366 t beaching; 328 ft o.a.; beam 50 ft; speed 11.6 kt (trial); endurance 24,000 mi at 9 kt displacing 3,960 t; complement 13 officers + 104 enlisted; troops 16 officers + 147 enlisted; boats 2 LCVP; ultimate armament 2 twin 40 mm w/Mk.51 directors, 4 single 40 mm, 12 single 20 mm; fuel 4,300 bbl diesel; propulsion two General Motors 12-567A 900 hp diesels, single Falk main reduction gear, three diesel-drive 100 kW 230 V D.C. ship's-service generators, two propellers 1,700 shp, twin rudders; radio call sign NFCU. Photos show LST-53 moored with LST-55 and LST-54 (possibly UK) and nested at Kerama Retto circa late May-early June 1945 with LSM-83, the hulk of Barry (APD-29), and Lipan (ATF-85).

   Verification

   verified

   Role

   context

   Documentation level

   ship_specific

   Accessed

   2026-10-02

   Study period

   1943-1959

   Population

   Crew (1943-1946); embarked troops and casualties (1944-45); SCAJAP Japanese crew (1946-1950s); ROK crew (1955-1959)

   Limitations

   NavSource is a volunteer-compiled secondary reference, not a primary registry - but its milestones are corroborated by DANFS and the ship's own NARA war history/diaries; flotilla number conflicts with the ship's own history (39 vs 35 - see gaps). Contains no asbestos content. Strike date and final fate are unknown to it - Shipscribe supplies them.

   Atlas source

   true

   Evidence ID

   ev-uss-lst-53-02

4. [4]Shipscribe (S. S. Roberts compilation from official records), USS APL-59 (ex-LST) class page - reclassification, Pusan billeting role, striking, transfer, disposal (page live 2026-10-02; compiled 9 Sep 2021) [other_primary]

   Locator

   shipscribe.com/usnaux2/APL/APL59.html - class notes and ship notes table

   Finding type

   vessel_history

   Finding

   Official-records compilation for this hull's post-US-commission career: USS LST 53 placed in full commission 21 December 1943 (completed 5 December 1943); after European-theater service arrived in the Pacific in time for the Okinawa operation June 1945; decommissioned 22 January 1946 and transferred to COMNAVFE Shipping Control Authority for Japan (SCAJAP) as an operational American-owned cargo ship with a Japanese crew, designation Q021; by early 1951 she had become a port facilities management vessel (billeting, mess, and communications) at Pusan (Busan), South Korea; no longer self-propelled, reclassified APL-59 on 15 September 1954; stricken and transferred to South Korea 11 May 1955, renamed CHANG SU or JANGSU (LST-811) as a barracks ship; broken up 1959; 'the USN strike date of 11 May 1955 was not fully promulgated until 20 Jul 1960.'

   Verification

   verified

   Role

   context

   Documentation level

   ship_specific

   Accessed

   2026-10-02

   Study period

   1946-1960

   Population

   SCAJAP Japanese crew (1946-1950s); Pusan port-facilities/billeting population (early 1950s); ROK crew (1955-1959); breakers (1959)

   Limitations

   Compiled secondary reference built on official records (Ships' Data, NVR-derived data) - the most detailed located source for the SCAJAP/Pusan period and disposal; not itself a registry document. Contains no asbestos content. Resolves NavSource's unknown strike date and fate (11 May 1955; BU 1959).

   Atlas source

   true

   Evidence ID

   ev-uss-lst-53-03

5. [5]NARA, 'USS LST-53 - War History' (NAID 77706772), RG 38 'World War II War Diaries, Other Operational Records and Histories', Roll A2106, serial 159123, Forwarding letter serial 119-46 dated 20 October 1945, signed Mike Stapleton, Lt., USN, Commanding Officer - 9 digitized images read in full [other_primary]

   Locator

   NAID 77706772, images A_2106/0198.jpg-0206.jpg (9 pages), Roll A2106, serial 159123

   Finding type

   historical_record

   Finding

   The ship's own 9-page 'Factual History of U.S.S. LST 53' (primary document, digitized microfilm read in full): officially received from the Dravo Shipyard Corp. of Pittsburgh, Pa., on 5 December 1943 by Lt. C. W. Crowley, USNR; placed in reduced commission under Lt. J. W. Rogers, USN, commanding LST Ferry Crew number 16; combat crew 4219 (7 officers, 67 enlisted) and nucleus crew 4219A (2 officers, 21 enlisted) reported aboard. Departed Dravo 6 December 1943, down the Ohio and Mississippi to New Orleans (arrived 21 December); placed in full commission as USS LST 53 at Algiers Naval Base, New Orleans, with Ensign Mike Stapleton USN as commanding officer. Armament increased and additional magazines installed at Mobile; training at St. Andrews Bay, Florida; loaded at New Orleans (LCT 612 on main deck) and New York; departed for Boston 2 March 1944 via Cape Cod Canal. Departed the continental US 10 March 1944 in convoy via Halifax, arriving Milford Haven, Wales, 29 March; unloaded at Port Talbot; LCT 612 launched at Plymouth; maneuvers at Pentewan Beach (DUKWs); loaded at Portland - attached to Flotilla 10, Group 30, Division 60; convoyed Rhino Ferry #20 to Start Bay; fuel discharged 8 May preparatory to dry dock, the next eight days in Dry Dock #2 at Devonport, Devon; loaded Army vehicles and 21-day 'B' rations at Falmouth. Departed Fowey 5 June for Omaha Beach; anchored 2 miles off Omaha 6 June - troops unloaded into LCT 29, casualties received, enemy aircraft engaged (bow guns shot down one enemy plane), small boats sent to Easy Green Beach to handle wounded (two sunk by mines, no casualties); shuttle runs Southampton-Normandy into July (USS LST-17 rammed her starboard bow 12 June - 1.5-ft hole and severed 'F' coil of degaussing gear; beached Jig Red, Gold Sector; 52 POWs confined in troop quarters; later runs carried the 314th Inf., 79th Div. and 83rd Airdrome Sq., the 926th Signal Bn. and 3442nd Ordnance, and returned 884 POWs); dry dock at Falmouth 11-13 July for minor repairs and overhaul. Departed for Bizerte 18 July, attached to the 8th Amphibious Force; departed Naples 12 August with the 22nd Bn., 157th Infantry; anchored in Baie de Tropez 15 August, boats landing in the 12th wave on Red Beach, Delta Area, Southern France; remained at anchor in St. Tropez Bay until 4 September 1944 as mother ship for smaller landing craft (repairs to LCMs, LCIs, LCTs, LCVPs, spare parts issued; casualties cared for until transfer to hospital ships); mother-ship duties at Marseilles until relieved by USS LST 47 on 16 October 1944; extensive repair and overhaul by ship's crew at Bizerte to 3 November; Oran dry dock 10-12 November (damaged bottom, shaft overhaul, general painting); convoyed to the US via Norfolk (Hampton Roads 11 December); at New York shifted 19 December to Atlantic Basin Iron Works, Brooklyn, for general overhaul and numerous BuShips alterations, then towed 26 January 1945 to Bethlehem Steel Co. Dry Dock #3, Hoboken, N.J. - repairs/overhaul continued to 8 February (attached to Flotilla 35, Group 105, Division 210). Loaded ammunition at Norfolk; Guantanamo; Panama Canal (convoy commander); San Diego; Pearl Harbor (West Loch, then Kaneohe Bay for the ammunition cargo); Eniwetok; Ulithi; arrived Kerama Retto 17 May 1945 - launched LCT 565 and issued ammunition from the tank deck to warships in the Kerama Retto area through 30 June; 1 July a boat party took 19 Japanese soldiers and one Japanese woman surrendering off Takashiki Shima; Leyte (loaded 2039th Quartermaster Truck Co. and 391st Aviation Sq. at Catmon Hill); Buckner Bay, Okinawa, 29 July - unloaded on Hami Sachi Beach; loaded 383rd Infantry via Baren Ko causeway; Manila; Pandurucan Beach, Mindoro; Subic Bay; loaded 13th Aircraft and Warning Control Group for Batangas; beached at Love 6, Yokohama, 16 September and unloaded occupation troops/equipment; anchored Buckner Bay 24 September 1945.

   Verification

   verified

   Role

   context

   Documentation level

   ship_specific

   Accessed

   2026-10-02

   Study period

   1943-1945

   Population

   Ship's company and embarked troops/casualties/POWs (1943-45); Dravo receiving party (Dec 1943); yard trades at Devonport, Falmouth, Oran, Atlantic Basin Iron Works Brooklyn, Bethlehem Steel Hoboken (1944-45 availabilities)

   Limitations

   Ship-compiled retrospective narrative (primary source signed by the commanding officer, written October 1945) - authoritative for movements, loads, and the vessel's own repair/overhaul events; contains no asbestos or material content. The documented yard availabilities (Devonport May 1944, Falmouth July 1944, Oran November 1944, Atlantic Basin Iron Works Brooklyn December 1944-January 1945, Bethlehem Steel Hoboken January-February 1945) establish maintenance events but carry no work-order or material detail. Flotilla number stated as 35 here vs 39 at NavSource - see gaps.

   Atlas source

   true

   Evidence ID

   ev-uss-lst-53-04

6. [6]NARA, 'USS LST-53 - War Diary, 6/1-30/44' (NAID 78526401), RG 38, Roll A1055, serial 73224, forwarded 17 July 1944, signed Mike Stapleton - 8 digitized images read in full [other_primary]

   Locator

   NAID 78526401, images A_1055/0193a.jpg-0200.jpg (8 pages), Roll A1055, serial 73224

   Finding type

   historical_record

   Finding

   Contemporaneous operational log of the Normandy month (primary document, digitized microfilm read in full). 1-2 June: moored Messack Point, Falmouth, then loaded at Hard #6, River Fal, an itemized D-Day manifest - Hq. & Hq. Co. 5 ESB (68 men), Co. B 336 Engr. C. Bn (120), Hq. & Hq. Det. 533 QM Bn (15), Med. Det. 533 QM Bn (8), 414th 1st QM Service Co. (83), 294th Joint Assault Signal Co. (25), 210th Military Police Co. (61), Hq. Engineers Special Brigade Groups (59), H/S Co. 348 Engr. C. Bn (4), 320th AA Balloon Bn (3) - ~446 men, plus 10 jeeps, 2 weapons carriers, 3 trailers, 15 DUKWs, 19 trucks; secured at Polruan Pool, Fowey. 4 June 0005 underway for Omaha Beach; 0813 recalled off Eddystone Lighthouse on convoy-guide signal (the 24-hour postponement). 5 June 0010 underway again. 6 June 1935 anchored two miles off Omaha Beach: boats to LST 502 for casualties; LCM S-18 alongside unloading casualties; LCT 29 alongside unloading army personnel and crew; casualties received from DUKWs from 2100; 2310 general quarters, enemy planes overhead; 2319 commenced firing. 7 June 0015 one enemy plane shot down crashing off the port bow, hit by bow 40 mm and 20 mm guns (190 rounds 40 mm, 716 rounds 20 mm expended); boats to Easy Green Beach for wounded - two boats reported sunk by mines, no casualties; crippled LCS hoisted on davit, crew taken aboard for England; casualties received from LCT 577; DUKWs launched 2103-2125. 8 June 0115-0205 second night firing (114 rounds 40 mm, 540 rounds 20 mm); unloading via LCTs 2124, 547, 18, 544 and rhino ferry; two boats, crews, and one officer transferred for duty to Omaha Beach. 9 June convoy to Isle of Wight, Calshot anchorage, Southampton. 10 June: 56 casualties of war evacuated from Omaha Beach landed to U.S. Base Hospitals 28 Field, 48 Field, and 48 General; 18 survivors of war transferred to U.S. naval authorities. 11 June: loaded British 271 Ford Delivery Squadron, RAC (118 men, 17 trucks, 10 Sherman tanks, 2 17-pdr guns, 2 limbers, 1 scout car). 12 June 0014: USS LST 17 rammed head-on into the starboard bow - 1.5-ft hole, large dent, severed 'F' coil of degaussing equipment; beached 1830 on Jig Red, Gold Sector; 52 prisoners of war confined in port troop quarters. 13 June beached Jig Green; retracted; convoyed to Spithead. 14 June: POWs marched off to British custody at Southampton; war correspondent McGowan (New York Sun) embarked for the round trip to France; loaded 314th Inf., 79th Div. (138 men, 7 officers, 9 guns, 19 vehicles) and 83rd Airdrome Sq. (57 men, 2 officers, 49 vehicles). 15 June convoy to Normandy. 19 June loaded 386th QM Truck Co. (121 men, 44 vehicles). 24 June beached on Tare Green Beach, Utah Sector; unloaded; one casualty embarked. 25 June: 884 prisoners of war embarked with nine U.S. guards; retracted. 26 June convoy to Isle of Wight.

   Verification

   verified

   Role

   context

   Documentation level

   ship_specific

   Accessed

   2026-10-02

   Study period

   June 1944

   Population

   Ship's company; embarked Army assault units (~446 on 2 June; 271 Ford Delivery Sqn RAC, 314th Inf./79th Div., 83rd Airdrome Sq., 386th QM Truck Co., 926th Signal Bn. later in month); 56 casualties and 18 survivors evacuated (10 June); 52 + 884 POWs

   Limitations

   Operational log - movements, manifests, ordnance expended, casualties/POWs; contains no asbestos or material content. Corroborates the October 1945 factual history's Normandy account at contemporaneous granularity (the plane kill is logged at 0015 on 7 June vs the history's '2310' 6 June framing; consistent - the engagement began 2310).

   Atlas source

   true

   Evidence ID

   ev-uss-lst-53-05

7. [7]NARA, 'LST-53, 12/5/43-1/22/46' (NAID 126553828), RG 24 'Muster Rolls of U.S. Navy Ships, Stations, and Other Naval Activities', Roll 4297, Ancestry scan - 323 digitized images; plus 18 monthly war-diary file units digitized (Dec 1943 - Nov 1945) [other_primary]

   Locator

   NAID 126553828 (catalog page; '323 Images'; Ancestry file 32861_247851); catalog.archives.gov search 'LST-53' (421 results) and 'LST-53 muster'

   Finding type

   historical_record

   Finding

   Digitized muster-roll set for this hull spanning its entire commissioned life - 5 December 1943 to 22 January 1946, 323 images. These rolls document by name the ship's company across her active service - the population-relevant primary record for any individual-service verification tied to this hull. The catalog also carries 18 digitized monthly war-diary file units for LST-53 (NAIDs incl. 78239560, 78284160, 78313555, 78360976, 78422076, 78448688, 78526401, 78554903, 139748028, 78664674, 78706157, 139841099, 139881518, 139968433, 633445428, 83560621, 77590322, 140081374).

   Verification

   verified

   Role

   archival_lead

   Documentation level

   ship_specific

   Accessed

   2026-10-02

   Study period

   1943-1946

   Population

   All hands who served aboard, 1943-46 (name-level roster)

   Limitations

   Archival lead only: the file unit was located and image count verified in the catalog; individual roll pages were not read this session. Muster rolls name personnel and rates; they contain no asbestos, material, or work-assignment detail.

   Atlas source

   true

   Evidence ID

   ev-uss-lst-53-06

8. [8]Bureau of Ships, Ships' Data, U.S. Naval Vessels, Vol. 2 (1 January 1945 edition), LST design table and roster (shipscribe.com scan with text layer; URL verified live 2026-10-02) [other_primary]

   Locator

   SDB1945v2, LST characteristics/machinery table (LST1-490 group row) and roster

   Finding type

   historical_record

   Finding

   Official BuShips design table for the LST1-490 design group - which includes LST-53: 328 ft o.a., 50 ft beam, ~2,366 t light / 4,080 t trial displacement, 11.6 kt, machinery of 2 x 'G.M. Diesel, 12-567A' engines at 1,700 shaft horsepower. The table's boiler/steam columns are blank for all LST groups - a diesel plant with no boilers. Roster section lists LST-53 among the Dravo-built standard-hull block.

   Verification

   verified

   Role

   supporting

   Documentation level

   class_or_era

   Accessed

   2026-10-02

   Study period

   1945 (edition)

   Population

   n/a

   Limitations

   Class design table, not a hull-specific record; documents the type's machinery as designed, not this hull's as-built insulation or materials. Ships' Data covers machinery and characteristics - it contains no asbestos or insulation schedules.

   Atlas source

   true

   Evidence ID

   ev-uss-lst-53-07

9. [9]GAO, Navy Efforts To Protect Workers From Asbestos Exposure, HRD-80-2 (Oct 18, 1979) - product-page description (full report PDF blocked to automated fetch, HTTP 403, confirmed 2026-10-02) [gao]

   Locator

   GAO HRD-80-2 product page Highlights (https://www.gao.gov/products/hrd-80-2); PDF https://www.gao.gov/assets/hrd-80-2.pdf returned 403

   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, covering the use of asbestos in Navy ships, removal cost, and compensation programs: per the product-page description, the Navy's 1975 policy was to remove and replace with nonasbestos materials only insulation that was damaged or had to be removed for necessary repairs, modified in 1979 to selectively replace asbestos insulation in high-maintenance areas - documentation consistent with asbestos insulation being standard aboard WWII-built ships such as this 1943 hull, and with original-era insulation typically remaining in place for decades unless disturbed.

   Verification

   verified

   Role

   context

   Documentation level

   class_or_era

   Accessed

   2026-10-02

   Study period

   1979 report; covers practices through the 1970s

   Population

   Navy shipyard workers; WWII-built fleet (era context)

   Limitations

   Program-level documentation - names no hull and no class; supports era context only. Fieldwork was performed at Long Beach and Norfolk Naval Shipyards. Full report text not retrieved this session (gao.gov returns HTTP 403 to automated fetch; product-page Highlights used).

   Atlas source

   true

   Evidence ID

   ev-uss-lst-53-08

10. [10]Era inference built on: NavSource specifications for this hull (two GM 12-567A 900 hp diesels, Falk reduction gear, twin screws, diesel-drive generators); BuShips SDB 1945 v2 LST1-490 design-group row (diesel machinery, no boilers); LST-1-class profile (lst-1-class.class.json) consolidated era application list [other_primary]

    Locator

    NavSource spec block; SDB1945v2 LST table; class profile era-inference row ev-lst-1-class-03; NARA war history NAID 77706772 (overhaul events)

    Finding type

    asbestos_application

    Finding

    As a diesel-powered landing ship built in 1943, LST-53 carried no boilers or steam plant - the boiler/turbine lagging pathway does not apply. Era-standard asbestos-relevant applications aboard a ship of this type and period: diesel-engine exhaust lagging and exhaust-manifold gaskets; engine-room thermal and acoustic insulation; deck coverings (e.g., deck tile compounds of the period); bulkhead and accommodation-space insulation; winch, windlass, and crane brake linings; electrical cable insulation; gaskets and packing in piping and machinery. Her documented stateside overhaul (Atlantic Basin Iron Works, Brooklyn, December 1944-January 1945; Bethlehem Steel Hoboken dry dock, January-February 1945 - 'general overhaul and numerous BuShips alterations' per the ship's own history) is the kind of availability that disturbed interior systems, though no work package or material detail for it was located.

    Verification

    inferred

    Role

    supporting

    Documentation level

    class_or_era

    Accessed

    2026-10-02

    Study period

    1943-1959

    Population

    Dravo Neville Island construction trades (1943); ship's company and embarked troops/POWs (1943-46); yard trades during 1944-45 availabilities; SCAJAP/Pusan populations (1946-55); ROK service and breakers (1955-59)

    Limitations

    Class/era inference only - no hull-specific insulation schedule, material list, survey, or work package located for LST-53. Names era-standard application categories, not confirmed installed materials aboard this hull; no quantity, no manufacturer attribution. The documented 1944-45 overhaul proves a repair event, not the materials handled. The Dravo Neville Island yard operated through 1981 (NIOSH survey) but no asbestos-specific yard record was located.

    Atlas source

    true

    Evidence ID

    ev-uss-lst-53-09

11. [11]NIOSH (CDC Stacks index record): 'Industrial hygiene survey report, Dravo Corporation, Engineering Works Division, Neville Island, Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania' - Bloom, Dooley, Peguese; survey July 1981, report 1985 [other_primary]

    Locator

    CDC Stacks record cdc/233199, NIOSH-provided abstract (URL verified live 2026-10-02)

    Finding type

    gov_survey

    Finding

    The only located government industrial-hygiene record for this hull's builder: NIOSH surveyed the Dravo Neville Island yard in July 1981 - evaluating occupational exposure from painting and coating processes during barge and towboat construction; sampling covered organic/paint solvents, metals (lead over the OSHA standard), and nuisance dust. The survey does not address asbestos, and its scope is 1981 barge work, not 1943 LST construction.

    Verification

    verified

    Role

    negative_finding

    Documentation level

    context_only

    Accessed

    2026-10-02

    Study period

    1981 survey (38 years after this hull's construction)

    Population

    Dravo Neville Island painters/coaters, 1981

    Limitations

    Yard-level record that does not document asbestos - carried as a searched-source result (negative for asbestos scope), not evidence of yard asbestos conditions. Full text is an index record only (CDC Stacks; NTRL print only). A 1981 survey says nothing about 1943 conditions.

    Atlas source

    true

    Evidence ID

    ev-uss-lst-53-10

12. [12]Batch-7039 search ledger (this record): DANFS live page; NavSource 160053; Shipscribe APL-59 page; NARA catalog ('LST-53': 421 results) - war history NAID 77706772 (9 pp.) and war diary 6/44 NAID 78526401 (8 pp.) read in full, muster rolls NAID 126553828; BuShips SDB1945v2 scan; GAO HRD-80-2 product page; CDC Stacks Dravo record; NVR (no entry); NARA digitized deck-log index; CourtListener API v4 (partial); secondary web sweep [other_primary]

    Locator

    search_ledger rows sl-uss-lst-53-01 through sl-uss-lst-53-14

    Finding type

    historical_record

    Finding

    No qualifying ship-specific asbestos record located: no asbestos survey, abatement contract, hazmat disclosure, material schedule, or verified litigation naming USS LST-53 / APL-59 was found in the public sources searched (see search_ledger). CourtListener on 2026-10-02: exact 'LST-53' returned zero opinions and two name-collision dockets (unrelated D.N.H. search-warrant affidavits whose documents happen to match the token 'LST-53' - not vessel references); exact 'APL-59' returned one name-collision opinion (SEC v. Drexel Burnham Lambert, S.D.N.Y. 1993 - securities enforcement, not a vessel reference). The 'APL-59' docket query and an unhyphenated 'LST 53' variant were rate-limited by the shared fleet pacing budget this session - logged as blocked where not run, not as negative results. Secondary web sweeps surfaced no qualifying asbestos litigation and no ship-specific material record; no law-firm marketing content was encountered for this hull this session.

    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 - the hull was built inside the Navy's documented asbestos-insulation era, spent 1946-1959 in SCAJAP/ROK custody, and was broken up in Korea in 1959, before modern ACM-handling records; any Korean-side disposal documentation is untraced. CourtListener coverage is near-complete for exact designations (opinion index fully negative for qualifying hits) but the APL-59 docket index and unhyphenated variants are an open gap, not a negative. Does not establish or defeat any claim of exposure or legal eligibility.

    Atlas source

    true

    Evidence ID

    ev-uss-lst-53-11