Evidence
9 evidence entries recorded; each entry has a stable permalink (#ev-1 … #ev-9).
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[1]DANFS, LST-931 - construction, commissioning, Iwo Jima and Okinawa campaigns, LSTH-931 redesignation, decommissioning, disposal (live NHHC page, verified 2026-10-02) [nhhc_danfs]
- Locator
- DANFS service narrative, LST-931 entry
- Finding type
- vessel_history
- Finding
- Documented for this hull: 'laid down on 13 June 1944 at Hingham, Mass., by the Bethlehem-Hingham Shipyard, Inc.; launched on 19 July 1944; and commissioned on 11 August 1944, Lt. E. L. Berenbach in command.' Assigned to the Asiatic-Pacific theater; participated in the assault and occupation of Iwo Jima in February 1945 and of Okinawa Gunto April through June 1945. 'On 15 September 1945, she was re-designated LSTH-931 and performed occupation duty in the Far East until late October 1945.' Decommissioned 26 June 1946; struck from the Navy list 31 July 1946; 'On 12 June 1948, she was sold to the Walter W. Johnson Co. for scrapping.' Two battle stars for WWII service.
- Verification
- verified
- Role
- context
- Documentation level
- ship_specific
- Accessed
- 2026-10-02
- Study period
- 1944-1948
- Population
- Bethlehem-Hingham construction trades (1944); crew (1944-46); embarked troops and casualties (1945)
- Limitations
- Ship-specific history only; no asbestos or material content. DANFS names Lt. E. L. Berenbach as commissioning CO while NavSource's CO roster lists LT. Joseph A. Romig at commissioning with Berenbach assuming command 9 September 1944 - conflict carried in gaps. DANFS gives no location for the conversion or decommissioning.
- Atlas source
- true
- Evidence ID
- ev-uss-lst-h-931-lsth931-01
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[2]NavSource Online: Amphibious Photo Archive, USS LST(H)-931 ex USS LST-931 - designation timeline, unit assignments, campaign table, specifications, CO roster, photo record (live page, verified 2026-10-02) [other_primary]
- Locator
- NavSource 10/16/160931.htm header block, campaign table, specifications block, CO roster, photo captions
- Finding type
- vessel_history
- Finding
- NavSource timeline for this hull: LST-542 class; laid down 13 June 1944 at Bethlehem-Hingham Shipyard, Inc., Hingham MA; launched 19 July 1944; commissioned USS LST-931 11 August 1944 (LT. Joseph A. Romig, USNR, in command). WWII assignment: Asiatic-Pacific Theater - LST Flotilla Twenty-One (CAPT. W. H. Brereton), LST Group Sixty-One (CAPT. R. M. MacKinnon), LST Division One Hundred Twenty-One. Campaign table: Iwo Jima operation 19-28 February 1945; Okinawa Gunto operation 1 April - 7 June 1945. Redesignated Landing Ship Tank (Hospital) LST(H)-931 on 15 September 1945; Far East occupation service 2 September - 28 October 1945; decommissioned 26 June 1946; struck 31 July 1946; sold for scrapping 12 June 1948 to Walter W. Johnson Co. Specifications: 1,625 t light / 4,080 t full / 2,366 t beaching; 328 ft oa; 50 ft beam; 11.6 kt; complement 13 officers / 104 enlisted; troop accommodations 16 officers / 147 enlisted; 2 LCVP; two GM 12-567A 900hp diesels, single Falk main reduction gear, three 100kW ship's-service generators, two propellers 1,700 shp. CO roster: Romig (11 Aug - 9 Sep 1944), Berenbach (9 Sep 1944 - Dec 1945), Evers (Dec 1945 - May 1946), Schlatter (May - 26 Jun 1946). Photos: nine LSTs incl. LST-931 moored at Okinawa 1945; USS LST-931 in San Francisco Bay c. 1945-46 (NHHC photo NH 83647).
- Verification
- verified
- Role
- context
- Documentation level
- ship_specific
- Accessed
- 2026-10-02
- Study period
- 1944-1948
- Population
- Bethlehem-Hingham construction trades (1944); crew (1944-46); embarked troops/casualties (1945); shipbreakers, Walter W. Johnson Co. (1948)
- Limitations
- NavSource is a volunteer secondary compilation, not a primary registry - its milestone dates agree with DANFS here, but its commissioning-CO attribution (Romig) conflicts with DANFS (Berenbach); carried in gaps. Contains no asbestos content. The 1948 scrapping predates modern ACM-handling regulation; no hazmat or material record for the breakup was located.
- Atlas source
- true
- Evidence ID
- ev-uss-lst-h-931-lsth931-02
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[3]'Tonight at Iwo Jima' - crew letter dated 14 July 1945 enclosing an eyewitness account of the ship's tank deck converted to a front-line hospital ship off Iwo Jima (scanned document hosted on the NavSource LST-931 page, contributed by Jay de Wolf; OCR transcription this session) [other_primary]
- Locator
- NavSource 10/16/pdf/160931a.pdf, 2-page scan ('Tonight at Iwo Jima' + cover letter)
- Finding type
- historical_record
- Finding
- A serving member of the crew described this ship's hospital role at Iwo Jima in 1945: 'I am standing on the vast tank deck of a huge landing ship which has been converted into a front line hospital ship... The scene before me has never been witnessed in any other war' - rows of canvas cots, navy corpsmen, doctors and surgeons, an operating room, casualties ferried 'a few hundred yards' from the beach by assault boat. The letter is dated Western Pacific, 14 July 1945. This documents the hull functioning as a casualty-receiving hospital ship during the Iwo Jima operation (Feb-Mar 1945) - months before the formal LST(H) designation of 15 September 1945.
- Verification
- partial
- Role
- archival_lead
- Documentation level
- ship_specific
- Accessed
- 2026-10-02
- Study period
- 1945
- Population
- LST-931 crew; attached medical personnel; casualties received aboard (Iwo Jima, 1945)
- Limitations
- Attribution limitation: the document text does not name the hull - it is associated with LST-931 by its archival placement on NavSource's LST-931 page (curated by NavSource's amphibious archive manager). A participant-authored account, not a Navy record; scanned image OCR'd this session. Establishes functional hospital conversion at Iwo Jima, not where/when conversion work was performed and not any material content. No asbestos content.
- Atlas source
- true
- Evidence ID
- ev-uss-lst-h-931-lsth931-03
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[4]ShipbuildingHistory.com (T. Colton), 'Bethlehem-Hingham, Hingham MA' production list - yard no. 3401 = LST-931, build dates and disposition (live page, verified 2026-10-02) [other_primary]
- Locator
- Bethlehem-Hingham production table, yard no. 3401 row
- Finding type
- vessel_history
- Finding
- Independent yard-list corroboration for this hull: Bethlehem-Hingham yard number 3401, LST 931, ordered under the 1943 program, laid 13-Jun-44, launched 19-Jul-44, delivered 11-Aug-44 (59 days on the books), disposition printed as 'Scrapped 1947'.
- Verification
- verified
- Role
- context
- Documentation level
- ship_specific
- Accessed
- 2026-10-02
- Study period
- 1944-1948
- Population
- Bethlehem-Hingham construction trades (1944)
- Limitations
- Builder-list secondary source compiled from official records - corroborates dates and supplies the yard number, but its 'Scrapped 1947' conflicts with DANFS/NavSource 'sold for scrapping 12 June 1948' (sale vs completed breakup distinction unresolved - see gaps). No asbestos content.
- Atlas source
- true
- Evidence ID
- ev-uss-lst-h-931-lsth931-04
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[5]Bureau of Ships, Ships' Data, U.S. Naval Vessels, Vol. 2 (Jan 1945), LST design table and roster (shipscribe.com scan; verified live 2026-10-02 at /pubs/ path - the class profile's older /styles/usnaux/sdb/ path now 404s) [other_primary]
- Locator
- SDB1945v2 LST design table (propulsion/machinery rows for LST542-931 block); NavSource 160931 spec block
- Finding type
- asbestos_application
- Finding
- Era/design inference for diesel-powered LST-542-class hulls: the BuShips-documented plant is two GM 12-567A diesels (this hull's block, LST542-931) with no boilers - asbestos-relevant applications aboard were diesel exhaust lagging and gaskets, engine-room thermal/acoustic insulation, deck coverings/tile, bulkhead and accommodation insulation, and winch/crane brake linings, within the Navy's documented asbestos-use era. Her hospital conversion added interior rework scope (tank deck refitted with wards/operating spaces per the crew memoir) - conversion-period interior materials are an unverified addition to the era-inference list.
- Verification
- inferred
- Role
- supporting
- Documentation level
- class_or_era
- Accessed
- 2026-10-02
- Study period
- 1944-1948
- Population
- Construction trades at Bethlehem-Hingham (1944); crew (1944-46); conversion-yard trades (1944-45, location undocumented); shipbreakers (1948)
- Limitations
- Class/era inference only - no hull-specific insulation survey, material list, or work package located for LST-931/LST(H)-931. Names era-standard applications, not confirmed installed materials; no quantities; no manufacturer attribution for this hull. Does not establish exposure for any individual.
- Atlas source
- true
- Evidence ID
- ev-uss-lst-h-931-lsth931-05
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[6]U.S. Naval Institute, Naval History (Jun 2021), 'The Bethlehem-Hingham Shipyard in World War II' (W. Buckley) - yard operating window, workforce, and production tempo (live page, verified 2026-10-02) [reputable_press]
- Locator
- USNI Naval History, Vol. 35 No. 3 (Jun 2021) article body
- Finding type
- historical_record
- Finding
- Builder-yard context for this hull: Bethlehem-Hingham operated December 1941 through 1945 on 150 cleared acres; workforce peaked above 23,500 daily (including 2,700+ women); trades included welders, painters, riggers, shipfitters, and pipe fitters. The yard produced Evarts-, Edsall-, Cannon-, and Buckley-class destroyer escorts and LSTs, set records for build tempo ('five landing ship tanks in 50 hours'), and received the Army-Navy 'E' award. USNI prints a total of 227 ships built; other secondary sources print 277 - unresolved (see gaps).
- Verification
- verified
- Role
- context
- Documentation level
- context_only
- Accessed
- 2026-10-02
- Study period
- 1941-1945
- Population
- Bethlehem-Hingham yard workforce (1941-45; peak >23,500 daily)
- Limitations
- Yard-level context, not a hull record - documents the construction-era population and tempo at the builder but names no materials aboard this hull and contains no asbestos content. Widely replicated claims that Hingham workers faced asbestos exposure rest on law-firm marketing pages, not on this or any located authoritative source - excluded by source policy.
- Atlas source
- true
- Evidence ID
- ev-uss-lst-h-931-lsth931-06
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[7]GAO, Navy Efforts To Protect Workers From Asbestos Exposure, HRD-80-2 (Oct 18, 1979) [gao]
- Locator
- GAO product page HRD-80-2
- 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 existence (construction 1944, service 1944-46, scrapping 1948).
- Verification
- verified
- Role
- context
- Documentation level
- context_only
- Accessed
- 2026-10-02
- 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, per prior sessions) - content via product-page description.
- Atlas source
- true
- Evidence ID
- ev-uss-lst-h-931-lsth931-07
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[8]NARA, Logbooks of U.S. Navy Ships and Stations (RG 24), College Park - WWII-era deck logs for this hull (1944-46), including any hospital-conversion and casualty-evacuation entries (verified live 2026-10-02) [other_primary]
- Locator
- NARA logbooks landing page; catalog.archives.gov query 'LST-931' (JS-rendered, no fetchable result)
- Finding type
- historical_record
- Finding
- Deck logs for USS LST-931/LST(H)-931 (August 1944 - June 1946) exist within NARA RG 24 holdings at College Park but are not located in digitized public sources; they are the primary unexploited record for the hull's conversion, casualty loading, and availability history. The National Archives catalog (catalog.archives.gov) is JS-rendered and returned no fetchable LST-931 result this session.
- Verification
- partial
- Role
- archival_lead
- Documentation level
- ship_specific
- Accessed
- 2026-10-02
- Study period
- 1944-1946
- Population
- Crew and medical detachment (1944-46)
- Limitations
- Archival lead only - deck-log existence is established by series coverage (WWII LST logs are standard RG 24 holdings), but the LST-931 volumes were not individually confirmed in the online catalog (JS-rendered; unfetchable to automated search). No content reviewed; no asbestos content.
- Atlas source
- true
- Evidence ID
- ev-uss-lst-h-931-lsth931-08
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[9]Batch-6482 search ledger (this record): NHHC DANFS (live); NavSource 160931 page + memoir PDF; shipbuildinghistory.com yard list; uboat.net cross-check; shipscribe BuShips SDB-1945 v2; USNI yard history; NVR; NARA; CourtListener API v4 opinion and RECAP docket sweeps [other_primary]
- Locator
- search_ledger rows sl-uss-lst-h-931-lsth931-01 through -13
- Finding type
- historical_record
- Finding
- No qualifying ship-specific asbestos record located: no asbestos survey, abatement contract, hazmat disclosure, or litigation naming USS LST-931/LST(H)-931 was found in the public sources searched. CourtListener returned zero opinion documents for 'LST-931', 'LST 931', and 'LSTH-931'/'LST(H)-931' variants, and zero RECAP dockets for 'LST-931' and 'LST 931'; a yard-level 'Bethlehem-Hingham' asbestos sweep returned one name-collision opinion (Copra v. Suro, 236 F.2d 107, 1st Cir. 1956 - a Puerto Rico longshore-union jurisdiction case, not asbestos). The class-level CourtListener sweep (class-f profile) likewise found no asbestos docket naming any specific LST hull. The only 'asbestos aboard' material located anywhere is law-firm marketing content asserting asbestos on LSTs generally without primary sourcing - excluded by source policy.
- 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 hull scrapped in 1948 predates asbestos documentation regimes by decades, and the era inference is affirmative. Undigitized leads remain: NARA RG 24 deck logs, conversion/availability work packages, and the Walter W. Johnson Co. scrapping contract. Does not establish or defeat any claim of exposure or legal eligibility.
- Atlas source
- true
- Evidence ID
- ev-uss-lst-h-931-lsth931-09