Evidence
11 evidence entries recorded; each entry has a stable permalink (#ev-1 … #ev-11).
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[1]research packet 721-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-757-lst757-pkt-721-packet-md
-
[2]DANFS, LST-757 - construction at American Bridge Co., Ambridge PA; sponsor; commissioning; Asiatic-Pacific campaigns; occupation duty; decommissioning, striking, and 1948 disposal (live NHHC page, verified 2026-10-03) [nhhc_danfs]
- Locator
- DANFS service narrative, LST-757 entry
- Finding type
- vessel_history
- Finding
- Documented for this hull: 'laid down on 1 June 1944 at Ambridge, Pa., by the American Bridge Co.; launched on 21 July 1944; sponsored by Mrs. Beulah Schaefer; and commissioned on 15 August 1944, Lt. J. E. Clark, USNR, in command.' Assigned to the Asiatic-Pacific theater; participated in the Lingayen Gulf landing in January 1945 and the Mindanao Island landings in April 1945. Post-war occupation duty in the Far East until late December 1945; returned to the United States; decommissioned 28 May 1946; struck from the Navy list 3 July 1946; sold 10 May 1948 to the Bethlehem Steel Co., of Bethlehem, Pa., for scrapping. Two battle stars for World War II service.
- Verification
- verified
- Role
- context
- Documentation level
- ship_specific
- Accessed
- 2026-10-03
- Study period
- 1944-1948
- Population
- American Bridge Ambridge construction trades (1944); crew (1944-46); embarked troops
- Limitations
- Ship-specific history only; no asbestos or material content. DANFS does not specify class in this entry's prose - class assignment (LST-542) comes from NavSource/DANFS header conventions; a conflicting 'LST-511 class' label appears on the NHC Online Library photo page (see ev-09).
- Atlas source
- true
- Evidence ID
- ev-uss-lst-757-lst757-01
-
[3]NavSource Online: Amphibious Photo Archive, USS LST-757 - designation, specifications, campaign dates, commanding officers, captioned photography (live page, verified 2026-10-03; curl blocked by mod_security, fetched via Firecrawl) [other_primary]
- Locator
- NavSource 10/16/160757.htm header block, awards/campaign tables, specifications block, photo captions, commanding-officer list
- Finding type
- vessel_history
- Finding
- NavSource header identifies this hull as an LST-542 Class Tank Landing Ship; call sign NGGO. Campaign dates itemized: Lingayen Gulf landing 4-18 January 1945; Mindanao Island landings 17-23 April 1945; Navy Occupation Service periods 9-25 September, 12 October-8 November, 10-23 December 1945. Specifications: displacement 1,625 t light / 4,080 t full / 2,366 t beaching; 328 ft o.a.; 50 ft beam; 11.6 kt trial; complement 13 officers + 104 enlisted; troop accommodations 16 officers + 147 enlisted; two General Motors 12-567A 900-hp diesels, single Falk main reduction gear, two propellers 1,700 shp, twin rudders, three 100-kW diesel-driven ship-service generators. Photo captions place the hull beached at Waterhole, Hollandia, and in TU 78.2.56 resupply to Mindanao 5-9 May 1945; NHHC photo NH 79105 shows her in San Francisco Bay circa early 1946. CO list: Lt. James E. Clark USNR (to Dec 1945), Lt.(jg) Roy H. Myers USNR (to 8 Feb 1946), Lt.(jg) Keith Dudley Wright Jr. USNR (to 28 May 1946).
- Verification
- verified
- Role
- context
- Documentation level
- ship_specific
- Accessed
- 2026-10-03
- Study period
- 1944-1948
- Population
- American Bridge Ambridge construction trades (1944); crew (1944-46); embarked troops; Bethlehem Steel shipbreakers (1948)
- Limitations
- NavSource is a volunteer secondary compilation, not a primary registry - milestone dates track DANFS but the spec block is unattributed. Armament figures are the class's 'ultimate armament design,' not an outfit record for this hull. Contains no asbestos content. The 1948 scrapping predates modern ACM-handling regulation; no hazmat or material record for the breakup was located.
- Atlas source
- true
- Evidence ID
- ev-uss-lst-757-lst757-02
-
[4]Era inference built on: DANFS construction record (American Bridge Co., Ambridge, 1944); NavSource specifications (LST-542 class, GM 12-567A diesel plant); Fleischer et al. 1946 PHS survey (ev-04); GAO HRD-80-2 (ev-05) [other_primary]
- Locator
- Fleischer et al. 1946 (PMID 21016030); GAO HRD-80-2 product page; DANFS/NavSource construction and spec records
- Finding type
- asbestos_application
- Finding
- A tank landing ship built mid-1944 in a Navy-contract inland yard sits inside the documented wartime asbestos-construction era: the PHS industrial-hygiene survey of pipe covering in naval-vessel construction found amosite asbestos felt and pipe covering to be an 'important ingredient' of material 'used on U.S. Navy vessels,' with asbestos cloth and asbestos cement also used; GAO documented asbestos thermal insulation as the Navy's major shipboard asbestos use through the early 1970s. Era-standard applications aboard a diesel landing ship of this type and period were pipe and machinery insulation/lagging, diesel-exhaust lagging, gaskets, valve packing, electrical cable insulation, winch/windlass brake linings, and interior finish materials in quarters and mess spaces. Diesel plant - no boilers aboard.
- Verification
- inferred
- Role
- supporting
- Documentation level
- class_or_era
- Accessed
- 2026-10-03
- Study period
- 1944-1948
- Population
- American Bridge Ambridge construction trades (1944); crew (1944-46); Bethlehem Steel shipbreakers (1948)
- Limitations
- Class/era inference only - no hull-specific insulation survey, material list, or work package located for LST-757. Names era-standard applications, not confirmed installed materials. No quantity. Product names are normalized era terms; no manufacturer attribution for this hull.
- Atlas source
- true
- Evidence ID
- ev-uss-lst-757-lst757-03
-
[5]Fleischer WE, Viles FJ Jr, Gade RL, Drinker P, 'A health survey of pipe covering operations in constructing naval vessels,' J Ind Hyg Toxicol 1946 Jan;28:9-16 (PMID 21016030) - U.S. Public Health Service industrial-hygiene survey of two Government Navy yards and two Navy contract yards [other_primary]
- Locator
- PubMed record PMID 21016030; article text pp. 9-16 (pipe-covering materials section; X-ray results)
- Finding type
- gov_survey
- Finding
- Wartime government survey documenting the asbestos regime inside naval-vessel construction: amosite asbestos was 'an important ingredient of pipe covering material used on U.S. Navy vessels,' valued for low thermal conductivity, light weight, and refractoriness; asbestos cloth and asbestos cement were likewise used. X-ray examination of 1,074 pipe coverers across four yards found three asbestosis cases, each with 20+ years in the trade. Surveyed operations (layout and cutting, band-saw cutting, cement mixing, installing, sewing asbestos cloth, stuffing with amosite) generated the era's principal insulation-trade dust exposure.
- Verification
- verified
- Role
- context
- Documentation level
- class_or_era
- Accessed
- 2026-10-03
- Study period
- 1944-1946 (survey era)
- Population
- Navy yard and contract-yard pipe coverers/insulators (wartime)
- Limitations
- Era-level occupational survey, not a hull record: the four yards are anonymized (Navy Yards A-B, Contract Yards C-D), and Ambridge and LSTs are not named - pipe covering was principally a steam-plant application, so the asbestos cloth/cement and general-insulation findings carry the weight for a diesel hull. Does not establish materials aboard this hull, individual exposure, or quantity.
- Atlas source
- true
- Evidence ID
- ev-uss-lst-757-lst757-04
-
[6]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 all Navy ships contained some asbestos in components such as clutches and electric cables, and that asbestos thermal insulation was the Navy's major asbestos use aboard ships; the Navy did not substitute alternative insulation materials until the early 1970s and adopted removal policies only in 1975/1979 - postdating this hull's entire life (built 1944, scrapped 1948).
- Verification
- verified
- Role
- context
- Documentation level
- class_or_era
- 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 blocks automated fetch, HTTP 403, confirmed 2026-10-03) - content via product-page description and report abstract.
- Atlas source
- true
- Evidence ID
- ev-uss-lst-757-lst757-05
-
[7]Wolsko v. American Bridge Co. et al., 158 Pa. Super. 339, 44 A.2d 873 (1945) - Pennsylvania Superior Court, workmen's-compensation 'premises' appeal [court_record]
- Locator
- 158 Pa. Super. 339, 44 A.2d 873 (1945) - Board's findings of fact as recited in the opinion
- Finding type
- litigation_documented
- Finding
- OTHER litigation (non-asbestos): published appellate opinion whose findings of fact document this hull's builder constructing landing ship tanks at Ambridge - the decedent, a 'tester of landing ship tanks,' was killed 28 September 1943 in a 35-foot fall from the bow of landing ship tank No. 286 on the southways of American Bridge's Ambridge shipyard, after working the prior night on LST No. 282 on the northways. Contemporaneous court documentation of the same yard building the same ship type one year before LST-757 was laid down there.
- Verification
- verified
- Role
- context
- Documentation level
- class_or_era
- Accessed
- 2026-10-03
- Study period
- 1943-1945
- Population
- American Bridge Ambridge shipyard trades (1943)
- Limitations
- Classified DOWN per litigation-stage discipline: this is not asbestos litigation - a workmen's-compensation coverage dispute with no asbestos, exposure, or product content; it does not name LST-757 (hulls 282 and 286 were Ambridge LSTs built 1943). Establishes only builder/yard/product context. Reporter cite verified via later opinions quoting it (Young v. Hamilton Watch Co., 158 Pa. Super. 448, 45 A.2d 261 (1945); Hollen v. WCAB (Pa. Commw. 1974)); CourtListener was unreachable this session, so no opinion URL.
- Atlas source
- true
- Evidence ID
- ev-uss-lst-757-lst757-06
-
[8]NARA catalog search 'LST-757': 131 digitized file units, all Record Group 38 'World War II War Diaries, Other Operational Records and Histories' - principally COM LST GR 64 group war diaries, Aug 1944 - Dec 1945 (e.g., NAID 83534034, COM LST GR 64 War Diary 7/1-31/45) [other_primary]
- Locator
- catalog.archives.gov search 'LST-757' (131 results, RG 38); representative NAID 83534034
- Finding type
- historical_record
- Finding
- Digitized group-level operational records naming this hull exist: the NARA catalog returns 131 file units mentioning 'LST-757,' all in the RG 38 WWII War Diaries series - principally the Commander LST Group 64 war diaries covering August 1944 through December 1945, the formation to which this ship was assigned (NavSource identifies LST-755 as LST Group Sixty-Four flagship and shows LST-757 operating with the group). These are the primary record series for the ship's movements and operations.
- Verification
- partial
- Role
- archival_lead
- Documentation level
- ship_specific
- Accessed
- 2026-10-03
- Study period
- 1944-1945
- Population
- LST Group 64 staff and unit crews (1944-45)
- Limitations
- Archival lead only: catalog metadata and file-unit titles verified; individual diary contents not read this session - the records name the hull within group rosters and operations, not ship-specific entries. No ship-level LST-757 war diary and no digitized RG 24 deck log for this hull was located (deck-log digitization for WWII-era hulls is incomplete). No asbestos content expected in operational diaries.
- Atlas source
- true
- Evidence ID
- ev-uss-lst-757-lst757-07
-
[9]Batch-7291 search ledger (this record): live NHHC DANFS; NavSource; NHC Online Library photo page; NARA catalog; NVR; BVA decisions index; GAO product page; PubMed; CourtListener (blocked); secondary web litigation sweep [other_primary]
- Locator
- search_ledger rows sl-uss-lst-757-lst757-01 through -13
- Finding type
- historical_record
- Finding
- No qualifying ship-specific asbestos record located: no asbestos survey, abatement contract, hazmat disclosure, or verified litigation naming USS LST-757 was found in the public sources searched, and no post-1948 hull record can exist (scrapped 1948). CAVEAT: CourtListener could not be queried this session - the authenticated API reported the shared daily quota exhausted (server-requested wait ~11.5 h); logged as blocked in search_ledger, not as a negative result. The BVA decisions index returned no results for 'LST-757' or 'LST 757'; the Naval Vessel Register carries no entry; secondary web sweeps surfaced no qualifying case - only history-site and wiki-mirror content.
- 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 - and the litigation repository search is a genuine open gap (quota-blocked, not run). COM LST GR 64 war diaries, RG 24 deck logs, and any 1948 scrapping records are undigitized or unsearched leads. Does not establish or defeat any claim of exposure or legal eligibility.
- Atlas source
- true
- Evidence ID
- ev-uss-lst-757-lst757-08
-
[10]American Bridge Company, 'History' corporate page (live page verified 2026-10-03) [other_primary]
- Locator
- americanbridge.net/about/history, 1940s section
- Finding type
- historical_record
- Finding
- Builder documentation from the company's own published history: '100% of American Bridge's capacity was utilized for National Defense projects from 1941-1945. American Bridge manufactured 199 LST's' along with aviation repair vessels, carrier components, cargo ships, tankers, and barges. The Ambridge plant was the company's original 1903 fabricating facility and company town ('Ambridge' = 'American' + 'Bridge'). LST-757 is one of the yard's documented 199 wartime LSTs.
- Verification
- verified
- Role
- context
- Documentation level
- class_or_era
- Accessed
- 2026-10-03
- Study period
- 1941-1945
- Population
- American Bridge Ambridge construction trades (1941-45)
- Limitations
- Corporate-published history (builder's own source, now under Southland Holdings) - primary for the company's own production claims, secondary for anything else. Yard-level production total; does not document materials or conditions aboard any single hull, and contains no asbestos content.
- Atlas source
- true
- Evidence ID
- ev-uss-lst-757-lst757-10
-
[11]NHC Online Library of Selected Images, 'USS LST-757 (1944-1948)' photo page (Naval Historical Center content mirrored on ibiblio HyperWar; live page verified 2026-10-03) [other_primary]
- Locator
- ibiblio.org/hyperwar/OnlineLibrary/photos/sh-usn/usnsh-l/lst757.htm caption text; NavSource 160757 spec block for the 2,366-t beaching figure
- Finding type
- historical_record
- Finding
- CORRECTION: the official NHC Online Library photo page captions this hull 'a 2366-ton LST-511 class tank landing ship.' The class label conflicts with the authoritative assignment - this hull is an LST-542 class ship (NavSource header; standard references). The 2,366-ton figure is real but is the LST-542 class beaching displacement (NavSource spec block), not evidence of a different class; 'LST-511' designates a different sub-type of hulls (LST-511 through LST-522), not this vessel. The page's remaining facts (Ambridge build, commissioning window, Lingayen Gulf and Mindanao, decommission late May 1946, sold for scrapping May 1948) track DANFS.
- Verification
- verified
- Role
- correction
- Documentation level
- ship_specific
- Accessed
- 2026-10-03
- Study period
- 1944-1948 (page's coverage)
- Limitations
- Corrects a circulating official-source label, not a material claim. The NHC page is genuine Naval Historical Center content (mirrored), so the error propagates into secondary sources citing it. No asbestos content.
- Atlas source
- true
- Evidence ID
- ev-uss-lst-757-lst757-09