Evidence
12 evidence entries recorded; each entry has a stable permalink (#ev-1 … #ev-12).
-
[1]DANFS, LST-871 (NHHC page; live URL returned 404 on 2026-10-02 - archived Wayback capture 2025-12-09 cited and labeled as archived) [nhhc_danfs]
- Locator
- DANFS entry 'LST-871', full record (short LST-format entry); Wayback capture 20251209185442
- Finding type
- vessel_history
- Finding
- DANFS record for this hull: 'LST-871 was laid down on 9 November 1944 at Jeffersonville, Ind., by the Jeffersonville Boat & Machinery Co.; launched on 20 December 1944; and commissioned on 18 January 1945. LST-871 was redesignated LSTH-871 on 15 September 1945. Following World War II, LSTH-871 performed occupation duty in the Far East until early May 1946. She returned to the United States and was decommissioned on 4 October 1946 and struck from the Navy list on 13 November that same year. On 30 June 1948, the ship was sold to the Humble Oil & Refining Co., Houston, Tex., for operation.'
- Verification
- verified
- Role
- supporting
- Documentation level
- ship_specific
- Accessed
- 2026-10-02
- Study period
- 1944-1948
- Population
- JeffBoat Jeffersonville construction trades 1944-45; wartime USNR crew and embarked troops; occupation-duty personnel 1945-46
- Limitations
- DANFS documents milestones, not materials or asbestos content - no asbestos information of any kind. Commissioning date conflicts with NavSource (DANFS 18 January 1945 vs NavSource 15 January 1945 - see gaps). Live NHHC URL 404s (standing NHHC link-rot defect noted since Batch 01); archived capture used and labeled. DANFS omits the wartime service narrative entirely - her Okinawa, Nagasaki, and Operation Crossroads details come from other rows.
- Atlas source
- true
- Evidence ID
- ev-uss-lst-h-871-lsth871-01
-
[2]NavSource Online Amphibious Photo Archive, USS LST(H)-871 ex USS LST-871 (page 160871, verified live 2026-10-02) - designation timeline, unit assignments, occupation-service periods, Crossroads assignment, specifications, CO roster, photo captions [other_primary]
- Locator
- NavSource page 10/16/160871, full record incl. specifications block, CO list, awards table, and photo captions
- Finding type
- vessel_history
- Finding
- NavSource record for this hull: 542-class tank landing ship laid down 9 November 1944 at Jeffersonville Boat & Machinery Co., Jeffersonville, IN; launched 20 December 1944; commissioned USS LST-871, 15 January 1945, LT. Frank W. Summers USNR in command. Assigned to the Asiatic-Pacific Theater: LST Flotilla Thirty-Two (CAPT. D. J. Sweeny), LST Group Ninety-Four (CDR. E. Roughton USN), LST Division One Hundred Eighty-Seven. Redesignated Landing Ship Tank (Hospital) LST(H)-871, 15 September 1945. Navy Occupation Service Medal periods: 22-30 September 1945, 25 October 1945 - 28 February 1946, 14 April - 4 May 1946. Assigned to Joint Task Force 1, Task Unit 1.8.7 (Service Group - Rongerik Evacuation Unit) for Operation Crossroads at Bikini Atoll, July 1946. Decommissioned 4 October 1946; struck from the Naval Register 13 November 1946; sold for commercial operation 30 June 1948 to Humble Oil & Refining Co., Houston, TX. Specs: complement 13 officers/104 enlisted, troops 16 officers/147 enlisted; two GM 12-567A 900hp diesels, single Falk main reduction gear, three diesel-drive 100kW 230V DC generators, two propellers 1,700 shp, twin rudders - no boilers or steam machinery; call sign NIUX. CO roster: LT Summers USNR (15 Jan 1945 - 20 Oct 1945), LT Fadem USNR (20 Oct 1945 - 3 Jan 1946), ENS Fletcher USNR (3 Jan 1946 - July 1946), LT Watkins USN (July 1946 - 4 Oct 1946). Photo captions place her on the builders' ways at Jeffersonville pre-launch (Dec 1944), moored at Yonabaru Pier, Okinawa, 23 July 1945 (US Navy photo, 21st USNCB Neg. 204), and beached at Truk Island, 6 February 1946.
- Verification
- verified
- Role
- supporting
- Documentation level
- ship_specific
- Accessed
- 2026-10-02
- Study period
- 1944-1948
- Population
- JeffBoat construction trades 1944-45; USNR wartime crew; embarked troops incl. 10th Marines elements at Nagasaki; embarked hospital unit (Apr 1945 forward); occupation-service personnel 1945-46; JTF-1 support complement at Bikini/Rongerik (Jul 1946)
- Limitations
- NavSource is a volunteer-curated archive, not a government publication, but it transcribes official records and is used here for detail DANFS omits (unit hierarchy, spec block, CO roster, occupation-medal periods, Crossroads task-unit assignment). Contains no asbestos information. Its 15 January 1945 commissioning date conflicts with DANFS (18 January) - both recorded, conflict in gaps; its CO roster has Summers in command from 15 January, internally consistent with its own date.
- Atlas source
- true
- Evidence ID
- ev-uss-lst-h-871-lsth871-02
-
[3]NHHC, Composition of Joint Task Force One - Operation Crossroads (Navy Department Library online reading room, verified live 2026-10-02; sourced there from U.S. Defense Nuclear Agency, Operation Crossroads, 1946, Washington: DNA, 1984) [nhhc_danfs]
- Locator
- NHHC 'Composition of Joint Task Force One,' Service Group (TG 1.8) section, TU 1.8.7 entry
- Finding type
- vessel_history
- Finding
- Official JTF-1 organization document names this hull in place: under Service Group (TG 1.8), 'TU 1.8.7 (Rongerik Evacuation Unit): USS LST-871, USS LST-989' - a two-ship task unit whose listed duties included 'Evacuation of Rongerik Atoll population if necessary' for the July 1946 atomic bomb tests at Bikini Atoll. She was a support-group unit assigned to evacuation/medical contingency, consistent with her hospital-fitout state - NOT a target vessel.
- Verification
- verified
- Role
- supporting
- Documentation level
- ship_specific
- Accessed
- 2026-10-02
- Study period
- 1946-07
- Population
- Ship's company during Crossroads assignment (Jul 1946); embarked medical/evacuation-support personnel
- Limitations
- Administrative organization document - establishes task-unit assignment on the eve of the tests; contains no materials, maintenance, or asbestos information. Does not itself record what she did at Rongerik/Bikini or whether she was exposed to radiological fallout conditions - no dose or contamination record for this hull was located. The NHHC page sources its lists to the 1984 Defense Nuclear Agency publication; live page verified 2026-10-02.
- Atlas source
- true
- Evidence ID
- ev-uss-lst-h-871-lsth871-03
-
[4]NARA catalog, NAID 77559220 - 'USS LST-871 - Report of operations in the occupation of Nagasaki, Kyushu, Japan, 9/24-27/45' (RG 38, WWII War Diaries series 4697018; microfilm roll A1945, images 0861-0862; digitized, unrestricted; verified live and images read 2026-10-02) [other_primary]
- Locator
- NARA NAID 77559220, digital images A_1945/0861-0862 (two-page report)
- Finding type
- historical_record
- Finding
- Ship-generated CONFIDENTIAL action report (serial LST871/A9, Serial 156, dated 28 September 1945, signed F.W. SUMMERS): on 17 September 1945 the ship departed Saipan with 14 officers and 229 enlisted men of the 10th Marines, 2nd Marine Division embarked, in convoy TG 54.3.2 (13 other LSTs, 20 LSMs, one DE, one LC(FF)); cargo 57 assorted vehicles and 185,000 board feet of lumber under-stowed in the tank deck (loaded Tanapag Harbor, Saipan, 11-13 September). Floating mines sighted and destroyed by escort gunfire 20/21/23 September. On 21 September one enlisted Marine patient was transferred aboard from USS LST-1123 for treatment by the embarked Marine Corps doctor. Arrived Nagasaki and anchored off Fukuda-Saki morning of 24 September; beached inner harbor about 0700 26 September and commenced unloading at the Police Station, East Bank, Nagasaki Ko; unloading completed 1000 27 September and retracted from beach at 1300.
- Verification
- verified
- Role
- supporting
- Documentation level
- ship_specific
- Accessed
- 2026-10-02
- Study period
- 1945-09-17 to 1945-09-28
- Population
- Ship's company + 14 officers and 229 enlisted men, 10th Marines 2nd MarDiv (embarked); 1 patient received from LST-1123
- Limitations
- Primary ship-generated document - establishes Nagasaki occupation participation, embarked-troop and cargo detail, and functioning medical capability aboard (patient transfer received 21 September). Contains no materials or asbestos information. Header still styles the ship 'U.S.S. LST 871' - the 15 September LST(H) redesignation had taken effect but the hull was still written LST 871 in her own correspondence.
- Atlas source
- true
- Evidence ID
- ev-uss-lst-h-871-lsth871-04
-
[5]NARA catalog - USS LST-871 war diaries, five digitized file units: NAID 77471946 (Apr-Jun 1945, roll A1769, Micro Ser. 133911), NAID 83522715 (Jul 1945, roll A1806), NAID 83571186 (Aug 1945), NAID 77542868 (Sep 1945, roll A1928, Micro Ser. 147421), NAID 77571148 (Oct 1945, roll A1959, Micro Ser. 150499); pages read: A_1769/0424-0425, A_1806/0002-0003, A_1928/0424, A_1959/0013 [other_primary]
- Locator
- NARA catalog IDs 77471946, 83522715, 83571186, 77542868, 77571148 (series 4697018, RG 38); quoted text from A_1769 images 0424-0425 and A_1806 images 0002-0003
- Finding type
- historical_record
- Finding
- Ship-generated war diaries document: (April 1945) transit San Pedro to Pearl Harbor with 61 enlisted passengers, moored West Loch berths alongside USS LST-904; 24-26 April 'Hospital unit consisting of four (4) officers of the Medical Corps and 26 enlisted corpsmen reported aboard for duty.' (1 May) 'Necessary alterations being made by hospital team to prepare the ship for use as a casualty evacuation ship. Large "H" painted on both sides of the ship amidships.'; 8-10 May training evolutions and Navy Yard berth Baker-12 1/2, Pearl Harbor (pontoons removed); 12 May sailed for San Francisco with TU 13.11.3. (July 1945) Pearl Harbor to Eniwetok/Guam in TU 13.11.44 carrying elements of the Army 1864th Engineer Aviation Battalion; functioning as a casualty ship underway - 2 July received a patient from USS LST-732 for treatment, 4 July casualty-transfer drill (breeches buoy/Stokes stretcher), 6 July sent medical-aid party and took two casualties aboard after a premature 20mm burst on LST-732, 7 July received serum from LST-732 by breeches buoy; disembarked at Guam 12 July and embarked 1836th EAB elements (9 officers, 147 men) for Okinawa Shima. (September) Saipan/Guam logistics runs, then the Nagasaki lift. (October) departed Nagasaki 1 October for the Marianas, steering evasive courses around typhoon centers 4-7 October.
- Verification
- verified
- Role
- supporting
- Documentation level
- ship_specific
- Accessed
- 2026-10-02
- Study period
- 1945-04 to 1945-10
- Population
- Ship's company (13 officers/104 enlisted class fit); embarked hospital unit (4 MC officers + 26 corpsmen, from Apr 1945); embarked Army engineer troops (1864th/1836th EAB, Jul 1945); casualties treated aboard (Jul-Sep 1945)
- Limitations
- Primary ship-generated documentation of an actual physical hospital conversion (April-May 1945, Pearl Harbor) - this hull is NOT merely one of the administrative 15 September 1945 designations; she carried a hospital unit and was altered for casualty evacuation months earlier, and she exercised that function underway in July. HOWEVER: the diaries record that alterations were made 'by hospital team' - i.e., the embarked medical unit - and name no shipyard work order, material list, or contractor; the material scope of the conversion (insulation disturbed or installed, interior work) is undocumented. No asbestos content. Diaries for Nov 1945 onward were not located in this series - later months' events (Crossroads period) are covered by other sources only.
- Atlas source
- true
- Evidence ID
- ev-uss-lst-h-871-lsth871-05
-
[6]MARAD Vessel History / USMC Vessel Status Card for LST-871 (vesselhistory.marad.dot.gov Detail/9542, status-card image cards/4BJ_01.png - verified live and card image read 2026-10-02) [marad_nrc]
- Locator
- MARAD vesselhistory Detail/9542, 'Status Cards' tab image 4BJ_01.png (single card)
- Finding type
- historical_record
- Finding
- The Maritime Commission vessel status card for 'LST 871' records basis to U.S.M.C. 'Navy Surplus,' layup at 'Suisun Bay,' sale to 'Humble Oil & Refining Co' under the Surplus Property Act ('SP Act' notation on card), 'Date and Time Delivered 6-30-48.' Corroborates DANFS disposition (sold 30 June 1948 to Humble Oil & Refining Co., Houston, Tex.) and documents the reserve-fleet layup step DANFS omits.
- Verification
- verified
- Role
- supporting
- Documentation level
- ship_specific
- Accessed
- 2026-10-02
- Study period
- 1946-1948
- Population
- Suisun Bay reserve-fleet caretakers 1946-48; Humble Oil & Refining receiving crew 1948
- Limitations
- Administrative disposal record only - establishes layup location, buyer, and delivery date; contains no materials, asbestos, or condition-of-hull information. The card's printed 'SP Act 1936' notation appears to misstate the governing surplus-property act year (1944 is the usual citation) - transcribed as printed; not a material discrepancy for this record. The MARAD ship-history page otherwise carries no narrative, milestones, or additional documents for this hull.
- Atlas source
- true
- Evidence ID
- ev-uss-lst-h-871-lsth871-06
-
[7]ShipbuildingHistory.com, JeffBoat (Jeffersonville Boat & Machine Co.), Jeffersonville IN yard hull table (Tim Colton's compiled MARCOM/yards reference, verified live 2026-10-02); commercial identity corroborated by Naval Marine Archive ships register (ships.navalmarinearchive.com/ships/75675) [other_primary]
- Locator
- shipbuildinghistory.com jeffboat.htm hull table, row 'LST 871'; navalmarinearchive.com ship 75675
- Finding type
- historical_record
- Finding
- JeffBoat hull-table row for this hull: 'LST 871 | US Navy | Landing Ship | 1,625d | 328 | 18-Jan-45 | Later LST(H) 871, sold 1948 as Humble ST-9' with builder's/USCG number 272855 - independently corroborates the LST(H) redesignation, the 1948 commercial sale, and adds the commercial name Humble ST-9 under official number U272855 (also carried by the Naval Marine Archive register entry). Yard context per the same page: JeffBoat was a major inland Ohio River LST builder.
- Verification
- verified
- Role
- supporting
- Documentation level
- ship_specific
- Accessed
- 2026-10-02
- Study period
- 1944-1948
- Population
- JeffBoat construction trades (Jeffersonville, 1944-45)
- Limitations
- Compiled secondary reference (Colton's tables drawn from MARCOM/yard records), not a government publication - used as corroboration for dates already carried by DANFS/NavSource, not as sole support; its 18-Jan-45 delivery/commissioning date sides with DANFS against NavSource's 15 January. Contains no materials or asbestos information. The post-1948 commercial career and ultimate disposition of Humble ST-9 are undocumented in the located sources.
- Atlas source
- true
- Evidence ID
- ev-uss-lst-h-871-lsth871-07
-
[8]Bureau of Naval Personnel, All Hands magazine, August 1945 issue - LST(H) hospital-conversion description (HyperWar/ibiblio verbatim transcription, verified live 2026-10-02); supplemented by DANFS Vol. VII LST type introduction (archived hazegray transcription) [other_primary]
- Locator
- All Hands Aug 1945 pp. ~10-11 (ibiblio AH-4508-3), 'landing ship, tank, hospital' paragraphs; DANFS Vol. VII LST introduction via Wayback capture of hazegray.org/danfs/amphib/lst.htm (live fetch failed, curl 000)
- Finding type
- historical_record
- Finding
- Period Navy documentation of the LST(H) type this hull embodied: All Hands (Aug 1945) describes LST(H)s at Iwo Jima as 'in reality a floating emergency ward' - casualties boatlifted alongside, triaged aboard by Navy doctors and pharmacist's mates, serious cases crane-lowered through a hatch to the tank deck, operating rooms in the former troop quarters port side (three operating tables), post-operative cases cared for forward in the tank deck until transfer to hospital ships in the transport area; ambulances could drive directly into the tank deck through the bow doors onto litter brackets along the bulkheads. DANFS Vol. VII: 'Thirty-eight LST's were converted to serve as small hospital ships.'
- Verification
- verified
- Role
- context
- Documentation level
- class_or_era
- Accessed
- 2026-10-02
- Study period
- 1945
- Population
- LST(H)-embarked medical units; casualties processed through hospital LSTs (type context)
- Limitations
- Type-level description of LST(H) configuration and employment - does not name this hull. It describes the configuration this ship's war diaries document her receiving (hospital unit embarked 24-26 April 1945, 'alterations' for casualty evacuation by 1 May 1945), but does not itself establish her fitout details. No asbestos content.
- Atlas source
- true
- Evidence ID
- ev-uss-lst-h-871-lsth871-08
-
[9]Composite era/design analysis: NavSource machinery documentation (diesel plant, no boilers) + lst-1-class.class.json (BuShips Ships' Data 1945 v2 design grouping, 2x GM 12-567A diesels) + GAO HRD-80-2 policy context [other_primary]
- Locator
- NavSource spec block (page 160871); lst-1-class.class.json design table; war diary conversion entries (NAID 77471946); GAO product page HRD-80-2 (full text blocked, HTTP 403)
- Finding type
- asbestos_application
- Finding
- Era/design inference for a diesel-powered amphibious ship built November 1944 - January 1945 at an inland Ohio River wartime yard in the Navy's peak asbestos-consumption period: NO boilers or steam plant - the steam-lagging pathway does not apply. Plausible asbestos applications on this type concentrate in diesel-engine and exhaust-system insulation, gaskets and packing throughout the engineering spaces, electrical insulation/cable, deck coverings (incl. tank-deck surfaces), accommodation-space insulation, and brake/friction linings on winches and the stern-anchor windlass. Her documented April-May 1945 hospital conversion (interior alteration for casualty evacuation) is a plausible additional disturbance/fitout event, scope undocumented. GAO HRD-80-2 documents that the Navy did not begin systematic asbestos substitution until the 1970s - decades after this hull left government service (sold 1948), so no substitution-era refit ever touched her.
- Verification
- inferred
- Role
- supporting
- Documentation level
- class_or_era
- Accessed
- 2026-10-02
- Study period
- 1944-1948
- Population
- JeffBoat construction trades 1944-45; wartime crew and embarked troops/patients 1945-46; occupation-service personnel 1945-46; JTF-1 complement 1946; Suisun Bay caretakers 1946-48; Humble Oil commercial crew/converters 1948
- Limitations
- Class/era and design inference only - no hull-level material schedule, insulation spec, or survey exists in the public record for this ship. The April-May 1945 conversion work is documented as an event but not as a material scope; whether insulation work accompanied it is unknown. Does not establish presence, absence, or quantity of ACM aboard at any time.
- Atlas source
- true
- Evidence ID
- ev-uss-lst-h-871-lsth871-09
-
[10]GAO HRD-80-2, Navy Efforts To Protect Workers From Asbestos Exposure (published 1979-10-18; product-page description - gao.gov returns HTTP 403 to automated fetches) [gao]
- Locator
- GAO product page HRD-80-2 highlights/summary
- Finding type
- regulatory
- Finding
- Program-level Navy asbestos policy: per the GAO product description, the Navy's 1975 policy removed and replaced with nonasbestos materials only insulation that was damaged or had to be removed for necessary repairs, modified in 1979 to selectively replace asbestos insulation in high-maintenance areas; the Navy reported that ships delivered in later years had little or no asbestos thermal insulation while other Navy ships contained large quantities. Establishes that systematic substitution postdates this hull's entire government service (built 1944-45, sold out of government custody 1948) - no asbestos-era remediation program ever applied to her.
- Verification
- verified
- Role
- context
- Documentation level
- context_only
- Accessed
- 2026-10-02
- Study period
- 1975-1979 policy window; exposure era 1940s-1970s
- Population
- Navy shipyard workforce (program context)
- Limitations
- Program-level document about 1970s policy at Long Beach and Norfolk Naval Shipyards; does not name this hull or establish materials aboard it. Product-page description used because gao.gov blocks automated full-text access (HTTP 403, standing defect since Batch 01).
- Atlas source
- true
- Evidence ID
- ev-uss-lst-h-871-lsth871-10
-
[11]Louisiana Supreme Court bicentennial project, official justice biography - Frank W. Summers (1914-1993), Associate Justice 1960-1978, Chief Justice 1979-1980 (verified live 2026-10-02) [other_primary]
- Locator
- lasc.org bicentennial/justices/Summers_Frank.html; NavSource CO roster; NARA NAID 77471946 (approval signature) and 77559220 (report signature)
- Finding type
- historical_record
- Finding
- This hull's commissioning and wartime commanding officer became the eighteenth Chief Justice of the Louisiana Supreme Court: the court's official biography records that Frank W. Summers, a naval reservist, commanded an amphibious vessel in the Pacific and was discharged with the rank of lieutenant commander in November 1945; NavSource's CO roster dates his command of this hull 15 January - 20 October 1945, and his signature approves the April 1945 war diary and signs the Nagasaki action report (F.W. SUMMERS).
- Verification
- verified
- Role
- context
- Documentation level
- ship_specific
- Accessed
- 2026-10-02
- Study period
- 1945
- Population
- LT Frank W. Summers, USNR (CO, Jan-Oct 1945)
- Limitations
- Vessel-history fact only - establishes that a named individual commanded this hull during construction-era delivery, the hospital conversion, and the Nagasaki lift. It is NOT an exposure record - this record makes no asbestos claim for Summers or any individual. The court biography does not name LST-871; the hull linkage comes from NavSource's CO roster and the signed NARA documents.
- Atlas source
- true
- Evidence ID
- ev-uss-lst-h-871-lsth871-11
-
[12]Batch-6479 search ledger (this record): archived DANFS, NavSource 160871 (live), NHHC JTF-1 composition (live), NARA catalog/digitized war diaries and action report (live, images read), MARAD/USMC status card (live, image read), JeffBoat hull table (live), All Hands Aug 1945 via HyperWar (live), Louisiana Supreme Court bio (live), NARA SL44, NARA logbooks series search, NVR attempt, USCG cutter-file attempt, CourtListener API v4 [other_primary]
- Locator
- search_ledger rows sl-uss-lst-h-871-lsth871-01 through sl-uss-lst-h-871-lsth871-13
- Finding type
- historical_record
- Finding
- No qualifying ship-specific asbestos record located: no asbestos survey, abatement contract, build material schedule, or hazmat disclosure exists in the public sources searched for this hull (see search_ledger). CourtListener type=o '"LST-871"' returned 70 hits - all incidental token matches (statute/paragraph numbers; zero asbestos-keyword hits, zero cases naming the hull). The remaining variant and docket sweeps stayed subject to the fleet-wide ~114/hr authenticated pace for the rest of the session (helper exit 2 pacing notice) - logged as blocked in the ledger, not as negative results.
- Verification
- verified
- Role
- negative_finding
- Documentation level
- ship_specific
- Accessed
- 2026-10-02
- Study period
- 2026-10-02
- Limitations
- Absence of a located public record does not prove absence of asbestos aboard - a 1944-45 diesel-powered hull is consistent with era materials, and the hull passed into commercial service in 1948 before any documentation regime existed. The CourtListener sweep is partially complete (one opinion query run, zero qualifying hits; variant + docket sweeps blocked by fleet pacing). Does not establish that asbestos is or is not present; does not establish or defeat any claim of exposure or legal eligibility.
- Atlas source
- true
- Evidence ID
- ev-uss-lst-h-871-lsth871-12