Evidence
8 evidence entries recorded; each entry has a stable permalink (#ev-1 … #ev-8).
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[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-981-lst981-pkt-842-packet-md
-
[2]DANFS, LST-981 - construction, sponsor, commissioning, Normandy and Okinawa service, occupation duty, decommissioning, stricken, disposal, battle stars (live NHHC page, verified 2026-10-03) [nhhc_danfs]
- Locator
- DANFS LST-981 entry (full entry, single paragraph)
- Finding type
- vessel_history
- Finding
- Documented for this hull: laid down 9 December 1943 at the Boston Navy Yard; launched 27 January 1944; sponsored by Miss Helen Madden; commissioned 11 March 1944, Lt. Clyde A. Wilson in command. Assigned to the European theater; participated in the invasion of Normandy in June 1944. Transferred to the Asiatic-Pacific theater; engaged in the assault and occupation of Okinawa Gunto in May and June 1945. Performed occupation duty in the Far East until mid-May 1946. Decommissioned 30 July 1946; struck from the Navy list 28 August 1946. Sold 12 December 1947 to the Salco Iron & Metal Co. for scrapping. Earned two battle stars for World War II service.
- Verification
- verified
- Role
- context
- Documentation level
- ship_specific
- Accessed
- 2026-10-03
- Study period
- 1943-1947
- Population
- Boston Navy Yard construction trades (1943-44); crew (1944-46)
- Limitations
- Ship-specific history only; the entry contains no asbestos, material, or crew-complement content. Live NHHC page verified 2026-10-03.
- Atlas source
- true
- Evidence ID
- ev-uss-lst-981-lst981-01
-
[3]NavSource Online: Amphibious Photo Archive, USS LST-981 - campaign detail, flotilla assignments, occupation-service periods, commanding officers, specifications (live page, verified 2026-10-03) [other_primary]
- Locator
- NavSource 10/16/160981.htm - construction block, campaign tables, commanding-officers list, specifications block
- Finding type
- vessel_history
- Finding
- NavSource record for this hull: LST-542-class; laid down 9 December 1943 at Boston Navy Yard; launched 27 January 1944; commissioned 11 March 1944, Lt. Clyde A. Wilson USNR in command. Campaigns: Invasion of Normandy, 6 to 25 June 1944 (Europe-Africa-Middle East); assault and occupation of Okinawa Gunto, 29 May to 10 June 1945 (Asiatic-Pacific, under LST Flotilla Thirty-Five / LST Group One Hundred Four / LST Division Two Hundred Eight). Navy Occupation Service Medal periods: 20 to 25 September 1945; 2 October to 1 November 1945; 18 November 1945 to 20 May 1946. Decommissioned 30 July 1946; struck 28 August 1946; sold for scrapping 12 December 1947 to Salco Iron & Metal Co. Commanding officers: Lt. Clyde A. Wilson (11 Mar 1944 - 2 Jan 1945); Lt. James B. Shaum Jr. (2 Jan - Dec 1945); Lt.(jg) Bernard Pearlman (Dec 1945 - Mar 1946); Lt.(jg) Harry L. Withrow (Mar - 30 Jul 1946). Specifications: two General Motors 12-567A 900-hp diesel engines, single Falk main reduction gear, two propellers (1,700 shp), twin rudders; complement 13 officers, 104 enlisted; troop accommodations 16 officers, 147 enlisted; 2 LCVP.
- Verification
- verified
- Role
- context
- Documentation level
- ship_specific
- Accessed
- 2026-10-03
- Study period
- 1943-1948
- Population
- Boston Navy Yard construction trades (1943-44); crew (1944-46); shipbreakers, Salco Iron & Metal Co. (1947-48)
- Limitations
- NavSource is a volunteer secondary compilation, not a primary registry; dates track DANFS where both exist. Contains no asbestos content. The 1947 scrapping predates modern ACM-handling regulation; no hazmat or material record for the breakup was located. Shaft-horsepower figure (1,700 shp) conflicts with secondary sources carrying 1,800 shp - see gaps.
- Atlas source
- true
- Evidence ID
- ev-uss-lst-981-lst981-02
-
[4]NHHC photographic catalog, NH 84712 - USS LST-981, photographed circa 1945-46 (courtesy D.M. McPherson, 1976) [nhhc_danfs]
- Locator
- NHHC photo catalog page NH 84712 (title, caption, catalog number)
- Finding type
- historical_record
- Finding
- NHHC holds a cataloged photograph of this hull: NH 84712, 'USS LST-981. Photographed circa 1945-46.' Courtesy of D.M. McPherson, 1976. This is archival-presence documentation for the hull in the late-war/occupation window.
- Verification
- verified
- Role
- archival_lead
- Documentation level
- ship_specific
- Accessed
- 2026-10-03
- Study period
- circa 1945-1946
- Limitations
- Archival lead only: a photograph establishes the hull's existence and appearance in the period, not materials, work records, or exposure conditions. No asbestos content. Page verified live 2026-10-03 via direct fetch (the session's FetchURL extractor failed twice on this URL; curl returned HTTP 200 with full caption metadata).
- Atlas source
- true
- Evidence ID
- ev-uss-lst-981-lst981-03
-
[5]Era inference built on: DANFS LST-981 entry (built Boston Navy Yard 1943-44); NavSource specifications (two GM 12-567A diesels, Falk reduction gear - diesel plant, no steam); GAO HRD-80-2 Navy-wide asbestos-use documentation (see ev-05); Boston Naval Shipyard yard-level litigation record (see ev-06) [other_primary]
- Locator
- DANFS LST-981 entry; NavSource 10/16/160981.htm specifications block; GAO HRD-80-2 (ev-05)
- Finding type
- asbestos_application
- Finding
- A diesel-driven LST-542-class tank landing ship built 1943-44 at a U.S. Navy yard sits inside the Navy's documented asbestos-use era (GAO HRD-80-2: asbestos insulation used extensively aboard Navy ships, substitution not begun until the early 1970s). Era-standard applications aboard a vessel of this type and period were thermal insulation, machinery and diesel-exhaust lagging, gaskets, valve packing, electrical insulation, and winch/windlass brake linings. As a diesel ship she carried no steam plant - the boiler/steam-line lagging pathway of steam vessels does not apply.
- Verification
- inferred
- Role
- supporting
- Documentation level
- class_or_era
- Accessed
- 2026-10-03
- Study period
- 1943-1948
- Population
- Boston Navy Yard construction trades (1943-44); crew (1944-46); occupation-duty crew (1945-46); shipbreakers (1947-48)
- Limitations
- Class/era inference only - no hull-specific insulation survey, material list, or work package located for LST-981. Names era-standard applications, not confirmed installed materials. No quantity. Product names are normalized era terms; no manufacturer attribution for this hull. Never infer ship-specific exposure from this row.
- Atlas source
- true
- Evidence ID
- ev-uss-lst-981-lst981-04
-
[6]GAO, Navy Efforts To Protect Workers From Asbestos Exposure, HRD-80-2 (Oct 18, 1979) - product page via Wayback capture; live gao.gov returns HTTP 403 to automated fetch [gao]
- Locator
- GAO HRD-80-2 product page, Highlights section (Wayback capture)
- Finding type
- gov_survey
- Finding
- GAO reviewed the Navy's efforts to protect workers from asbestos exposure at the Long Beach and Norfolk Naval Shipyards, covering the use of asbestos in Navy ships, the cost of removing asbestos from Navy ships, and compensation programs for asbestos-related disabilities. The Navy's 1975 policy was to remove and replace with nonasbestos materials only insulation that was damaged or had to be removed for repairs, modified in 1979 to selective replacement in high-maintenance areas. This documents Navy-wide asbestos insulation use spanning this hull's entire construction and service era (1943-46).
- Verification
- verified
- Role
- context
- Documentation level
- class_or_era
- Accessed
- 2026-10-03
- Study period
- 1979 (report); use era reviewed extends through the 1970s
- Population
- Navy shipyard workers (Long Beach, Norfolk fieldwork); Navy-wide program
- Limitations
- Program-level documentation; supports era context only, not any fact specific to this hull. Full report text not retrieved; content is from the GAO product-page description, cited from a Wayback capture because live gao.gov returns HTTP 403 to automated fetches (confirmed 2026-10-03; archived copy labeled as such).
- Atlas source
- true
- Evidence ID
- ev-uss-lst-981-lst981-05
-
[7]In re John Crane, Inc., No. 01-03-00698-CV (Tex. App. - Houston [1st Dist.], opinion issued November 13, 2003; original proceeding on petition for writ of mandamus) [court_record]
- Locator
- Opinion, Factual and Procedural Background section (Terranova allegation)
- Finding type
- litigation_product_id
- Finding
- Builder-yard-level litigation documentation: in a mandamus proceeding challenging discovery orders, the Texas First Court of Appeals recited that plaintiff Carl Terranova 'alleged that, while working at the Boston Naval Shipyard in Boston, Massachusetts, he was exposed to John Crane's gaskets and sealing materials which contained asbestos.' This is asbestos-product identification tied to this hull's builder yard, not to this hull.
- Verification
- verified
- Role
- context
- Documentation level
- context_only
- Accessed
- 2026-10-03
- Study period
- 2003 (opinion); exposure period not stated
- Population
- Boston Naval Shipyard workers (period not stated in opinion)
- Limitations
- Litigation-stage discipline: this is a discovery-stage mandamus opinion reciting a pleading allegation - the least-final classification; the court ruled on the scope of discovery, not on exposure merits. It documents the builder yard (Boston Naval Shipyard), not this hull, and does not establish asbestos aboard LST-981, any individual's exposure, or any product installed on this ship. Justia page verified live 2026-10-03 via browser (the page sits behind Cloudflare; direct curl returns HTTP 403).
- Atlas source
- true
- Evidence ID
- ev-uss-lst-981-lst981-06
-
[8]Batch-7524 search ledger (this record): DANFS live page; NavSource live page; NHHC photo catalog; GAO product page (Wayback); Justia/Tex. App. opinion (browser); CourtListener (blocked - fleet daily quota); secondary web litigation sweep; HNSA Anchor Watch (excluded - asbestos mention was HMAS Advance, not an LST); NARA deck-log lead [other_primary]
- Locator
- search_ledger rows sl-uss-lst-981-lst981-01 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-981 was found in the public sources searched (see search_ledger). CAVEAT: CourtListener could not be queried this session - the helper reported the fleet daily quota exhausted (~5 h to reset); logged as blocked in search_ledger, not as a negative result. Secondary web sweeps surfaced no 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 - era-consistent materials would be expected on a 1944-built Navy amphib. The litigation-repository search is a genuine open gap (quota-blocked, not run), and the hull's 1946 disposal forecloses the museum/abatement record trail that documents surviving LSTs. Deck logs and Boston Navy Yard work packages are undigitized leads. Does not establish or defeat any claim of exposure or legal eligibility.
- Atlas source
- true
- Evidence ID
- ev-uss-lst-981-lst981-07