Evidence
10 evidence entries recorded; each entry has a stable permalink (#ev-1 … #ev-10).
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[1]research packet 730-packet.md (1 sources cited) [museum_official]
- Finding type
- vessel_history
- Finding
- Identity packet verdict: VERIFIED (specialist-secondary sourcing disclosed)
- Verification
- verified
- Role
- supporting
- Documentation level
- ship_specific
- Limitations
- qualifier: VERIFIED (specialist-secondary sourcing disclosed)
- Evidence ID
- uss-lst-817-lst817-pkt-730-packet-md
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[2]DANFS, 'LST-817' - construction, sponsor, commissioning, Okinawa service, occupation duty, decommission/strike/sale dates (live NHHC URL 404 this session; cited via Wayback capture 2025-12-09 - archived copy) [nhhc_danfs]
- Locator
- DANFS 'LST-817' entry, full text (2 paragraphs); live page https://www.history.navy.mil/research/histories/ship-histories/danfs/l/lst-817.html returns 404
- Finding type
- vessel_history
- Finding
- Documented for this hull: laid down 4 September 1944 at Evansville, Ind., by Missouri Valley Bridge & Iron Co.; launched 14 October 1944, sponsored by Mrs. Raymond Yelling; commissioned 7 November 1944, Lt. R. K. McInnes, USNR, in command. Assigned to the Asiatic-Pacific theater; participated in the assault and occupation of Okinawa Gunto April-June 1945; performed occupation duty in the Far East until early November 1945; returned to the United States, decommissioned 31 January 1947, struck from the Navy list 7 February 1947; sold 25 May 1948 to Basalt Rock Co., Inc., Napa, Calif., and subsequently scrapped. Earned one battle star for World War II service.
- Verification
- verified
- Role
- context
- Documentation level
- ship_specific
- Accessed
- 2026-10-03
- Study period
- 1944-1948
- Population
- Ship's company 1944-1947 (13 officers/104 enlisted complement)
- Limitations
- Archived capture of the NHHC DANFS page - the live URL returned 404 this session (standing NHHC link-rot defect). DANFS does not mention the Operation Crossroads assignment (documented separately by the NHHC JTF-1 roster, ev-03). Contains no asbestos information; establishes identity and service history only.
- Atlas source
- true
- Evidence ID
- ev-uss-lst-817-lst817-01
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[3]NavSource Online: Amphibious Photo Archive, USS LST-817 (10/16/160817) - unit assignments, Operation Crossroads tasking, specification block, commanding-officer roster, photo captions (live page verified HTTP 200 this session) [other_primary]
- Locator
- NavSource USS LST-817 page: timeline, specification block, CO roster, photo gallery captions
- Finding type
- vessel_history
- Finding
- Documented for this hull: LST-542-class tank landing ship; wartime assignment to LST Flotilla 25 (CAPT H. E. Richter), LST Group 74 (CDR J. G. Farnsworth), LST Division 147; Okinawa Gunto operation 2 April-18 June 1945; Navy Occupation Service Medal periods 20 September-10 October 1945 and 25 October-5 November 1945; assigned to Joint Task Force 1, Task Unit 1.3.1, Transport Division 31 (TRANSDIV 31) for Operation Crossroads at Bikini Atoll, July 1946. Specifications: 1,625 t light / 4,080 t full load; 328 ft oa x 50 ft; 11.6 kt trial; two General Motors 12-567A 900-hp diesels, single Falk main reduction gear, three 100 kW 230 V DC ship's service generators, two propellers (1,700 shp), twin rudders. Commanding officers: LT McInnes (Nov 1944-Mar 1946), LTjg Degges (Mar-Jun 1946), LTjg Scott (Jun-Aug 1946), LTjg Earl (Aug 1946-31 Jan 1947). Photo captions document loading out at Navy Base Seattle circa 3 February 1945 (US Army Signal Corps photos, Seattle NARA) and beaching at Okinawa.
- Verification
- verified
- Role
- context
- Documentation level
- ship_specific
- Accessed
- 2026-10-03
- Study period
- 1944-1948
- Population
- Ship's company and embarked troops 1944-1947
- Limitations
- NavSource is a curated secondary compilation, not itself a primary source - its timeline and spec block are consistent with DANFS and the NHHC JTF-1 roster. Contains no asbestos information. The linked 'Action Report - Landing of Occupation Forces, Nagasaki' (ev-04) is the primary document behind the occupation-service entries.
- Atlas source
- true
- Evidence ID
- ev-uss-lst-817-lst817-02
-
[4]NHHC, 'Composition of Joint Task Force One' (Operation Crossroads organization roster, online reading room; live URL 404 this session - cited via Wayback capture 2025-12-08 - archived copy) [other_primary]
- Locator
- JTF-1 composition document, 'Task Group 1.3 (Transport Group)' > 'Task Unit 1.3.1' > 'Transport Division 31 [TRANSDIV 31]' listing; target LSTs under 'Task Unit 1.2.5 (Landing Craft Unit), LST Group 9'
- Finding type
- vessel_history
- Finding
- CORRECTION: the official JTF-1 composition roster lists USS LST-817 in Task Group 1.3 (Transport Group), Task Unit 1.3.1, Transport Division 31 (TRANSDIV 31), alongside APAs Bayfield, Bexar, Bottineau, George Clymer, Henrico, and USS LST-881. TG 1.3 'transported personnel and equipment to Bikini Atoll as well as evacuating personnel of the Target Vessel Group... and transported and quartered the press and observers.' The LST target vessels were a different unit - LST Group 9 (LST-52, LST-125, LST-133, LST-220, LST-545, LST-661) under Task Unit 1.2.5, Task Group 1.2 (Target Vessel Group). This hull was therefore a transport-unit participant in Operation Crossroads, not a target-array ship; the class-profile shorthand 'Operation Crossroads target' is imprecise for this hull.
- Verification
- verified
- Role
- correction
- Documentation level
- ship_specific
- Accessed
- 2026-10-03
- Study period
- 1946
- Population
- JTF-1 transport crews, Bikini operating area, July 1946
- Limitations
- Establishes organizational assignment only - the roster does not record whether the ship was inside Bikini Lagoon on shot days, any radiological exposure, or contamination state. Secondary compilations (atomicveteran.info ship log) list 'LST 817' among ships present for shot Able (1 July 1946) but that source is advocacy-grade and is not relied on here. No asbestos content.
- Atlas source
- true
- Evidence ID
- ev-uss-lst-817-lst817-03
-
[5]Commander Transport Squadron Twelve (ComNAGASAKI Group, C.T.G. 54.3), Action Report - Landings of Occupation Forces, Nagasaki, Japan, September 1945 (dated 30 September 1945; NavSource-hosted scan of the official report) [other_primary]
- Locator
- Action report Part II organization list (54.3.21 LST Group 13); Part III narrative paragraphs 6 and 10; chronology entries 20 September (0730, 1024) and 27-28 September (1418/1731 dispatches, arrivals/departures)
- Finding type
- historical_record
- Finding
- Ship-specific primary record: LST-817 is named in LST Group 13 (Temp), LST Flotilla 23 (Temp), Task Group 54.3 (Nagasaki Group), which embarked the 2nd Marine Division at Saipan for the Nagasaki occupation landings. LST-817, with a hospital evacuation unit embarked, had not arrived at Saipan from Guam when the group sortied 17 September; it was routed Guam-Buckner Bay-Nagasaki as Task Unit 54.19.4, escorted by USS Tills (DE-748), arrived Nagasaki about 27 September, and was the last unit of the group still unloading when ComTransRon 12 departed 28 September. It was then ordered with LSTs 829, 871, 1123, and 1140 to the Marianas for 5th PhibCorps loading.
- Verification
- verified
- Role
- context
- Documentation level
- ship_specific
- Accessed
- 2026-10-03
- Study period
- 1945-09
- Population
- Ship's company + embarked hospital evacuation unit, September 1945
- Limitations
- Operational detail only - the report establishes where this hull was and what it carried (hospital evacuation unit), with no materiel or asbestos content. OCR transcription of the scan contains character-level artifacts; 'GUAI/GUAH' read as Guam, 'Marlanas' as Marianas.
- Atlas source
- true
- Evidence ID
- ev-uss-lst-817-lst817-04
-
[6]Era inference built on: NavSource LST-817 specification block (two GM 12-567A diesels, Falk reduction gear, diesel-drive generators - no boilers); LST-542-group design data (BuShips Ships' Data 1945 v2 grouping, per class profile lst-1-class - the shipscribe.com scan URL cited there returned 404 this session with no Wayback capture) [other_primary]
- Locator
- NavSource spec block (propulsion/generators section); class profile lst-1-class propulsion_summary and class_notes
- Finding type
- asbestos_application
- Finding
- A diesel-powered LST-542-group tank landing ship built in late 1944 sits inside the Navy's documented asbestos-use era for vessel construction (GAO HRD-80-2). With no steam plant, the boiler/turbine-lagging pathway does not apply; era-standard asbestos applications for a hull of this type and period were thermal/exhaust lagging around the diesel plant, machinery and piping insulation, gaskets and valve packing, deck coverings, accommodation insulation, and electrical insulation.
- Verification
- inferred
- Role
- supporting
- Documentation level
- class_or_era
- Accessed
- 2026-10-03
- Study period
- 1944-1948 (service life)
- Population
- Construction trades (Evansville, Sep-Nov 1944); engine-room and maintenance crew
- Limitations
- Class/era inference, not a hull record - no material schedule, insulation spec, or ship-specific document naming LST-817's insulation content was located (the class profile likewise records no class-wide material schedule). Does not establish quantity, fiber type, or present-day presence; hull scrapped 1948.
- Atlas source
- true
- Evidence ID
- ev-uss-lst-817-lst817-05
-
[7]GAO, 'Navy Efforts To Protect Workers From Asbestos Exposure' / asbestos in Navy shipbuilding and repair, HRD-80-2 (October 1979) - product page (full text unreachable: gao.gov returns HTTP 403 to automated fetches, same standing defect as Batches 01 and 98) [gao]
- Locator
- GAO HRD-80-2 product page
- 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 entire 1944-1947 service life and 1944 construction.
- Verification
- verified
- Role
- context
- Documentation level
- class_or_era
- Accessed
- 2026-10-03
- Study period
- through early 1970s
- Population
- Navy ship construction and overhaul workforce (program level)
- Limitations
- Program-level survey; gao.gov returned HTTP 403 this session so only the product-page description was used. Does not name this hull, this class, or any specific insulation application; supports era context only.
- Atlas source
- true
- Evidence ID
- ev-uss-lst-817-lst817-06
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[8]Woolsey v. Missouri Valley Bridge & Iron Co., 119 Ind. App. 391, 88 N.E.2d 54 (Ind. App. 1949) (No. 17,878, decided 17 October 1949) - reporter citation; free full text only via aggregators (exa.ai, hallapproved.com) which are excluded as record sources; CourtListener unavailable this session [court_record]
- Locator
- Reporter text 88 N.E.2d 54 (facts as stated in the opinion's recital of the Industrial Board record)
- Finding type
- litigation_documented
- Finding
- Classified: other litigation (not asbestos). A pipe fitter employed at the builder's Evansville yard 'in the compartment of ships' 21 June-11 November 1944 - a window that covers this hull's entire construction (laid down 4 September, launched 14 October, commissioned 7 November 1944) - brought an occupational-disease claim under the Indiana Workmen's Occupational Diseases Act alleging poisoning from inhaled galvanized-metal welding fumes. The Industrial Board found no occupational disease and denied compensation; the Court of Appeals affirmed 17 October 1949.
- Verification
- verified
- Role
- context
- Documentation level
- context_only
- Accessed
- 2026-10-03
- Study period
- 1944 (exposure period); 1949 (decision)
- Population
- Missouri Valley Bridge & Iron yard workers, Evansville (1944)
- Limitations
- Not an asbestos case - the alleged agent was metal-fume poisoning, and the claim failed on the merits (no occupational disease found). Value is context_only: it documents that compartment pipe-fitting work and occupational-disease litigation existed at this hull's builder during its exact build window. Does not name LST-817 and establishes nothing about asbestos aboard any hull.
- Atlas source
- true
- Evidence ID
- ev-uss-lst-817-lst817-07
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[9]Batch-7357 search ledger (this record): DANFS via Wayback; NHHC JTF-1 roster via Wayback; NavSource live pages; ComTransRon 12 action report; NVR; secondary web sweeps; Indiana appellate index; CourtListener (blocked - daily quota) [other_primary]
- Locator
- search_ledger rows sl-uss-lst-817-lst817-01 through -11
- 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-817 was found in the public sources searched (see search_ledger). The hull was scrapped in 1948, leaving no museum or disposal-survey track. CourtListener was unreachable this session (authenticated helper reported daily quota exhausted, ~10 h reset) - the litigation status of this hull is an open gap, not a negative result.
- 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 - 1944 wartime construction is era-consistent with asbestos insulation (see ev-05, ev-06). The single surfaced occupational-disease case at the builder yard is non-asbestos (ev-07). Does not establish or defeat any claim of exposure or legal eligibility.
- Atlas source
- true
- Evidence ID
- ev-uss-lst-817-lst817-08
-
[10]NARA still-picture leads attributed via NavSource captions: US National Archives photo 80-G-353157 (YG-33 taking on rubbish alongside USS LST-817 and USS LST-726, Apra Harbor, Guam, 1945); US Army Signal Corps series held at Seattle NARA (LST-817 loading out, Navy Base Seattle, circa 3 February 1945); NARA RG 24 deck logs [other_primary]
- Locator
- NavSource photo gallery captions (80-G-353157; Seattle NARA Signal Corps series)
- Finding type
- historical_record
- Finding
- Archival leads: NARA photo 80-G-353157 shows this hull at Apra Harbor, Guam, in 1945; Seattle NARA holds the Signal Corps load-out series for this hull; RG 24 deck logs for this hull exist in custody but are not digitized. catalog.archives.gov search returned HTTP 503 this session, so 80-G-353157 was not independently verified in the catalog - the identifier is attributed via the NavSource caption only.
- Verification
- partial
- Role
- archival_lead
- Documentation level
- ship_specific
- Accessed
- 2026-10-03
- Study period
- 1945
- Limitations
- Identifiers not yet verified at catalog.archives.gov (service degraded this session). Deck logs would establish underway locations and availability periods but contain no materiel information.
- Atlas source
- true
- Evidence ID
- ev-uss-lst-817-lst817-09