Evidence
8 evidence entries recorded; each entry has a stable permalink (#ev-1 … #ev-8).
-
[1]research packet 721-packet.md [other_primary]
- Finding type
- vessel_history
- Finding
- Identity packet verdict: VERIFIED (thin sourcing disclosed)
- Verification
- verified
- Role
- supporting
- Documentation level
- ship_specific
- Limitations
- qualifier: VERIFIED (thin sourcing disclosed)
- Evidence ID
- uss-lst-76-lst76-pkt-721-packet-md
-
[2]DANFS, LST-76 (NHHC DANFS ship-history page; archived copy - live NHHC URL returned 404 on 2026-10-03, Wayback capture 2024-05-26 used) [nhhc_danfs]
- Locator
- DANFS LST-76 entry, full narrative text
- Finding type
- vessel_history
- Finding
- DANFS for this hull, verbatim scope: 'LST-76 was laid down on 19 January 1943 at Jeffersonville, Ind., by the Jeffersonville Boat & Machine Co.; launched on 14 April 1943; sponsored by Mrs. Pauline Bower; and commissioned on 26 June 1943.' Assigned to the European theater: Convoy UGS-37 (April 1944) and the invasion of southern France (August and September 1944). 'LST-76 was decommissioned on 24 December 1944 and transferred to the United Kingdom. She was returned to the United States Navy on 23 April 1946, and her name was struck from the Navy list on 19 June 1946. On 21 April 1948, she was sold to the Southern Trading Co., of Philadelphia, Pa., and subsequently converted for merchant service. However, she foundered off Cape Hatteras on 5 October 1951. LST-76 earned two battle stars for World War II.'
- Verification
- verified
- Role
- context
- Documentation level
- ship_specific
- Accessed
- 2026-10-03
- Study period
- 1943-1951 (entry coverage)
- Population
- Jeffersonville construction trades (1943); USN crew (1943-44); RN crew (1944-46); merchant crew (1948-51)
- Limitations
- Ship-specific history only; the entry contains no asbestos or material content and no commissioning-officer name (Lt. M. L. Olson comes from NavSource). Live NHHC page returned 404 on 2026-10-03 - archived copy cited and labeled.
- Atlas source
- true
- Evidence ID
- ev-uss-lst-76-lst76-01
-
[3]NavSource Online: Amphibious Photo Archive, HM LST-76 ex USS LST-76 (timeline, Royal Navy history, specifications, commanding officer, NARA-captioned photography) [other_primary]
- Locator
- NavSource 10/16/160076.htm header block, Royal Navy history block, campaign table, specifications block, commanding-officers table
- Finding type
- vessel_history
- Finding
- NavSource timeline for this hull: laid down 19 January 1943 at Jeffersonville Boat and Machine Co., Jeffersonville, IN; launched 14 April 1943; commissioned USS LST-76 26 June 1943, LT. M. L. Olson, USNR, in command. Europe-Africa-Middle East Campaigns: Convoy UGS-37 (11-12 April 1944); invasion of southern France (15 August - 25 September 1944). Decommissioned and transferred to the United Kingdom 24 December 1944, commissioned into the Royal Navy as HM LST-76 the same day; docked at Taranto 2 February - 10 March 1945; repairs at Rosyth and on the Clyde during 1945; Devonport for repairs 19-25 February 1946; returned to US Naval custody at Norfolk, VA, 23 April 1946; struck from the Naval Register 19 June 1946; sold 21 April 1948 to Southern Trading Co., Philadelphia, PA, converted to merchant MV Southern Isles; lost at sea off Cape Hatteras, NC, 5 October 1951. Awards: American Campaign Medal; Europe-Africa-Middle East Campaign Medal (2 battle stars); WWII Victory Medal. Spec block: 1,625 t. light / 4,080 t. full; 328 ft oa; two GM 12-567A 900-hp diesels, single Falk main reduction gear, three diesel-drive 100 kW 230 V DC ship's-service generators, two propellers 1,700 shp; complement 13 officers / 104 enlisted; troop accommodations 16 officers / 147 enlisted; call sign NDQV.
- Verification
- verified
- Role
- context
- Documentation level
- ship_specific
- Accessed
- 2026-10-03
- Study period
- 1943-1951
- Population
- Jeffersonville construction trades (1943); USN crew (1943-44); RN crew and UK yard workers - Taranto, Rosyth, Clyde, Devonport (1944-46); merchant conversion and ore-trade crews (1948-51)
- Limitations
- NavSource is a volunteer secondary compilation, not a primary registry - its milestone dates generally track DANFS/NVR and here agree with DANFS. Enlisted complement 104 vs BuShips class-table ~106 (see gaps). Royal Navy docking/repair entries are NavSource-compiled and not independently verified against UK National Archives records. Contains no asbestos content.
- Atlas source
- true
- Evidence ID
- ev-uss-lst-76-lst76-02
-
[4]Medford Mail Tribune (Medford, OR), United Press wire coverage of the MV Southern Isles loss: 1951-10-07 issue (search abandoned; ship broke in two) and 1951-10-08 issue seq-3 (six survivors called before USCG inquiry) via Historic Oregon Newspapers, Univ. of Oregon; corroborated by Seafarers' Log Vol. XIV No. 17 (Aug 1952) quoting the USCG Marine Board of Investigation report (archived copy - live site unreachable, Wayback capture 2022-12-16) [reputable_press]
- Locator
- Medford Mail Tribune 1951-10-07 p. seq-10 'Coast Guard Abandons Hope For Missing Men' and 1951-10-08 seq-3 'Survived Sinking Asked To Testify' (UP wires); Seafarers' Log Vol. XIV No. 17 'CC Probe Scores Company For Southern Isles Loss' via Wayback 20221216211455
- Finding type
- historical_record
- Finding
- The loss of this hull in merchant service is documented by contemporaneous press and the federal casualty investigation: en route San Juan, Puerto Rico to Chester, PA with an iron-ore cargo in 30-40 mph winds, the 314-ft converted LST 'split amidship' and 'broke in two and sank within 10 minutes' on 5 October 1951 about 200 miles south of Cape Hatteras, with no SOS heard; six of 23 crew survived (rescued with four recovered bodies by USCGC Cherokee); 13 missing were given up after search. The USCG Marine Board of Investigation, as quoted by the Seafarers' Log, found the causes were 'a weakening of the hull structure by overloading and by unequal distribution of weights during loading of and discharge of iron ore cargoes and the driving of the vessel during heavy weather,' noted no prior experience using LSTs as bulk cargo carriers, found the vessel had been overloaded on three prior voyages (223-386 tons over), and that company officials 'had knowledge of and willfully allowed overloading.' Survivor/beneficiary claims settled in the Federal District Court at Norfolk up to about $34,000 each, ~$250,000 total - maritime casualty litigation, not asbestos litigation.
- Verification
- verified
- Role
- context
- Documentation level
- ship_specific
- Accessed
- 2026-10-03
- Study period
- 1951-10-05 to 1952 (casualty + investigation)
- Population
- Merchant crew, 23 aboard at loss (17 fatalities incl. 13 unrecovered); USCG rescue/inquiry personnel
- Limitations
- Establishes the hull's total loss in 1951 - no post-loss survey, abatement, or preservation record can exist for this hull. Press accounts and the union paper are secondary carriers of the official Marine Board findings; the Board's own report file (USCG records) was not retrieved and remains an archival lead. The Norfolk claims are casualty/wrongful-death settlements, not exposure litigation. No asbestos content anywhere in the coverage.
- Atlas source
- true
- Evidence ID
- ev-uss-lst-76-lst76-03
-
[5]Consolidated era inference - Bureau of Ships, Ships' Data U.S. Naval Vessels Vol. 2 (Jan 1945), LST design table (shipscribe.com scan) + era amphibious-ship construction practice (per lst-1-class class profile, 2026-09-16) [other_primary]
- Locator
- BuShips SDB-1945 v2 LST design table + roster; lst-1-class.class.json ev-lst-1-class-03 (class profile, same basis)
- Finding type
- asbestos_application
- Finding
- Era/design inference for a diesel-powered LST-1-class hull built 1943: no boilers - asbestos-relevant applications for the type are GM diesel exhaust lagging and gaskets, engine-room thermal/acoustic insulation, deck coverings/tile, bulkhead and accommodation insulation, and winch/crane brake linings. Built at Jeffersonville Boat & Machine, one of the wartime inland 'cornfield' yards constructing to common BuShips LST plans; the hull was further reworked in the 1948 merchant conversion to an ore carrier (conversion scope undocumented - see gaps).
- Verification
- inferred
- Role
- supporting
- Documentation level
- class_or_era
- Accessed
- 2026-10-03
- Study period
- 1943-1951
- Population
- Jeffersonville construction trades (1943); USN crew (1943-44); RN crew and UK repair-yard workers (1944-46); merchant conversion-yard and ore-trade crews (1948-51)
- Limitations
- Class/era inference only - no hull-specific insulation survey, material schedule, or work package located for LST-76. Names era-standard applications, not confirmed installed materials. No quantity. Does not establish that asbestos was or was not present aboard this hull; the diesel plant narrows but does not eliminate the era exposure pathways.
- Atlas source
- true
- Evidence ID
- ev-uss-lst-76-lst76-04
-
[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 the Navy used asbestos insulation extensively aboard ships and did not begin substituting alternative insulation materials until the early 1970s - program context spanning this hull's entire existence (built 1943, lost 1951). The documented policy era (1975 removal policy, modified 1979) postdates this hull's loss by decades; no asbestos-management action was ever applied to or could ever be applied to this hull.
- 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 blocks automated fetch, HTTP 403) - content via product-page description and class-profile row.
- Atlas source
- true
- Evidence ID
- ev-uss-lst-76-lst76-05
-
[7]NARA-held photographs of this hull identified via NavSource captions: SC 192702 (LSTs loading for the invasion of southern France at Bagnoli, Italy, 8 August 1944, incl. LST-76, LST-286, LST-174; US Army Signal Corps); NAID 193781852 / C54010A.C. (LST-76 backing out into a Corsica harbor en route to Italy, prior to 25 July 1944; US Army Air Corps); III-SC 193361 (LST-76 moored near Bagnoli loading for the invasion, 10 August 1944, 163rd Signal Photo Co.) [other_primary]
- Locator
- NavSource 10/16/160076.htm photo-caption block (NARA identifiers as captioned)
- Finding type
- historical_record
- Finding
- NARA-held photography places this hull at documented Mediterranean locations in mid-1944 (Corsica harbor before 25 July; Bagnoli loading for Operation Dragoon, 8-10 August 1944) - archival leads for her wartime presence and configuration. RG 24 deck logs (USN period), UK National Archives records (RN period incl. Taranto/Rosyth/Clyde/Devonport availabilities), USCG Marine Board of Investigation case file (1951 loss), and any 1948 merchant-conversion records are undigitized leads naming this hull.
- Verification
- partial
- Role
- archival_lead
- Documentation level
- ship_specific
- Accessed
- 2026-10-03
- Study period
- 1944 (photo dates); 1943-1951 (lead record span)
- Population
- Crew and troops aboard during the captioned 1944 movements
- Limitations
- Archival leads only: photographs establish presence, not work performed or materials aboard. Photo identifiers transcribed via NavSource captions; NARA catalog pages not individually fetched this session. No asbestos content.
- Atlas source
- true
- Evidence ID
- ev-uss-lst-76-lst76-06
-
[8]Batch-7294 search ledger (this record): NHHC DANFS (live 404; Wayback hit); NavSource (live, HTTP 200); hazegray DANFS mirror (DNS dead); NVR (pre-1987 exclusion); CourtListener (blocked, daily quota); Medford Mail Tribune UP wires (live); Seafarers' Log (Wayback); NARA photo leads; class profile lst-1-class; secondary web litigation sweep [other_primary]
- Locator
- search_ledger rows sl-uss-lst-76-lst76-01 through -10
- 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-76 / HM LST-76 / MV Southern Isles was found in the public sources searched. CAVEAT: CourtListener could not be queried this session - authenticated API helper reported the fleet daily quota exhausted (~41,000 s / ~11.4 h to reset); logged as blocked in search_ledger, not as a negative result. Secondary web sweeps surfaced no qualifying case: hits were generic law-firm marketing pages asserting asbestos aboard LST-type ships without primary sourcing (gorilaw.com, navyshipexposure.com - neither names this hull) and unrelated MDL-875 opinions naming other vessels (Salisbury - USS Hornet/Coral Sea; Chesher - USS Henderson/Fox).
- 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 (throttled, not run). Hull lost at sea 1951: no post-loss survey or abatement record can exist. Deck logs, UK yard records, 1948 conversion records, and the USCG Marine Board file are undigitized leads. Does not establish or defeat any claim of exposure or legal eligibility.
- Atlas source
- true
- Evidence ID
- ev-uss-lst-76-lst76-07