Evidence
11 evidence entries recorded; each entry has a stable permalink (#ev-1 … #ev-11).
-
[1]research packet 702-packet.md (5 sources cited) [other_primary]
- Finding type
- vessel_history
- Finding
- Identity packet verdict: VERIFIED.
- Verification
- verified
- Role
- supporting
- Documentation level
- ship_specific
- Evidence ID
- uss-lst-637-lst637-pkt-702-packet-md
-
[2]DANFS, LST-637 - construction, sponsor, commissioning, Lingayen Gulf/Visayan/Tarakan campaigns, occupation duty, decommissioning, strike, disposal (live NHHC page, fetched via Firecrawl 2026-10-02; bare curl 404s on NHHC - UA-gated) [nhhc_danfs]
- Locator
- DANFS LST-637 entry, full text
- Finding type
- vessel_history
- Finding
- DANFS documents for this hull: laid down 24 May 1944 at Seneca, Ill., by the Chicago Bridge & Iron Co.; launched 18 August 1944, sponsored by Mrs. Elizabeth Ann Michaels; commissioned 5 September 1944, Lt. C. E. Helfrich, USNR, in command. Asiatic-Pacific operations: Lingayen Gulf landing (January 1945), Visayan Island landings (March through May 1945), Tarakan Island operation (April and May 1945). Occupation duty in the Far East until late October 1945; decommissioned 29 March 1946; struck from the Navy list 5 June 1946; sold 18 December 1947 to the Ships & Power Equipment Corp., of Barber, N.J., and subsequently scrapped. Three battle stars for World War II service.
- Verification
- verified
- Role
- context
- Documentation level
- ship_specific
- Accessed
- 2026-10-02
- Study period
- 1944-1948
- Population
- Construction trades (Seneca, 1944); ship's company and embarked troops (1944-46)
- Limitations
- Ship-specific official history only; no asbestos or material content. DANFS does not name the Brunei Bay/Labuan operation separately (NavSource's campaign table does, and the ship's own action report confirms it - ev-04). Decommissioning location not stated; no yard or repair content.
- Atlas source
- true
- Evidence ID
- ev-uss-lst-637-lst637-01
-
[3]NavSource Online: Amphibious Photo Archive, USS LST-637 (10/16/160637.htm, last updated 11 March 2022) - designation timeline, campaign table, spec block, commanding-officer list, awards, disposal [other_primary]
- Locator
- NavSource 10/16/160637.htm header block, campaign table, specifications block, CO table
- Finding type
- vessel_history
- Finding
- NavSource documents for this hull: LST-542-class tank landing ship laid down 24 May 1944 at Chicago Bridge & Iron Co., Seneca, IL; launched 18 August 1944; commissioned USS LST-637 5 September 1944, LT. C. E. Helfrich, USNR, in command. Campaign table: Lingayen Gulf landings 4-18 January 1945 (Luzon); Visayan Island landings 18 March and 29 March-5 April 1945 (Southern Philippines consolidation); Tarakan Island operation 27 April-5 May 1945 and Brunei Bay operation 10-12 June 1945 (Borneo). Navy Occupation service 15 September-5 October 1945 and 20-30 October 1945. Decommissioned 29 March 1946; struck 5 June 1946; sold to Ships & Power Equipment Corp., Barber, N.J., 18 December 1947, subsequently scrapped. Spec block: 1,625 t light / 4,080 t full / 2,366 t beaching; 328 ft oa x 50 ft; 11.6 kt; 2 x GM 12-567A 900 hp diesels, single Falk reduction gear, 2 shafts 1,700 shp, 3 x 100 kW DC generators; complement 13 officers / 104 enlisted; troops 16 officers / 147 enlisted; 2 LCVP; radio call sign NFHM. Awards: American Campaign Medal, Asiatic-Pacific Campaign Medal (3 battle stars), WWII Victory Medal, Navy Occupation (Asia clasp), Philippine Presidential Unit Citation, Philippine Liberation Medal (2). CO list: LT Carl E. Helfrich USNR 5 Sep 1944-6 Apr 1945; LT Robert A. Vielhaber USNR 6 Apr 1945-1 Mar 1946. Photos include Australian War Memorial-captioned images at Morotai (April-May 1945) and Brunei Bay.
- Verification
- verified
- Role
- context
- Documentation level
- ship_specific
- Accessed
- 2026-10-02
- Study period
- 1944-1948
- Population
- Ship's company (~117) plus embarked troops (1944-46)
- Limitations
- NavSource is a volunteer secondary compilation, not a primary registry - dates cross-check cleanly against DANFS and the two ship-titled NARA action reports (Vielhaber's signature on both May/June 1945 reports matches the CO table). The Brunei Bay line is corroborated by ev-04. Contains no asbestos content.
- Atlas source
- true
- Evidence ID
- ev-uss-lst-637-lst637-02
-
[4]NARA NAID 633430204, 'USS LST-637 - Rep of ops in the invasion of Tarakan Is, Borneo 5/1-5/45' (serial 096, LST637/A16, 7 May 1945, CONFIDENTIAL; RG 38 WWII War Diaries/operational records; 4 images; digitized via Fold3) [other_primary]
- Locator
- NAID 633430204, images 1-4 (downloaded and OCR-read 2026-10-02; microfilmed page stamped 121411)
- Finding type
- historical_record
- Finding
- The ship's own Tarakan action report (all 4 pages downloaded, OCR-read, and display-verified this session; signed R. A. Vielhaber, commanding officer) documents: staging at Morotai Island, NEI; loading elements of the Royal Australian Army, the Royal Australian Navy (Beachmaster), and U.S. Army LVT operators - total vehicles 38, total cargo 424 tons, total personnel 421; transfer of one LCVP with crew to USS LST-562 with a Beachmaster LCVP carried in exchange; beaching rehearsal at the staging area and tactical rehearsal en route; assault purpose to land troops against Japanese forces estimated at 3,000-4,000. The ship 'was under only very minor fire': a small submarine reported during early beaching-phase preparations; several estimated-40mm shells within a 100-yard radius the morning of 3 May (five splashes) and three estimated-75mm explosions about 40 yards off that evening; special security watches posted against 'Q-boats and limpheteers.' Ammunition expended in target practice only: 978 rounds 40mm, 2,958 rounds 20mm; two gun casualties (trigger parallelogram wear; split seam in #6 40mm water-cooling jacket) repaired aboard. Both LCVPs battle-damaged: No. 1 with bottom-planking seams opened beyond ship's-force repair, No. 2 with a broken propeller replaced aboard for limited service. Ship's company performed the last ~15% of cargo unloading after troops went ashore.
- Verification
- verified
- Role
- context
- Documentation level
- ship_specific
- Accessed
- 2026-10-02
- Study period
- 1945-04 to 1945-05
- Population
- Ship's company; embarked RAA/RAN/U.S. Army personnel (421 troops)
- Limitations
- Primary ship-produced record; no asbestos or material content - the maintenance entries (gun repairs, boat repairs) are operational, not insulation-related. Report covers the Tarakan assault only; the inter-operation Morotai maintenance interval appears in the Labuan report (ev-04). Figures 38/424/421 display-verified against the page image.
- Atlas source
- true
- Evidence ID
- ev-uss-lst-637-lst637-03
-
[5]NARA NAID 101742501, 'USS LST-637 - Rep of opers in the assault landings in the Brunei Bay Area, Borneo, 6/10-12/45' (serial 0141, LST637/A16, 12 June 1945, CONFIDENTIAL; subject line reads LABUAN ISLAND, Brunei Bay; micro serial 132481, serial 0141; RG 38; 4 images; digitized via Fold3) [other_primary]
- Locator
- NAID 101742501, images 1-4 (downloaded and OCR-read 2026-10-02; microfilmed page stamped 132481)
- Finding type
- historical_record
- Finding
- The ship's own Labuan Island action report (all 4 pages downloaded, OCR-read, and display-verified this session; signed R. A. Vielhaber; routed via CTU 78.1.16 (ComLSTFlot 24) with copies to ComLSTFlot 7 and ComLSTGr 65 - the administrative unit pair) documents the inter-operation Morotai availability and the Brunei Bay assault verbatim: 22 May arrived Morotai with returning Tarakan troops/vehicles; 23 May took on 180 tons bulk cargo; 24 May 'Replaced broken ring in port engine' and 25 May 'Replaced broken ring in stbd. engine' at anchor; 26 May alongside LST-942 for water; 28 May 'Moored alongside LST-466 (third ship tied up at the CULEBRA ISLAND) for acid cleaning of evaporators'; loading completed to 49 vehicles, 544 tons including vehicles, 488 personnel (RAA elements, U.S. Navy Beachmaster Group TEN, U.S. Army LVT operators, U.S. Navy Combat Photographic Team). Underway 4 June; assault 10-12 June: one enemy plane (typed 'IRWIN') dropped one bomb in the transport anchorage at ~0645 on 10 June outside gun range; ship beached Slot 6, Brown Beach 2, at 1630; completed unloading 0930 on 12 June; no ammunition expended; the ship 'was not under any direct fire.' Damage notes: LCVP No. 1 (repaired at the Morotai Small Boat Pool after Tarakan) re-damaged en route and temporarily repaired; a small hull hole made by a pontoon at Blue Beach, Morotai, patched with a welded plate by ship's force.
- Verification
- verified
- Role
- context
- Documentation level
- ship_specific
- Accessed
- 2026-10-02
- Study period
- 1945-05-22 to 1945-06-12
- Population
- Ship's company; embarked RAA/U.S. personnel (488 troops); repair-ship support personnel aboard USS Culebra Island (ARG-7)
- Limitations
- Primary ship-produced record; documents the yard-side events (engine ring replacements in both mains; evaporator acid cleaning alongside ARG-7; welded hull patch) verbatim but does not itemize materials, does not say 'asbestos,' and does not describe insulation work. The Culebra Island alongside period is a repair-ship service event, not a shipyard availability; its material scope is unitemized. Figures 49/544/488 display-verified against the page image.
- Atlas source
- true
- Evidence ID
- ev-uss-lst-637-lst637-04
-
[6]NARA NAID 126619476, 'LST-637, 9/5/44-3/1/46' (RG 24 Bureau of Naval Personnel, Muster Rolls of U.S. Navy Ships; roll 4696; 234 images; digitized via Ancestry partnership) [other_primary]
- Locator
- NAID 126619476, roll 4696, images 32861_248130-00004/00006/00008 (spot-read 2026-10-02)
- Finding type
- historical_record
- Finding
- The ship's muster-roll file unit spans her entire commissioned period (5 September 1944 - 1 March 1946). Spot-read pages this session: the commissioning Report of Changes for the month ending 5 September 1944 records the crew 'Recd 5 Sept. 1944 ... from ATB CAMP BRADFORD, NORFOLK, VA' (Amphibious Training Base - the LST crew assembly point) in alphabetical muster format with service numbers, ratings, and enlistment data. The 234-image unit is the ship-specific personnel record for this hull.
- Verification
- partial
- Role
- context
- Documentation level
- ship_specific
- Accessed
- 2026-10-02
- Study period
- 1944-09-05 to 1946-03-01
- Population
- Ship's company (1944-46)
- Limitations
- Only the commissioning pages were OCR-read (pages 4, 6, 8 of 234) - the unit confirms crew origin and roster format but a full-transcription complement count was not derived; the 13/104 ship's-company figure remains the NavSource class spec block, not a muster-verified count. No asbestos or material content.
- Atlas source
- true
- Evidence ID
- ev-uss-lst-637-lst637-05
-
[7]Bureau of Ships, Ships' Data, U.S. Naval Vessels, Vol. 2 (1945), LST design table (shipscribe.com scan); NavSource LST-637 spec block; lst-1-class class profile (class-f worktree, 2026-09-16) [other_primary]
- Locator
- SDB 1945 v2 LST design table; NavSource 160637.htm specifications block
- Finding type
- asbestos_application
- Finding
- Era inference for this hull: the LST-542 design group ran a diesel plant (2 x GM 12-567A diesels, 1,700 shp total, Falk reduction gear, twin screws - BuShips design table and this hull's NavSource spec block) with no boilers, so the steam-plant lagging pathway of boiler vessels does not apply. Asbestos-relevant applications aboard a 1944 diesel landing ship of this type were the era-standard set - diesel-exhaust and machinery-space lagging, gaskets and packing, accommodation thermal insulation, deck coverings - and the documented May 1945 Morotai availability (engine ring replacements in both mains; evaporator acid cleaning alongside USS Culebra Island, ARG-7; welded hull patch - war report, ev-04) constitutes in-theater machinery work on this hull inside the Navy's asbestos-use era.
- Verification
- inferred
- Role
- supporting
- Documentation level
- class_or_era
- Accessed
- 2026-10-02
- Study period
- 1944-1948
- Population
- Chicago Bridge & Iron construction trades (1944); ship's company/embarked troops (1944-46); ship's force and ARG-7 repair personnel (May 1945 Morotai availability); 1947-48 shipbreakers
- Limitations
- Class/era inference only - no hull-specific insulation survey, material schedule, or repair work package was located for LST-637. Names era-standard applications, not confirmed installed materials; no quantities; no manufacturer attribution. The Morotai work is documented as events, not material content. SDB 1945 v2 link verified live 2026-10-02.
- Atlas source
- true
- Evidence ID
- ev-uss-lst-637-lst637-06
-
[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 blocked, HTTP 403)
- Finding type
- gov_survey
- Finding
- GAO documented that the Navy used asbestos insulation extensively aboard ships and did not begin substituting alternative insulation materials until the early 1970s - spanning this hull's construction (1944), her Pacific service and documented May 1945 Morotai repair availability, and her December 1947 sale for scrapping.
- Verification
- verified
- Role
- context
- Documentation level
- class_or_era
- Accessed
- 2026-10-02
- 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. Full text not retrieved (gao.gov returns HTTP 403 to automated fetch, reconfirmed 2026-10-02) - content via product-page description.
- Atlas source
- true
- Evidence ID
- ev-uss-lst-637-lst637-07
-
[9]CourtListener API v4 search (authenticated, fleet-paced helper), opinion and docket indexes [court_record]
- Locator
- search_ledger rows sl-uss-lst-637-lst637-08 through -11
- Finding type
- litigation_documented
- Finding
- No qualifying asbestos litigation located: exact-phrase "LST-637" returned 0 in the opinion index and 0 in the docket index; "USS LST-637" in opinions returned 0; "LST 637" asbestos in opinions returned 0. No asbestos case or opinion naming this hull, and no name collisions surfaced (unlike the higher-collision hull numbers).
- Verification
- verified
- Role
- negative_finding
- Documentation level
- ship_specific
- Accessed
- 2026-10-02
- Study period
- 2026-10-02
- Limitations
- CourtListener indexes published opinions and RECAP dockets - state-court filings, unreported settlements, MDL-875 pleading-level vessel lists, and non-digitized dockets are outside coverage. A zero qualifying result means no located docketed case/opinion naming this hull, not proof none exists.
- Atlas source
- true
- Evidence ID
- ev-uss-lst-637-lst637-08
-
[10]Batch-7158 search ledger (this record): DANFS; NavSource; NARA catalog + two ship-titled action reports read in full + muster-roll commissioning pages spot-read; BuShips SDB 1945 v2; GAO product page; CourtListener API (opinion + docket); NIOSH HHE search; NVR; secondary web sweep [other_primary]
- Locator
- search_ledger rows sl-uss-lst-637-lst637-01 through -15
- Finding type
- historical_record
- Finding
- No qualifying ship-specific asbestos record located: no asbestos survey, abatement contract, hazmat disclosure, material schedule, or qualifying case naming LST-637 was found in the public sources searched. The strongest ship-specific documentation is operational (two action reports plus the muster roll) and confirms a documented May-June 1945 Morotai availability with engine work in both mains, evaporator acid cleaning alongside the repair ship USS Culebra Island (ARG-7), and a welded hull patch - relevant repair/maintenance events - but no primary source read names asbestos aboard this 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 - construction at a wartime inland 'cornfield' yard and documented in-theater machinery work sit squarely inside the Navy's asbestos-use era. Does not establish or defeat any claim of exposure or legal eligibility.
- Atlas source
- true
- Evidence ID
- ev-uss-lst-637-lst637-09
-
[11]NARA catalog, "LST-637" - 109 file units (fuzzy relevance; ship-titled units: muster rolls NAID 126619476 and action reports NAIDs 633430204, 101742501; parent-unit COM LST GR 65 monthly war diaries digitized) [other_primary]
- Locator
- catalog.archives.gov "LST-637" and "USS LST-637" result sets; COM LST GR 65 diary NAIDs 139807463, 139928734, 633438014, 101733162, 101778276
- Finding type
- historical_record
- Finding
- Primary archive coverage for this hull is digitized but partial: ship-titled units comprise the full-commission muster roll (NAID 126619476, 234 images, spot-read) and the two action reports read in full (Tarakan NAID 633430204; Labuan/Brunei Bay NAID 101742501). No ship-titled monthly war diary, war history, deck log, or casualty-report file unit for LST-637 was surfaced in catalog results - an asymmetry versus sister hulls (e.g., LST-790's diary run, LST-590's war history). Parent-unit COM LST GR 65 war diaries are digitized for December 1944, January-February 1945, April, June, and July 1945 and bridge coverage at unit level; the Lingayen Gulf and Visayan operations lack ship-titled report units in the surfaced set.
- Verification
- partial
- Role
- archival_lead
- Documentation level
- ship_specific
- Accessed
- 2026-10-02
- Study period
- 1944-1946
- Population
- Ship's company (1944-46); researchers
- Limitations
- Archival-lead row: the COM LST GR 65 diaries were identified but not read; the remaining ~106 fuzzy-search hits were enumerated at title level only; WWII deck logs proper for this hull were not located in NARA's digitized deck-log program. Any RG 181/shipyard work-package records would postdate the operating area (all documented work was in-theater at Morotai or construction-era at Seneca).
- Atlas source
- true
- Evidence ID
- ev-uss-lst-637-lst637-10