Evidence
9 evidence entries recorded; each entry has a stable permalink (#ev-1 … #ev-9).
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[1]research packet 716-packet.md (2 sources cited) [museum_official]
- Finding type
- vessel_history
- Finding
- Identity packet verdict: VERIFIED
- Verification
- verified
- Role
- supporting
- Documentation level
- ship_specific
- Evidence ID
- uss-lst-728-lst728-pkt-716-packet-md
-
[2]DANFS, LST-728 - construction, sponsor, commissioning, Okinawa campaign, occupation/China service, decommissioning, striking, disposal transfer, battle star (live NHHC page; content verified verbatim via search-index quote and Wayback captures 2021-2025) [nhhc_danfs]
- Locator
- DANFS LST-728 entry, full entry text (3 paragraphs + battle-star line)
- Finding type
- vessel_history
- Finding
- Documented for this hull (DANFS, verbatim): 'LST-728 was laid down on 3 August 1944 at Jeffersonville, Ind., by the Jeffersonville Boat & Machine Co.; launched on 14 September 1944; sponsored by Mrs. Helen E. Garrison; and commissioned on 10 October 1944. During World War II, LST-728 was assigned to the Asiatic-Pacific theater and participated in the assault and occupation of Okinawa Gunto from April through June 1945. Following the war, she performed occupation duty in the Far East and saw service in China until early March 1946. The ship was decommissioned on 18 June 1946 and struck from the Navy list on 31 July that same year. On 6 October 1947, LST-728 was transferred to the Maritime Administration for disposal. LST-728 earned one battle star for World War II service.'
- Verification
- verified
- Role
- context
- Documentation level
- ship_specific
- Accessed
- 2026-10-03
- Study period
- 1944-1947
- Population
- JeffBoat construction trades (1944); crew (1944-46)
- Limitations
- Ship-specific history only; contains no asbestos or material content. Access note: curl-style probes return 404 (bot-block pattern observed across this batch series), but the page is live - verbatim text confirmed via search-index quote and nine Wayback captures (2021-03-21 to 2025-12-09).
- Atlas source
- true
- Evidence ID
- ev-uss-lst-728-lst728-01
-
[3]NavSource Online: Amphibious Photo Archive, USS LST-728 - designation block, flotilla/group/division chain, Okinawa campaign table, award set, occupation/China medal periods, specifications, three-officer CO table, photo caption (live page verified) [other_primary]
- Locator
- NavSource 10/16/160728.htm - header block, awards table, campaign table, medal periods, specifications block, CO table, photo caption
- Finding type
- vessel_history
- Finding
- NavSource record for this hull: LST-542 class tank landing ship; call sign NFZS; commissioned USS LST-728 10 October 1944, LT. Ethan A. Hitchcock, USNR, in command; WWII assignment Asiatic-Pacific Theater under LST Flotilla Twenty-Five (CAPT. H. E. Richter USN), LST Group Seventy-Three (CDR. L. D. York USNR), LST Division One Hundred Forty-Six; campaign entry: Okinawa Gunto operation - assault and occupation of Okinawa Gunto, 1 April to 28 June 1945; award set China Service Medal (extended), American Campaign Medal, Asiatic-Pacific Campaign Medal (1 battle star), WWII Victory Medal, Navy Occupation Service Medal (Asia clasp); occupation/China periods 25 Sep 1945-10 Mar 1946 (both medals); decommissioned 18 Jun 1946; struck from the Naval Register 31 Jul 1946; final disposition: transferred to the Maritime Commission for disposal 6 Oct 1947, 'fate unknown'; one battle star. Specifications: 1,625 t light / 4,080 t full / 2,366 t beaching; 328 ft o.a.; 50 ft beam; 11.6 kt trial; endurance 24,000 mi @ 9 kt; complement 13 officers + 104 enlisted; troops 16 officers + 147 enlisted; 2 LCVP; armament 2 twin 40 mm w/Mk 51 directors, 4 single 40 mm, 12 single 20 mm; fuel 4,300 bbls diesel; propulsion two GM 12-567A 900 hp diesels, single Falk main reduction gears, three diesel-drive 100 kW 230 V DC ship's-service generators, two propellers 1,700 shp, twin rudders. Commanding officers (3): LT Ethan A. Hitchcock (10 Oct 1944-3 Jul 1945); LT John E. Kenyon (3 Jul 1945-4 Feb 1946); LTjg Richard T. Baureithel (4 Feb-2 May 1946).
- Verification
- verified
- Role
- context
- Documentation level
- ship_specific
- Accessed
- 2026-10-03
- Study period
- 1944-1947
- Population
- JeffBoat construction trades (1944); crew 13 officers + 104 enlisted, plus embarked troops up to 16 officers/147 enlisted (1944-46)
- Limitations
- NavSource is a volunteer secondary compilation, not a primary registry; its milestones here agree with DANFS verbatim. Contains no asbestos content. Complement figure (104 enlisted) differs from the BuShips design accommodations figure (106) - carried in gaps. NavSource's 'Maritime Commission' vs DANFS's 'Maritime Administration' wording difference noted; agency-name drift is common in secondary sources and does not change the event.
- Atlas source
- true
- Evidence ID
- ev-uss-lst-728-lst728-02
-
[4]NavSource LCT-1244 photo index + USS LST-728 page caption: frame from U.S. Army film 'Miscellaneous Scenes, Okinawa, Ryukyu, Tulagi and Guadalcanal, Solomon Islands' (National Archives ID 17623, local ID 111-ADC-3820) [other_primary]
- Locator
- NavSource LST-728 page photo caption (image 1016072801); NavSource LCT-1244 photo index 10/18/181244.htm (same frame, second caption: LCT-1244 near Bishigawa River, Okinawa, c. 1-15 Apr 1945)
- Finding type
- historical_record
- Finding
- Archival motion-picture record documents this hull at Tulagi, Solomon Islands, on 10 March 1945 with LCT(6)-1244 secured to her main deck; LST-728 was en route to Okinawa, where she launched LCT-1244 on 1 April 1945 - the opening day of the Okinawa Gunto assault, matching her campaign table and battle star. The underlying film is a Department of the Army record at the National Archives (ID 17623, local ID 111-ADC-3820).
- Verification
- verified
- Role
- archival_lead
- Documentation level
- ship_specific
- Accessed
- 2026-10-03
- Study period
- 1945-03-10 to 1945-04-01
- Population
- Crew and embarked troops, Tulagi and Okinawa (Mar-Apr 1945)
- Limitations
- A film frame establishes presence and cargo, not work performed or material aboard - no asbestos content. Source is a secondary compilation caption quoting the NARA record; the film itself was not pulled. Live NavSource pages verified 2026-10-03 (HTTP 200).
- Atlas source
- true
- Evidence ID
- ev-uss-lst-728-lst728-03
-
[5]ShipbuildingHistory (Tim Colton), JeffBoat self-propelled-vessel construction table, Jeffersonville IN - yard history and per-hull row for LST-728 [other_primary]
- Locator
- shipbuildinghistory.com/shipyards/small/jeffboat.htm - vessel table row for LST 728; yard-history header
- Finding type
- historical_record
- Finding
- Builder documentation: the JeffBoat yard table lists 'LST 728, US Navy, Landing Ship, 1,625d, 328, 10-Oct-44, Scrapped 1948?' - delivery date matching DANFS commissioning. Yard history: organized in 1938 by American Barge Line on the former M. A. Sweeney & Brothers site; in 1942 the Navy condemned the neighboring Howard yard and leased it to JeffBoat for the war's duration; a major LST builder with employment peaking at 13,000.
- Verification
- verified
- Role
- context
- Documentation level
- ship_specific
- Accessed
- 2026-10-03
- Study period
- 1944; 1947-48
- Population
- JeffBoat construction trades (1944)
- Limitations
- Secondary compiler source (Tim Colton's shipbuilding reference - reputable, but not an official registry); used to corroborate the builder and delivery date, not for exposure claims. The 'Scrapped 1948?' disposition carries the compiler's own question mark - tentative, not a documented fate. Contains no asbestos content.
- Atlas source
- true
- Evidence ID
- ev-uss-lst-728-lst728-04
-
[6]Bureau of Ships, Ships' Data, U.S. Naval Vessels, Vol. II, NAVSHIPS 250-011 (15 Apr 1945), landing-ship design table + machinery table (shipscribe.com Google-scan mirror; live HTTP 200 verified 2026-10-03) [other_primary]
- Locator
- SDB 1945 v2, LST section: design-summary table (LST542-931 row), machinery table (LST542-931 row), accommodations (13/106)
- Finding type
- historical_record
- Finding
- Official BuShips design data for this hull's group: the LST design table lists the LST542-931 group at 328 ft o.a., 50 ft beam, 2,366 t / 4,080 t, 11.6 kt; the machinery table gives the group '2 do' propulsion units carrying forward 'G. M. Diesel, 12-567A' at 1,700 (shp) - i.e., 2 x GM 12-567A diesels, 1,700 shp total; accommodations rows show 13 officers / 106 enlisted for the group. Diesel plant - no boilers, no steam system. LST-728 (hull in the 542-931 range, built Oct 1944) belongs to this design group.
- Verification
- verified
- Role
- supporting
- Documentation level
- class_or_era
- Accessed
- 2026-10-03
- Study period
- 1945 (document date)
- Population
- design-level - no individual population
- Limitations
- Design-group documentation (all ~390 hulls in LST542-931), not a hull-delivery record - confirms the as-designed machinery and accommodations for the group this hull belongs to, not installed-as-found materials. Verified live HTTP 200 this session (the /styles/usnaux/sdb/ predecessor URL 404s per batch-7248; /pubs/ is the current location).
- Atlas source
- true
- Evidence ID
- ev-uss-lst-728-lst728-05
-
[7]Era inference built on: BuShips SDB 1945 v2 machinery table (diesel plant, no boilers - ev-05); NavSource specifications (2 x GM 12-567A); LST-class profile asbestos analysis (class-f/lst-1-class.class.json): diesel LSTs concentrate exposure relevance in exhaust lagging, gaskets, engine-room insulation, deck coverings, accommodation insulation, brake linings [other_primary]
- Locator
- SDB v2 machinery table; NavSource specifications; class profile ev-lst-1-class-03
- Finding type
- asbestos_application
- Finding
- A diesel-powered tank landing ship built August-October 1944 sits inside the Navy's documented asbestos-insulation era (GAO HRD-80-2). With no steam plant aboard, era-standard asbestos-relevant applications for a vessel of this type were: diesel engine and exhaust lagging; engine-room thermal/acoustic insulation; gaskets and valve packing throughout the machinery spaces; deck coverings and tile; bulkhead and accommodation-space insulation; winch/crane brake linings. The confined machinery-space exposure dynamic of a small (328 ft) welded-steel amphibious hull applies.
- Verification
- inferred
- Role
- supporting
- Documentation level
- class_or_era
- Accessed
- 2026-10-03
- Study period
- 1944-1947
- Population
- JeffBoat construction trades (1944); crew (1944-46); unknown post-1947 disposal-chain workers
- Limitations
- Class/era inference only - no hull-specific insulation survey, material schedule, or work package located for LST-728. Names era-standard applications, not confirmed installed materials; no quantities; no manufacturer attribution for this hull. She left Navy custody in 1947 - too early for any abatement-era record to exist.
- Atlas source
- true
- Evidence ID
- ev-uss-lst-728-lst728-06
-
[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) and entire service life (1944-46).
- Verification
- verified
- Role
- context
- Documentation level
- context_only
- Accessed
- 2026-10-03
- 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, confirmed 2026-10-03) - content via product-page description.
- Atlas source
- true
- Evidence ID
- ev-uss-lst-728-lst728-07
-
[9]Batch-7259 search ledger (this record): DANFS live page; NavSource 160728 + LCT-1244 index; JeffBoat yard table; BuShips SDB 1945 v2 (live /pubs/ URL); GAO product page (403 full text); NVR probe; NARA catalog; NHHC photo-catalog sweep; secondary web sweep; CourtListener (blocked) [other_primary]
- Locator
- search_ledger rows sl-uss-lst-728-lst728-01 through -11
- Finding type
- historical_record
- Finding
- No qualifying ship-specific asbestos record located: no asbestos survey, abatement contract, material schedule, hazmat disclosure, or verified litigation naming USS LST-728 was found in the public sources searched (see search_ledger). CAVEAT: CourtListener could not be queried this session - the fleet-authenticated API helper returned DAILY QUOTA EXHAUSTED (server asked ~11.7 h wait) on 2026-10-03; logged as blocked in search_ledger, not as a negative result, and remains an open litigation-search gap to re-run at reset. Secondary web sweeps surfaced no qualifying case or asbestos content naming this hull. The hull left Navy custody in 1947, before asbestos abatement documentation existed as a genre; no museum or memorial survives her (no surviving-hull hazmat disclosure track applies).
- Verification
- verified
- Role
- negative_finding
- Documentation level
- ship_specific
- Accessed
- 2026-10-03
- Study period
- 2026-10-03
- Limitations
- Absence of a located public record does not prove absence of asbestos aboard - era inference for a 1944-built Navy auxiliary remains reasonable and consistent, and the litigation repository search is a genuine open gap (quota-blocked, not run). Undigitized leads remain: RG 24 deck logs (1944-46), the Army film record (NARA 17623 / 111-ADC-3820), and any MARAD disposal/scrapping records for the 1947 transfer. Does not establish or defeat any claim of exposure or legal eligibility.
- Atlas source
- true
- Evidence ID
- ev-uss-lst-728-lst728-08