Evidence
12 evidence entries recorded; each entry has a stable permalink (#ev-1 … #ev-12).
-
[1]research packet 842-packet.md (1 sources cited) [other_primary]
- Finding type
- vessel_history
- Finding
- Identity packet verdict: VERIFIED
- Verification
- verified
- Role
- supporting
- Documentation level
- ship_specific
- Evidence ID
- uss-lst-979-lst979-pkt-842-packet-md
-
[2]DANFS, LST-979 - construction, sponsor, commissioning, postwar occupation and China service, decommissioning, strike, disposal (live NHHC page, fetched via Firecrawl; re-verified HTTP 200 with browser UA 2026-10-03) [nhhc_danfs]
- Locator
- DANFS LST-979 entry, full text
- Finding type
- vessel_history
- Finding
- DANFS documents for this hull: laid down 19 December 1944 at Hingham, Mass., by the Bethlehem-Hingham Shipyard, Inc.; launched 23 January 1945, sponsored by Mrs. A. H. Balsley; commissioned 20 February 1945, Lt. Hunter A. Hogan, Jr., USNR, in command. Postwar: occupation duty in the Far East and service in China until late March 1946; returned to the United States and decommissioned 5 July 1946; struck from the Navy list 28 August 1946; sold 4 November 1947 to Moore Drydock Co., Oakland, Calif., for scrapping.
- Verification
- verified
- Role
- context
- Documentation level
- ship_specific
- Accessed
- 2026-10-03
- Study period
- 1944-1947
- Population
- Bethlehem-Hingham construction trades (1944-45); ship's company and embarked troops (1945-46)
- Limitations
- Ship-specific official history only; no asbestos or material content, no battle-star or campaign detail, no yard or repair content. Decommissioning location not stated ('returned to the United States'). The DANFS decommissioning date (5 July 1946) conflicts with NavSource (3 July 1946) - see gaps; DANFS date carried as printed with the conflict logged.
- Atlas source
- true
- Evidence ID
- ev-uss-lst-979-lst979-01
-
[3]NavSource Online: Amphibious Photo Archive, USS LST-979 (10/16/160979.htm, last updated 11 October 2024) - designation timeline, spec block, commanding-officer list, awards, occupation/China service periods, disposal (live page verified 2026-10-03 via Firecrawl full-text extraction and browser-UA HTTP 200) [other_primary]
- Locator
- NavSource 10/16/160979.htm header block, awards row, specifications block, CO table, photo caption 1016097902
- Finding type
- vessel_history
- Finding
- NavSource documents for this hull: LST-542-class tank landing ship laid down 19 December 1944 at Bethlehem-Hingham Shipyard, Inc., Hingham, MA; launched 23 January 1945; commissioned USS LST-979 20 February 1945, LT. Hunter A. Hogan, Jr., USNR, in command; assigned to the Asiatic-Pacific Theater during WWII. Postwar service periods as tabled: Navy Occupation Service Medal 2 September-2 October 1945, 15 October-19 December 1945, and 1 January-27 March 1946; China Service Medal (extended) 1 January-27 March 1946. Decommissioned 3 July 1946; struck from the Naval Register 28 August 1946; final disposition sold for scrapping 4 November 1947 to Moore Drydock Co., Oakland, CA. Spec block: 1,625 t light / 4,080 t full / 2,366 t beaching; 328 ft oa x 50 ft; 11.6 kt trial; 2 x GM 12-567A 900 hp diesels, single Falk reduction gear, 2 shafts 1,700 shp, 3 x 100 kW 230 V DC ship's-service generators; complement 13 officers / 104 enlisted; troops 16 officers / 147 enlisted; radio call sign NKXQ. Awards displayed: China Service Medal (extended), American Campaign Medal, Asiatic-Pacific Campaign Medal, WWII Victory Medal, Navy Occupation Medal (Asia clasp) - no battle stars. CO list: LT Hogan USNR 20 Feb 1945-25 Jan 1946; ENS Pontius USNR 25 Jan-Feb 1946; LTjg Barnes USNR Feb-3 Jul 1946. Photo caption documents LST-899 and LST-979 beached on the seaplane ramp of Naval Air Base Ominato, Honshu, 13-30 November 1945, loading ACORN Unit 54 (from USS Chandeleur AV-10 cruise book).
- Verification
- verified
- Role
- context
- Documentation level
- ship_specific
- Accessed
- 2026-10-03
- Study period
- 1944-1947
- Population
- Ship's company (~117) plus embarked troops (1945-46)
- Limitations
- NavSource is a volunteer secondary compilation, not a primary registry - milestone dates track DANFS except the decommissioning date (3 vs 5 July 1946; unresolved, see gaps). The Ominato photo-caption detail is corroborated by the ship's own November 1945 war diary (ev-04). Contains no asbestos content.
- Atlas source
- true
- Evidence ID
- ev-uss-lst-979-lst979-02
-
[4]NARA NAID 101736321, 'USS LST-979 - War Diary, 6/1-30/45' (serial 07-45, dated 1 July 1945 at San Francisco; RG 38 World War II War Diaries, micro serial 132095, Roll A1742; 6 images; digitized via Fold3 - all 6 images downloaded and OCR-read this session) [other_primary]
- Locator
- NAID 101736321, images 0934-0939 (OCR-read 2026-10-03); availability sentence on the 18 June 1945 entry
- Finding type
- historical_record
- Finding
- The ship's June 1945 war diary documents a stateside turnaround including yard-complex and maintenance events verbatim: departed Pearl Harbor 1 June 1945 for Seattle in TU 13.11.2 with eight other LSTs (Capt. H.S. Covington, Comdr LST Flotilla 31, USS LST-896); moored starboard side to Pier 6, Bremerton Navy Yard, 11-13 June 1945, where five unassembled LCT sections were unloaded from the main deck; shifted to Pier 91 Berth 2, Seattle; on 18 June shifted to Ames Terminal, moored alongside USS LST-975 - 'Granted six days availability. Starboard engine torn down for check, ship's force job'; 22 June NAD ammunition boat YF 1080 alongside to load ammunition; 23 June small main-deck fire (welders' slag igniting grease on LCT launching ways - extinguished, no damage); 24-27 June moored at Sound Engineering & Construction Corp. Berth 4, Lake Union, loading Army Engineers' heavy equipment and vehicles; 27 June compass compensation swing in Elliott Bay and Army ammunition load from barge BoP 1050 (including underwater-demolition explosives); 29 June embarked 5 Army officers and 84 enlisted as passengers and departed Seattle for Pearl Harbor in TU 06.13.42 with Lt. Hogan as Task Unit Commander; 30 June struck a submerged log off Cape Flattery area (starboard screw/rudder jarred; ~20 additional rpm needed to maintain speed - impairment noted, no leak); AA firing exercises same day.
- Verification
- verified
- Role
- context
- Documentation level
- ship_specific
- Accessed
- 2026-10-03
- Study period
- 1945-06-01 to 1945-06-30
- Population
- Ship's company (~117); Naval ammunition depot detail; Sound Engineering & Construction Corp. loading crews (Jun 1945); embarked Army passengers
- Limitations
- Ship-produced primary record, all 6 pages OCR-read; OCR quality adequate with spot illegibility. Documents the events and their dates, not material content: the diary does not say 'asbestos,' does not itemize materials, and the six-day availability was a ship's-force engine check at a commercial terminal - not a yard work package. 'Bremerton Navy Yard' is the diary's own rendering of the Puget Sound Navy Yard complex. No hull survey or material schedule.
- Atlas source
- true
- Evidence ID
- ev-uss-lst-979-lst979-03
-
[5]NARA war diaries for this hull, August-October 1945: NAID 77474144 (7/1-31/45, serial 010-45, Roll A1796, 6 images); NAID 77490278 (8/1-31/45, serial 013-45, Roll A1871, 5 images); NAID 77553894 (9/1-30/45, serial 014-45, Roll A1939, 5 images); NAID 77571258 (10/1-31/45, serial 015-45, Roll A1959, 4 images) - RG 38 World War II War Diaries, digitized via Fold3; all images downloaded and OCR-read this session [other_primary]
- Locator
- NAIDs 77490278 (images 0458-0462), 77553894 (0285-0289), 77571258 (0144-0147), 77474144 (0161-0166, degraded) - OCR-read 2026-10-03
- Finding type
- historical_record
- Finding
- The August-October 1945 war diaries document the hull's movement into the forward area at the end of hostilities and the opening occupation lifts. August (NAID 77490278): arrived Saipan 5 August; 10 August moored Saipan Inner Harbor berth Baker 2 to unload an unassembled LCT and launching ways; 11 August formed convoy for Okinawa; anchored Hagushi Harbor, Okinawa, mid-August; 19 August beached Ie Shima (berth Dog, southern shore) and discharged cargo; 20 August disembarked 60 troops; subsequent cargo-discharge beachings at Orange Beach 1 and Purple Beach One (cargo discharge completed early 30 August); 31 August into Buckner Bay and moored alongside S.S. Beatrice Victory. September (NAID 77553894): at Buckner Bay, Okinawa, loading miscellaneous ACORN 54 cargo from S.S. Beatrice Victory (berth B-169), weather-interrupted, completed 9 September; departed Okinawa for northern Honshu late September (convoy of 23 September per the November diary); 25 September LST-899 reported a mine that failed to explode after a direct 40mm hit; 28 September encountered a typhoon (winds to 85 kt, 40-50 ft seas, convoy scattered); 30 September a boarding party including Lt(jg) Wren (ACORN 54 interpreter) inspected a Japanese fishing vessel found without papers and verbally ordered it to port. October (NAID 77571258): arrived Ominato Ko, Mutsu Kaiwan, 1 October; 2 October surveyed beaching areas at Naval Air Base Ominato and beached on the east side of the double seaplane ramp; discharged cargo 3-9 October; retracted to anchorage; 11 October shifted berth for an expected typhoon. The July 1945 diary (NAID 77474144) scan is ribbon-degraded and largely illegible - coverage gap, see gaps.
- Verification
- partial
- Role
- context
- Documentation level
- ship_specific
- Accessed
- 2026-10-03
- Study period
- 1945-07-01 to 1945-10-31
- Population
- Ship's company; embarked troops; ACORN 54 cargo detail (Sep-Dec 1945)
- Limitations
- Ship-produced primary records, all pages OCR-read; August-October legible, July largely illegible (ribbon-degraded scan). Documents operations and dates verbatim; no asbestos or material content; no yard work packages. Cargo content is named only as 'miscellaneous cargo of Acorn 54' - the diary does not itemize it.
- Atlas source
- true
- Evidence ID
- ev-uss-lst-979-lst979-04
-
[6]NARA war diaries for this hull, November-December 1945: NAID 140081871 (11/1-30/45, serial 016, Roll A2000, 4 images) and NAID 140084380 (12/1-31/45, serial 01-46, Roll A2009, 4 images) - RG 38 World War II War Diaries, digitized via Fold3; all images downloaded and OCR-read this session [other_primary]
- Locator
- NAIDs 140081871 (images 0741-0744) and 140084380 (0439-0442) - OCR-read 2026-10-03
- Finding type
- historical_record
- Finding
- The November 1945 diary (NAID 140081871, dated at San Fernando, Calif.) documents the hull's ACORN 54 lift out of Ominato: anchored Ominato Ko, northern Honshu, from 1 November 'in company with five other LSTs that composed the convoy from Okinawa 23 September 1945' (Lt. Hogan OTC); beached on the seaplane ramp, Inner Harbor, NAB Ominato, 13 November (orders CTF 56); commenced loading ACORN 54 equipment 19 November; ACORN 54 personnel reported aboard 29 November (121 total per diary); completed loading and retracted 30 November, underway for Kisarazu, Honshu, in company with four other LSTs (Lt. Hogan OTC). The December 1945 diary (NAID 140084380, serial 01-46) documents: anchored Kisarazu 3 December; beached inner harbor NAB Kisarazu 5 December and unloaded tank-deck general cargo through 15 December; loaded tank-deck vehicles 17 December; departed Kisarazu 18 December for Guam in TU 53.8.2 (Lt. Hogan OTC); anchored Apra Harbor, Guam, 24 December; moored awaiting cargo discharge through 31 December.
- Verification
- verified
- Role
- context
- Documentation level
- ship_specific
- Accessed
- 2026-10-03
- Study period
- 1945-11-01 to 1945-12-31
- Population
- Ship's company; embarked ACORN 54 unit personnel (121, Nov-Dec 1945)
- Limitations
- Ship-produced primary records, all pages OCR-read; legible. Documents the Ominato-Kisarazu-Guam operation verbatim; no asbestos or material content. The ACORN 54 personnel split is ribbon-ambiguous in the scan - the 121 total is legible, the officer/enlisted breakdown is not asserted. The NavSource photo caption (ev-02) independently corroborates the 13-30 November seaplane-ramp beaching.
- Atlas source
- true
- Evidence ID
- ev-uss-lst-979-lst979-05
-
[7]NHHC, United States Pacific Fleet Organization, 1 May 1945 (Navy Department Library online reading room) - LST 979 listed under LST Group 93 [other_primary]
- Locator
- NHHC Pacific Fleet Organization 1 May 1945 page, LST Group 93 roster block
- Finding type
- vessel_history
- Finding
- The official 1 May 1945 Pacific Fleet organization listing places USS LST-979 in LST Group 93 - documenting the hull's administrative chain in the period between her February 1945 commissioning and first Pacific deployment. The ship's own war diaries carry LST Group 94 administrative correspondence and distribution (ComLSTGrp94) from June through December 1945.
- Verification
- verified
- Role
- context
- Documentation level
- ship_specific
- Accessed
- 2026-10-03
- Study period
- 1945
- Population
- Ship's company (1945)
- Limitations
- Fleet-level organizational listing; ship-specific by name but contains no asbestos, material, or yard content. The Group 93 (1 May 1945) vs Group 94 (war-diary correspondence, June-December 1945) difference indicates a reassignment between those dates - neither source states the change date explicitly.
- Atlas source
- true
- Evidence ID
- ev-uss-lst-979-lst979-06
-
[8]Bureau of Ships, Ships' Data, U.S. Naval Vessels, Vol. 2 (1945), LST design table (shipscribe.com scan, verified live HTTP 200, 2026-10-03); NavSource LST-979 spec block; lst-1-class class profile (class-f worktree) [other_primary]
- Locator
- BuShips SDB 1945 v2 LST design table; NavSource 160979.htm specifications block
- Finding type
- asbestos_application
- Finding
- Era inference for this hull: the LST-542 design group ran a diesel plant (2 x GM 12-567A diesels, 1,700 shp total, Falk reduction gear, twin screws - BuShips design table and this hull's NavSource spec block) with no boilers, so the steam-plant lagging pathway of boiler vessels does not apply. Asbestos-relevant applications aboard a late-1944 diesel landing ship of this type were the era-standard set: diesel-exhaust and machinery-space lagging, gaskets and packing, accommodation thermal insulation, deck coverings, and winch/crane brake linings.
- Verification
- inferred
- Role
- supporting
- Documentation level
- class_or_era
- Accessed
- 2026-10-03
- Study period
- 1944-1948
- Population
- Bethlehem-Hingham construction trades (1944-45); ship's company and embarked troops (1945-46); Moore Drydock breaking workforce (1947-48)
- Limitations
- Class/era inference only - no hull-specific insulation survey, material schedule, or work package was located for LST-979. Names era-standard applications, not confirmed installed materials; no quantities; no manufacturer attribution. The documented June 1945 six-day availability (ev-03) was a ship's-force engine check, not evidence of insulation work.
- Atlas source
- true
- Evidence ID
- ev-uss-lst-979-lst979-07
-
[9]Corn, Jacqueline Karnell, and Jennifer Starr, 'Historical perspective on asbestos: Policies and protective measures in World War II shipbuilding,' American Journal of Industrial Medicine 11(3):359-373 (1987) [other_primary]
- Locator
- Abstract and article, AJIM 11(3):359-373
- Finding type
- asbestos_application
- Finding
- Peer-reviewed historical study documents that asbestos was used extensively as a fireproofing and insulating material in U.S. shipbuilding during WWII - the era and program under which this LST-542-class hull was mass-produced at the Bethlehem-Hingham emergency yard (Hingham, MA).
- Verification
- verified
- Role
- context
- Documentation level
- class_or_era
- Accessed
- 2026-10-03
- Study period
- 1940s era documented; article 1987
- Population
- WWII shipyard workers and ship crews (class context)
- Limitations
- Program/era-level scholarly documentation of asbestos use in WWII shipbuilding generally; does not name this vessel or class and does not establish that asbestos was or remained aboard this hull, nor quantity, location, condition, individual exposure, or causation.
- Atlas source
- true
- Evidence ID
- ev-uss-lst-979-lst979-08
-
[10]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 (1944-45), her Pacific and China service, and her 1947-48 breaking at Moore Drydock, Oakland.
- 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 returns HTTP 403 to automated fetch, reconfirmed 2026-10-03) - content via product-page description, consistent with prior batches.
- Atlas source
- true
- Evidence ID
- ev-uss-lst-979-lst979-09
-
[11]Batch-7522 search ledger (this record): DANFS live; NavSource live; NARA catalog + seven ship-titled war-diary file units located, all 34 images OCR-read; NHHC fleet-organization page; BuShips SDB 1945 v2; GAO product page; NVR; NIOSH HHE search; secondary web sweep; CourtListener (blocked) [other_primary]
- Locator
- search_ledger rows sl-uss-lst-979-lst979-01 through -15
- Finding type
- historical_record
- Finding
- No qualifying ship-specific asbestos record located: no asbestos survey, abatement contract, hazmat disclosure, material schedule, or verified litigation naming USS LST-979 was found in the public sources searched (see search_ledger). CAVEAT: CourtListener could not be queried this session - the authenticated helper reported the fleet daily quota exhausted (~6.5 h to reset); logged as blocked in search_ledger, not as a negative result. Secondary web sweeps surfaced no law-firm listicle or qualifying case naming this hull.
- 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 (blocked by quota, not run). Construction at a wartime emergency yard, a documented 1945 stateside availability, and 1947-48 breaking at Moore Drydock sit squarely inside the asbestos-use era. Does not establish or defeat any claim of exposure or legal eligibility.
- Atlas source
- true
- Evidence ID
- ev-uss-lst-979-lst979-10
-
[12]NARA catalog, "LST-979" and "USS LST-979" result sets - 7 ship-titled digitized war-diary file units (June-December 1945) plus NAID 126587317 'LST-979, 2/20/45-7/3/46' muster-roll file unit (Roll No. 5023, BuPers; online resource is Ancestry - paywalled partner, not digitized free on NARA; microfilm at College Park) [other_primary]
- Locator
- catalog.archives.gov "LST-979" (84 results) and "USS LST-979" (39 results) result sets; NAID 126587317 record page
- Finding type
- historical_record
- Finding
- Primary archive coverage for this hull is strong but bounded: all seven surfaced ship-titled war diaries (June through December 1945; NAIDs 101736321, 77474144, 77490278, 77553894, 77571258, 140081871, 140084380) were read in full this session. No ship-titled diaries surfaced for February-May 1945 (commissioning, shakedown, transit to Pearl Harbor) or January-June 1946 (China service and decommissioning months) in catalog searches. The BuPers muster-roll unit 'LST-979, 2/20/45-7/3/46' (NAID 126587317) spans the hull's entire commissioned life and its end date (7/3/46) independently corroborates NavSource's 3 July 1946 decommissioning date against DANFS's 5 July - but the rolls themselves are on microfilm/Ancestry, not freely digitized.
- Verification
- partial
- Role
- archival_lead
- Documentation level
- ship_specific
- Accessed
- 2026-10-03
- Study period
- 1945-1946
- Population
- Ship's company (1945-46); researchers
- Limitations
- Archival-lead row: the muster rolls were not read (paywalled partner access); WWII deck logs proper for this hull not located in the digitized deck-log series checked; ship-titled diaries for Feb-May 1945 and Jan-Jun 1946 may exist undigitized or misfiled - absence from catalog search results is not proof of non-existence; RG 181 yard records are an open lead but this hull's only documented availability was a ship's-force job, not a yard package.
- Atlas source
- true
- Evidence ID
- ev-uss-lst-979-lst979-11