Evidence
15 evidence entries recorded; each entry has a stable permalink (#ev-1 … #ev-15).
-
[1]research packet 725-packet.md (2 sources cited) [nhhc_danfs]
- Finding type
- vessel_history
- Finding
- Identity packet verdict: VERIFIED
- Verification
- verified
- Role
- supporting
- Documentation level
- ship_specific
- Evidence ID
- uss-lst-780-lst780-pkt-725-packet-md
-
[2]DANFS, LST-780 - construction at Dravo Corp., Pittsburgh PA; sponsor; commissioning; Okinawa Gunto campaign; occupation duty; decommissioning, striking, and 1947 disposal (live NHHC page, verified 2026-10-03; UA-gated, fetched via Firecrawl) [nhhc_danfs]
- Locator
- DANFS service narrative, LST-780 entry
- Finding type
- vessel_history
- Finding
- Documented for this hull: 'laid down on 28 May 1944 at Pittsburgh, Pa., by the Dravo Corp.; launched on 10 July 1944; sponsored by Miss Anna May Ries; and commissioned on 7 August 1944, Lit. Theodore B. Clark in command' [sic - 'Lit.' is the page's rendering of Lt.]. Assigned to the Asiatic-Pacific theater; participated in the assault and occupation of Okinawa Gunto in March and April 1945. Occupation duty in the Far East until mid-September 1945; returned to the United States; decommissioned 13 June 1946; struck from the Navy list 31 July 1946; sold 27 October 1947 to the Moore Drydock Co., Oakland, Calif., for scrapping. 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
- Dravo Corp. Neville Island construction trades (1944); crew (1944-46); embarked troops
- Limitations
- Ship-specific history only; no asbestos or material content. DANFS does not name a class in this entry's prose; class assignment (LST-542) comes from NavSource header and standard references. The entry contains no commanding-officer or unit-assignment detail beyond the commissioning sentence.
- Atlas source
- true
- Evidence ID
- ev-uss-lst-780-lst780-01
-
[3]NavSource Online: Amphibious Photo Archive, USS LST-780 (10/16/160780.htm, last updated 1 November 2024) - designation, call sign, unit assignments, specifications, campaign dates, commanding-officer list, captioned photography (live page, verified 2026-10-03 via Firecrawl) [other_primary]
- Locator
- NavSource 10/16/160780.htm header block, awards/campaign/occupation 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 NGVJ. Unit assignment: LST Flotilla Twenty-One (CAPT. W. H. Brereton USN), LST Group Sixty-One (CAPT. R.M. MacKinnon USN), LST Division One Hundred Twenty-One. Campaign table: Okinawa Gunto operation, assault and occupation, 26 March to 26 April 1945. Occupation service in the Far East 9 to 26 September 1945. Commissioned 7 August 1944 'LT. Theodore B. Clark USN in command'; CO table lists LT. Clark, Theodore Bedford, USN for the entire commission, 7 August 1944 - 13 June 1946. 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; endurance 24,000 mi at 9 kt; 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; 2 LCVP. Awards: American Campaign Medal, Asiatic-Pacific Campaign Medal (1), World War II Victory Medal, Navy Occupation Service Medal (Asia clasp). Photo captions: launch at Dravo West Yard 10 July 1944 (Bureau of Construction and Repair photo, NARA local ID 19-LCM-LST780-67847); beached with USS LSM-467 March 1946, SS Marquette Victory in background; underway in San Francisco Bay circa 1945-1946 (NHHC photo NH 79557).
- Verification
- verified
- Role
- context
- Documentation level
- ship_specific
- Accessed
- 2026-10-03
- Study period
- 1944-1948
- Population
- Dravo Corp. Neville Island construction trades (1944); USN ship's company (1944-46); embarked troops; Moore Dry Dock shipbreakers (1947-48)
- Limitations
- NavSource is a volunteer secondary compilation, not a primary registry - milestone dates track DANFS but the spec block is unattributed and armament figures are the class's 'ultimate armament design,' not an outfit record for this hull. CO name is consistent with DANFS (Lt. Theodore B. Clark) and is corroborated by the NHHC fleet-organization document (Lt. T. B. Clark, serial 13238). Contains no asbestos content. The 1947 scrapping predates modern ACM-handling regulation; no hazmat or material record for the breakup was located.
- Atlas source
- true
- Evidence ID
- ev-uss-lst-780-lst780-02
-
[4]NHHC, 'United States Pacific Fleet Organization, 1 May 1945' - wartime administrative-organization tabulation (live NHHC page, verified 2026-10-03) [other_primary]
- Locator
- NHHC online reading room, Pacific Fleet Organization 1 May 1945, LST FLOTILLA TWENTY-ONE / LST GROUP 61 / LST DIVISION 121 table
- Finding type
- historical_record
- Finding
- The official Pacific Fleet organization list for 1 May 1945 places 'LST 780' in LST DIVISION 121 under Lt. T. B. Clark (13238), within LST GROUP 61 (Comdr. R. M. Mackinnon, 2456) of LST FLOTILLA TWENTY-ONE (Capt. W. H. Brereton, 1474), alongside LSTs 587 (GF), 633, 781, 931, and 1033 - corroborating NavSource's unit assignment and the commanding officer's name with a contemporaneous administrative document.
- Verification
- verified
- Role
- context
- Documentation level
- ship_specific
- Accessed
- 2026-10-03
- Study period
- 1945-05-01
- Population
- LST Flotilla 21 / Group 61 / Division 121 staffs and unit crews (1945)
- Limitations
- Administrative unit listing only - establishes the formation assignment and commanding officer on 1 May 1945, not materials, manning detail, or operations. No asbestos content.
- Atlas source
- true
- Evidence ID
- ev-uss-lst-780-lst780-03
-
[5]NARA still-picture catalog records, Record Group 19 (Bureau of Ships), 'Photographs of the Construction and Launching of Ships' series - four digitized items for this hull: NAID 404792241 (sponsor with bouquet), 404792243 (sponsor and party), 404792245 (christening), 404792247 (launching), all captioned 'at Dravo West Yard, Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania' (live catalog, verified 2026-10-03) [other_primary]
- Locator
- catalog.archives.gov/id/404792241, /404792243, /404792245, /404792247 (local IDs 19-LCM-LST780-67844/45/46/47)
- Finding type
- historical_record
- Finding
- Digitized official construction-and-launch photography documenting this hull at the builder: four NARA items (local IDs 19-LCM-LST780-67844 through -67847) produced 10 July 1944, the launch date, captioned 'Christening of LST 780,' 'Sponsor and Party for LST 780,' 'Sponsor of LST 780,' and 'Launching of LST 780,' each 'at Dravo West Yard, Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania.' The launch photograph (19-LCM-LST780-67847) is the same Bureau of Construction and Repair image NavSource displays.
- Verification
- verified
- Role
- context
- Documentation level
- ship_specific
- Accessed
- 2026-10-03
- Study period
- 1944-07-10
- Population
- Dravo West Yard construction trades; launch-ceremony attendees incl. sponsor's party (July 1944)
- Limitations
- Construction photography only - documents the hull, the yard (West Yard), and the launch ceremony including the sponsor's party; no materials or asbestos content. The catalog's creator attribution lists Bureau of Ships (1947-1966) as most-recent custodial agency with Bureau of Construction and Repair as predecessor; the photo itself is a Bureau of Construction and Repair image per its caption lineage.
- Atlas source
- true
- Evidence ID
- ev-uss-lst-780-lst780-04
-
[6]NARA catalog, Record Group 38 WWII War Diaries series - ten ship-level file units titled 'USS LST-780 - War Diary' covering Jan-Nov 1945 (NAIDs 139852727, 139911421, 139985776, 139985786, 140013799, 101726864, 83565410, 77490387, 77567596, 77523191, 140084244) (live catalog, verified 2026-10-03) [other_primary]
- Locator
- catalog.archives.gov search 'USS LST-780' (42 file units) and 'LST-780' (158 units); example record catalog.archives.gov/id/139911421
- Finding type
- historical_record
- Finding
- Digitized ship-level operational records exist for this hull: the NARA catalog returns ten file units titled 'USS LST-780 - War Diary' - monthly submissions for January (139852727), February (139911421), March (139985776), April (139985786), May (140013799), June (101726864), July (83565410), August (77490387), September (two units: 77567596 and 77523191), and November 1945 (140084244), in the RG 38 WWII War Diaries series (HMS/MLR P 17). Spot-verified digitization: the February 1945 unit carries 7 images and the second September unit 8 images, scanned from Fold3 microfilm. These are the primary contemporaneous operational record for the ship - including the Okinawa Gunto campaign months (March-April 1945) and the September occupation period.
- Verification
- partial
- Role
- archival_lead
- Documentation level
- ship_specific
- Accessed
- 2026-10-03
- Study period
- 1945-01 to 1945-11
- Population
- USN ship's company (1945); embarked troops carried
- Limitations
- Archival lead only: catalog metadata and image counts verified for two of the ten units; the diary contents were not read page-level this session, so their detail on operations, anchorage positions, or maintenance is unassessed. September 1945 has two identically-titled file units on different microfilm rolls (A1954 and A1907, serial 06-45 dated 10/1/1945) - likely duplicate or supplementary filming, not compared. No October or December 1945 unit surfaced in the result set. No asbestos content expected in operational diaries.
- Atlas source
- true
- Evidence ID
- ev-uss-lst-780-lst780-05
-
[7]NARA catalog record NAID 126471079, 'LST-780, 8/7/44-8/1/46' - Record Group 24 'Muster Rolls of U.S. Navy Ships, Stations, and Other Naval Activities, 1/1/1939-1/1/1949' (HMS/MLR A1 135-A/-B), Roll No. 4832, 228 digitized images via the NARA-Ancestry scanning collaboration (live catalog, verified 2026-10-03) [other_primary]
- Locator
- catalog.archives.gov/id/126471079 (Roll No. 4832; Ancestry File #32861_250293; NARA College Park)
- Finding type
- historical_record
- Finding
- The ship's complete muster roll is digitized: 228 images covering 7 August 1944 - 1 August 1946, the hull's entire commission from commissioning through the decommissioning month. A muster roll is the personnel record of who served aboard and when - the foundational document for any individual-service verification for this hull.
- Verification
- partial
- Role
- archival_lead
- Documentation level
- ship_specific
- Accessed
- 2026-10-03
- Study period
- 1944-08-07 to 1946-08-01
- Population
- USN ship's company, full commission (1944-46)
- Limitations
- Archival lead only: catalog metadata and image count verified; the 228 pages were not transcribed or read this session, so individual names, ratings, and exact complement at any date are unverified. Muster rolls carry personnel data only - no materials or asbestos content.
- Atlas source
- true
- Evidence ID
- ev-uss-lst-780-lst780-06
-
[8]NHHC photographic catalog, image NH 79557 - 'USS LST-780. In San Francisco Bay, California, circa late 1945. Courtesy of D.M. McPherson, 1974' (live catalog page, verified 2026-10-03) [other_primary]
- Locator
- NHHC NH 79557 catalog page (title, caption, description, catalog number fields)
- Finding type
- historical_record
- Finding
- The Naval History and Heritage Command's own photographic catalog carries an image record for this hull: NH 79557, a black-and-white photo of USS LST-780 in San Francisco Bay circa late 1945 (donated by D.M. McPherson, 1974) - official photo-documentation of the hull in U.S. waters during its post-occupation return window; NavSource displays the same image captioned 'circa 1945-1946.'
- Verification
- verified
- Role
- context
- Documentation level
- ship_specific
- Accessed
- 2026-10-03
- Study period
- 1945
- Population
- USN ship's company (late 1945)
- Limitations
- Photographic record only - documents the hull's presence in San Francisco Bay circa late 1945; no materials or asbestos content. NHHC dates the image 'circa late 1945'; NavSource's display caption reads 'circa 1945-1946' - a one-year attribution spread noted but immaterial.
- Atlas source
- true
- Evidence ID
- ev-uss-lst-780-lst780-07
-
[9]MARAD Vessel History Database, LST-780 (Detail/9509) - stub entry, type 'LST Tank Landing Ship', MARAD type 'Military', fate 'Sold - No Further Info', plus a digitized VESSEL STATUS CARD (cards/4AN_01.png) (live page and card image, verified 2026-10-03) [marad_nrc]
- Locator
- vesselhistory.marad.dot.gov/ShipHistory/Detail/9509 all tabs; status card image https://vesselhistory.marad.dot.gov/cards/4AN_01.png
- Finding type
- historical_record
- Finding
- MARAD's vessel-history database carries this hull's disposal record card: the digitized VESSEL STATUS CARD (4AN_01.png) names 'LST 780' under the 'Surplus - Department of Navy' heading and records 'Moore Dry Dock Company' as operator/recipient under form of agreement 'Pur.' (purchase), with a handwritten delivery date of 10/27/47 - the primary disposal instrument corroborating DANFS's 27 October 1947 sale to Moore Drydock Co., Oakland, Calif., for scrapping. The database entry itself is otherwise a bare stub: all specification fields blank, 'Year Built' the 9999 placeholder, no historical narrative, no images, no documents, no milestones.
- Verification
- verified
- Role
- context
- Documentation level
- ship_specific
- Accessed
- 2026-10-03
- Study period
- 1947-10-27
- Population
- Moore Dry Dock Co. Oakland shipbreakers (1947-48)
- Limitations
- The status card documents the transfer (surplus Navy property delivered to Moore Dry Dock Co. under purchase, 10/27/47) - it says nothing about scrapping method, location detail, or materials handling; the 1947 disposal predates modern ACM-handling regulation. The card's handwritten allocation reference ('SP aev 1936' or similar) is not fully legible and is not asserted. Database 'Year Built 9999' is a placeholder, not data.
- Atlas source
- true
- Evidence ID
- ev-uss-lst-780-lst780-08
-
[10]USS LST Ship Memorial, Inc., LST Photograph Collection, object 2017.009.084 - 'U.S.S. LST-780' print, photographic (live virtual-exhibit record, verified 2026-10-03) [museum_official]
- Locator
- lst325.info virtual exhibit record 2017.009.084 (Title / Object ID / Description fields)
- Finding type
- historical_record
- Finding
- The USS LST Ship Memorial (the LST-325 museum organization, Evansville IN) catalogs a photographic print of this hull: object 2017.009.084, 'Black & white print of a photograph showing LST-780 in an unknown location. The ship appears to have a full load of vehicles on its main deck, and LCVPs or similar craft in both of its davits' - an additional museum-held image of the hull beyond the NARA and NHHC copies.
- Verification
- verified
- Role
- archival_lead
- Documentation level
- ship_specific
- Accessed
- 2026-10-03
- Study period
- undated (WWII-era image)
- Limitations
- Museum collection-catalog record only - documents that the print exists in the memorial's photograph collection; location and date of the photograph itself are 'unknown' per the catalog description. No materials or asbestos content.
- Atlas source
- true
- Evidence ID
- ev-uss-lst-780-lst780-09
-
[11]Era inference built on: DANFS construction record (Dravo Corp., Pittsburgh, 1944); NavSource specifications (LST-542 class, GM 12-567A diesel plant); Fleischer et al. 1946 PHS survey (ev-11); GAO HRD-80-2 (ev-12) [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 May-Aug 1944 in a Navy-contract yard sits inside the documented wartime asbestos-construction era: the PHS industrial-hygiene survey of pipe covering in naval-vessel construction found amosite asbestos was 'an important ingredient of pipe covering 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
- Dravo Neville Island construction trades (1944); USN ship's company (1944-46); Moore Dry Dock shipbreakers (1947-48)
- Limitations
- Class/era inference only - no hull-specific insulation survey, material list, or work package located for LST-780. 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-780-lst780-10
-
[12]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 (verified via NCBI E-utilities); 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 Dravo 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. Citation metadata verified via NCBI E-utilities (esummary 21016030); the pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov page itself is reCAPTCHA-gated to automated fetch.
- Atlas source
- true
- Evidence ID
- ev-uss-lst-780-lst780-11
-
[13]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, sold for scrapping 1947).
- 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, reconfirmed 2026-10-03) - content via product-page description and report abstract.
- Atlas source
- true
- Evidence ID
- ev-uss-lst-780-lst780-12
-
[14]'History of the Dravo Shipyard During World War II' (1945 document, ExplorePAhistory docId 1-4-189) + Heinz History Center, 'Pittsburgh's LSTs: Remembering the Workhorse of Normandy' (Heinz History Center blog; sources cited incl. Dravo Corporation Records/Photographs MSS/MSP 288, Detre Library & Archives) (both live, verified 2026-10-03 via Firecrawl) [other_primary]
- Locator
- explorepahistory.com/odocument.php?docId=1-4-189 (LST program, West/East Yard, employment sections); heinzhistorycenter.org 'Pittsburgh's LSTs' ('Dravo Leads the Cornfield Navy' section)
- Finding type
- historical_record
- Finding
- Builder documentation of the yard that built this hull: the 1945 yard history records that Dravo's original LST award was for 60 ships, that the peacetime Neville Island plant became the 'West Yard' and a new 'East Yard' was laid out upriver (each with its own assembly line and launching ways), that LST production used electric-arc-welded large preassemblies moved across land to launching berths, and that Neville Island employment grew from 1,000-1,500 peacetime workers to between 14,000 and 16,000 by early 1944. The Heinz History Center describes Dravo as lead yard of the inland 'cornfield navy,' gathering prefabricated LST sections from five area plants for final assembly at Neville Island, with more than 250 LSTs launched from Dravo and American Bridge combined; LST-780 was built at the West Yard (NARA photo captions).
- Verification
- verified
- Role
- context
- Documentation level
- class_or_era
- Accessed
- 2026-10-03
- Study period
- 1941-1945
- Population
- Dravo Neville Island construction trades incl. women welding crews (1941-45)
- Limitations
- Yard-level production context, not a hull record - documents the builder's methods, expansion, and workforce, none of which itemizes materials or conditions aboard LST-780. The 1945 document is an unpublished contemporary history (ExplorePAhistory scan); employment figures differ between sources (14,000-16,000 by early 1944 per the 1945 history vs ~25,000 cumulative 1941-45 per Heinz) - both carried with attribution, not reconciled. No asbestos content.
- Atlas source
- true
- Evidence ID
- ev-uss-lst-780-lst780-13
-
[15]Batch-7317 search ledger (this record): live NHHC DANFS; NavSource; NHHC Pacific Fleet organization document; NHHC photo catalog NH 79557; NARA catalog (two queries + RG 19 photo, RG 38 war-diary, RG 24 muster-roll records); MARAD vessel-history entry and status card; NVR; BVA decisions index; GAO product page; PubMed/NCBI E-utilities; Dravo yard histories; USS LST Ship Memorial collection; CourtListener (blocked); USCG historian site; secondary web litigation sweep [other_primary]
- Locator
- search_ledger rows sl-uss-lst-780-lst780-01 through -22
- 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-780 was found in the public sources searched, and no post-1948 hull record can exist (sold for scrapping 27 October 1947). CAVEAT: CourtListener could not be queried this session - the authenticated API reported the shared daily quota exhausted (server-requested wait ~10.9 h); logged as blocked in search_ledger, not as a negative result. The BVA decisions index returned no results for 'LST-780'; the Naval Vessel Register carries no entry; secondary web sweeps surfaced no qualifying case - only an incidental reunion-directory listing in an American Legion magazine scan (non-qualifying) among unrelated product-code collisions.
- 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). The digitized war diaries (10 units) and muster roll (228 images) were verified at catalog level but not read page-level - they remain unsearched for materials or maintenance detail. Any 1947-48 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-780-lst780-14