Evidence
11 evidence entries recorded; each entry has a stable permalink (#ev-1 … #ev-11).
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[1]research packet 742-packet.md [other_primary]
- Finding type
- vessel_history
- Finding
- Identity packet verdict: VERIFIED
- Verification
- verified
- Role
- supporting
- Documentation level
- ship_specific
- Evidence ID
- uss-lyman-county-lst903-pkt-742-packet-md
-
[2]DANFS, Lyman County (LST-903) entry - construction, sponsor, commissioning, WWII Pacific service, decommissioning, 1955 naming, target designation, striking, 1959 sinking; spec block. Live NHHC page 404s under both /research/histories/ship-histories/danfs/l/lyman-county.html and the /content/history/nhhc/ variant; verbatim entry retrieved via Wayback capture (2004-03-14) of the Naval Historical Center page. [nhhc_danfs]
- Locator
- DANFS Lyman County entry, full text and spec block (Wayback capture of history.navy.mil/danfs/l33/lyman_county.htm)
- Finding type
- vessel_history
- Finding
- Documented for this hull: 'LST-903 was laid down by Dravo Corp., Pittsburgh, Pa., 15 October 1944; launched 23 December 1944; sponsored by Mrs. E. W. Wilson; and commissioned at New Orleans, La., 20 January 1945, Lt. John B. Darrow in command.' After shakedown out of St. Andrews Bay, Fla., departed New Orleans 21 February for the Pacific; via Panama Canal and San Diego reached Pearl Harbor 27 March; 7 weeks amphibious training in Hawaiian waters; embarked Army troops and loaded LVTs; convoyed for the Marianas 20 May; via Eniwetok arrived Saipan 10 June; 11 July supply run to Okinawa and Guam; operating out of Saipan at the conclusion of hostilities; 23-29 August to Leyte Gulf for Philippine supply runs; 20 September-4 November two occupation-troop runs Manila Bay to Yokohama; departed Japan 11 November, via Marianas and Pearl Harbor reached San Diego 31 December. West-coast operations 5 months; Puget Sound 1 June 1946 for deactivation; 'She decommissioned at Vancouver, Wash., 10 September and entered the Pacific Reserve Fleet. Named Lyman County 1 July 1955, she was designated a target ship 20 October 1958. Her name was struck from the Navy list 1 November. On 28 March 1959 she was torpedoed by Menhaden (SS-377) off the coast of Baja, California, and sank in 720 fathoms.' Spec block: dp. 1,625; l. 328'; b. 50'; dr. 14'1"; s. 12 k.; cpl. 119; a. 8 40mm., 12 20mm.; cl. LST-511. 'A county in south-central South Dakota.'
- Verification
- verified
- Role
- context
- Documentation level
- ship_specific
- Accessed
- 2026-10-03
- Study period
- 1944-1959
- Population
- Dravo construction trades (1944-45); crew (1945-46)
- Limitations
- Ship-specific official history only; no asbestos or material content. Spec-block class field reads 'LST-511' while BuShips design grouping and NavSource put this hull in the LST-542 group - a class-label variant, not a different ship (see gaps). Wayback capture used because the live NHHC URL returns 404 on 2026-10-03.
- Atlas source
- true
- Evidence ID
- ev-uss-lyman-county-lst903-01
-
[3]NavSource Online: Amphibious Photo Archive, USS Lyman County (LST-903) ex USS LST-903 (10/16/160903.htm, last updated 31 January 2020) - designation timeline, wartime organization, occupation-service dates, specifications, awards, commanding-officer list, photo captions, radio call sign NJRH [other_primary]
- Locator
- NavSource 10/16/160903.htm header block, timeline, specifications block, awards, CO list, photo caption
- Finding type
- vessel_history
- Finding
- NavSource timeline for this hull: laid down 15 October 1944 at Dravo Corp., Pittsburgh, PA; launched 23 December 1944; commissioned 20 January 1945, LT. John B. Darrow USNR in command. Asiatic-Pacific Theater assignment: LST Flotilla Thirty-Two (CAPT. D. J. Sweeny), LST Group Ninety-Five (CDR. J. Capponi USNR), LST Division One Hundred Eighty-Nine. Occupation service in the Far East 23 September-20 October 1945. Decommissioned 10 September 1946 at Vancouver, WA; laid up Pacific Reserve Fleet, Columbia River Group; renamed USS Lyman County (LST-903) 1 July 1955; designated a target 20 October 1958; struck from the Naval Register 1 November 1958; final disposition - torpedoed and sunk by USS Menhaden (SS-377) 28 March 1959 off Baja California in 720 fathoms. Specifications: 1,625 t lt / 4,080 t fl / 2,366 t beaching; 328' oa x 50'; drafts 2'4"f/7'6"a light to 14'1" max navigation; 11.6 kts trial; endurance 24,000 miles at 9 kts displacing 3,960 t; complement 13 officers + 104 enlisted; troop accommodations 16 officers + 147 enlisted; 2 LCVP; ultimate-design armament 2 twin 40mm + 4 single 40mm + 12 single 20mm; diesel 4,300 bbls; propulsion two GM 12-567A 900-hp diesels, single Falk main reduction gear, two propellers 1,700 shp, twin rudders, three diesel-drive 100-kW 230-V DC generators. Ribbons: American Campaign Medal; Asiatic-Pacific Campaign Medal; WWII Victory Medal; Navy Occupation Medal (Asia clasp). Commanding officers: LT. Darrow (20 Jan 1945-Mar 1946); LTjg. Edward M. Lawrence USN (Mar-22 Apr 1946). Photo: NH 84703, LST-903 and LST-901 at anchor circa 1945-46 (NHHC photo via D.M. McPherson).
- Verification
- verified
- Role
- context
- Documentation level
- ship_specific
- Accessed
- 2026-10-03
- Study period
- 1944-1959
- Population
- Crew (1945-46); Pacific Reserve Fleet and target-preparation personnel (1946-59)
- Limitations
- NavSource is a volunteer secondary compilation, not a primary registry - milestone dates cross-check cleanly against DANFS this session (no conflicts found). The specification block is class-standard data (armament note: 'varied with availability when each vessel was outfitted'), not a hull-specific loadout record. Contains no asbestos content.
- Atlas source
- true
- Evidence ID
- ev-uss-lyman-county-lst903-02
-
[4]Era inference built on: BuShips Ships' Data 1945 Vol. II LST design table (ev-04); NavSource specification block for this hull's page (ev-02); GAO HRD-80-2 Navy asbestos-era documentation (ev-06); class profile lst-1-class.class.json ev-03 asbestos_application [other_primary]
- Locator
- BuShips SDB1945v2 LST design table; NavSource 10/16/160903.htm specifications block
- Finding type
- asbestos_application
- Finding
- A tank landing ship built October-December 1944 at Dravo Corp., Neville Island, sits inside the Navy's documented asbestos-use era. Era-standard applications aboard a diesel-powered amphibious vessel of this type and period were GM diesel exhaust lagging and gaskets, engine-room thermal/acoustic insulation, deck coverings/tile, bulkhead and accommodation insulation, winch/crane brake linings, and electrical insulation. The diesel main plant (no main-propulsion boilers or turbines) removes the large steam-lagging pathway of steam vessels; the remaining pathways stand. Asbestos aboard this hull is a reasonable era-consistent inference, not a ship-proven fact.
- Verification
- inferred
- Role
- supporting
- Documentation level
- class_or_era
- Accessed
- 2026-10-03
- Study period
- 1944-1959
- Population
- Dravo Neville Island construction trades (1944-45); crew (1945-46); reserve-fleet and target-preparation personnel (1946-59)
- Limitations
- Class/era inference only - no hull-specific insulation schedule, asbestos survey, or material list located for LST-903. Names era-standard applications, not confirmed installed materials; no quantity; no manufacturer attribution for this hull.
- Atlas source
- true
- Evidence ID
- ev-uss-lyman-county-lst903-03
-
[5]Bureau of Ships, Ships' Data, U.S. Naval Vessels, Vol. II (April 1945), LST design table + roster (shipscribe.com scan, text layer; verified live 2026-10-03 at the relocated /pubs/ URL - the /styles/usnaux/sdb/ path cited by the class profile is dead) [other_primary]
- Locator
- SDB1945v2 LST design table, LST542-931 group row (propulsion columns)
- Finding type
- historical_record
- Finding
- The official BuShips design table places hulls 542-931 (this hull's block) in the LST-542 design group: 328 ft oa, 50 ft beam, ~2,366 t light / 3,960-4,080 t trial, 11.6 kts, 2 GM 12-567A diesels at 1,700 shp, accommodations 13 officers/106 enlisted - the same class design data underlying this hull's documented propulsion (twin-screw GM 12-567A diesels via a Falk reduction gear, per the NavSource specification block).
- Verification
- verified
- Role
- context
- Documentation level
- class_or_era
- Accessed
- 2026-10-03
- Study period
- 1945
- Population
- n/a - design table
- Limitations
- Class design documentation - the table names design groups, not this hull; it contains no asbestos or material-composition data. Accommodation figure (106 enlisted) differs slightly from the NavSource complement itemization (104 enlisted) - carried in gaps.
- Atlas source
- true
- Evidence ID
- ev-uss-lyman-county-lst903-04
-
[6]Fleischer WE, Viles FJ Jr, 'A health survey of pipe covering operations in constructing naval vessels,' J Ind Hyg Toxicol 28 (1946 Jan): 9-16, PMID 21016030 [other_primary]
- Locator
- PubMed title, bibliographic record, and MeSH terms (verified via NCBI esummary, PMID 21016030)
- Finding type
- gov_survey
- Finding
- A 1946 U.S. Public Health Service survey titled 'A health survey of pipe covering operations in constructing naval vessels' documents the wartime naval-vessel pipe-covering occupation; its PubMed record identifies the article, authors, journal, and publication date. This establishes era occupational context for naval-vessel construction (the period in which this hull was built), not material aboard LST-903.
- Verification
- verified
- Role
- context
- Documentation level
- class_or_era
- Accessed
- 2026-10-03
- Study period
- 1946
- Population
- Naval-vessel pipe-covering workers
- Limitations
- PubMed provides no abstract for this item and does not name LST-903 or establish a specific product, quantity, location, exposure, or causation aboard this hull; retained as era context only. Bibliographic record verified via NCBI E-utilities; the pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov web page itself is cookie-gated to direct fetch.
- Atlas source
- true
- Evidence ID
- ev-uss-lyman-county-lst903-05
-
[7]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), active service (1945-46), and reserve/target period (1946-59).
- Verification
- verified
- Role
- context
- Documentation level
- context_only
- Accessed
- 2026-10-03
- Study period
- 1979
- Population
- Navy shipyard workers; asbestos program review
- Limitations
- Program-level documentation, not an LST-903 record; supports era context only. The full report was not retrieved this session (gao.gov blocks automated fetch, HTTP 403, confirmed 2026-10-03) - content via product-page description. Does not establish that asbestos was aboard this sunken hull or that any person was exposed.
- Atlas source
- true
- Evidence ID
- ev-uss-lyman-county-lst903-06
-
[8]OSTI.GOV technical-report records for the builder yard: NIOSH, 'Industrial-hygiene survey report of Dravo Corporation, Engineering Works Division, Neville Island, Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania' (survey July 1981; report July 1985; OSTI 6065127; IWS-74.46) and Billings & Lazar (Johns Hopkins), 'Walk-through survey report, Dravo Corporation, Engineering Works Division, Neville Island, Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania, January 30, 1979' (report June 1980; OSTI 6587634; IWS-074.46.10) [other_primary]
- Locator
- OSTI biblio pages 6065127 and 6587634 (abstracts; full text not digitized)
- Finding type
- gov_survey
- Finding
- Two government occupational surveys of this hull's builder yard exist and were examined via OSTI abstracts: a 1979 walk-through for the shipbuilding-industry segment of a painters' health-hazard investigation (1,200 production personnel; the yard designing and building barges and towboats) and a July 1981 industrial-hygiene survey of painting/coating processes during barge and towboat construction (organic solvents, metals, nuisance dust; lead and dust exceeding OSHA standards; solvent mixture exceeding the NIOSH additive TLV in the inner hull area). Neither abstract treats asbestos as a subject. The records confirm the Dravo Engineering Works Division, Neville Island, as an operating shipyard with documented occupational hygiene investigations.
- Verification
- verified
- Role
- context
- Documentation level
- class_or_era
- Accessed
- 2026-10-03
- Study period
- 1979-1985 (survey/report era)
- Population
- Dravo Engineering Works Division workforce (1979-81 surveys; ~1,200 production personnel); painter cohorts
- Limitations
- Yard-level documentation, not a hull record: both surveys postdate this hull's 1944 construction by three-plus decades and address painting/coating hazards, not insulation materials; 'asbestos' is absent from both abstracts. OSTI holds no digital full text - abstract-level review only. Establishes neither presence nor absence of asbestos in wartime construction at the yard or aboard this hull.
- Atlas source
- true
- Evidence ID
- ev-uss-lyman-county-lst903-07
-
[9]National Archives and Records Administration, Special List No. 44, by Ship Numbers [other_primary]
- Locator
- SL-44 ship-number index, LST-903 rows (PDF layout text, 1/20/1945-6/30/1945)
- Finding type
- historical_record
- Finding
- NARA Special List No. 44, by ship number, lists LST-903 with deck-log coverage 20 January 1945 through 30 June 1945 (two index entries) - the hull's commissioned wartime period from commissioning to the eve of her Okinawa/Guam supply run. An archival lead for the vessel's wartime record; no logbook volume was retrieved.
- Verification
- verified
- Role
- archival_lead
- Documentation level
- ship_specific
- Accessed
- 2026-10-03
- Study period
- 1945
- Population
- Ship's company and wartime operations
- Limitations
- The index confirms logbook coverage dates, not the contents of the logs. No logbook volume was retrieved and this row makes no asbestos or exposure finding. Whether later-1945 through 1946 logs and any reserve-fleet/target-preparation records exist for this hull was not confirmed this session.
- Atlas source
- true
- Evidence ID
- ev-uss-lyman-county-lst903-08
-
[10]Batch-7446 search ledger (this record): DANFS (live 404, via Wayback), NavSource (live), NavalCoverMuseum (live), NARA Special List 44 (live), BuShips SDB-1945 v2 at relocated URL (live), PubMed/NCBI (bibliographic verification), GAO product page (403), OSTI Dravo records (live), NVR (no page), NARA Catalog API (JS-rendered, unfetchable), CourtListener authenticated helper (quota-blocked), secondary-web litigation sweep [other_primary]
- Locator
- search_ledger rows sl-uss-lyman-county-lst903-01 through -12
- 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-903 / USS Lyman County was found in the public sources searched. The DANFS entry and NavSource page contain no asbestos, insulation-material, survey, or abatement content. CAVEAT: CourtListener could not be searched this session - the authenticated fleet helper reported the shared daily quota exhausted at the first request (~04:00 CDT; server-requested wait ~29,557 s ~8.2 h); the exact-name and hull-number sweeps are unrun, logged as blocked in the search ledger, not as a negative result. The class-level sweep (class profile ev-04) found only an incidental 'USS LST 579' reunion-listing mention in a scanned exhibit - no asbestos docket naming any specific LST hull. Secondary web sweeps surfaced only law-firm marketing pages asserting asbestos aboard LST-class hulls without primary sourcing (mesothelioma-firm listicles) - excluded by source policy.
- 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 (quota-blocked, not run). Deck logs (20 Jan-30 Jun 1945 per Special List 44), any BuShips work packages, and any reserve-fleet or target-preparation records for this hull are undigitized leads. The hull lies in 720 fathoms off Baja California - sunk 1959, predating ACM-handling regulation, so no disposal hazmat record exists to find. Does not establish or defeat any claim of exposure or legal eligibility.
- Atlas source
- true
- Evidence ID
- ev-uss-lyman-county-lst903-09
-
[11]Naval Marine Archive (Canadian Collection), 'Landing Ships, Tank (LST): Part 3 of 4 - LST 797 through LST 1155' registry table (page dated 3 May 2015) vs. DANFS Lyman County entry (ev-01) [other_primary]
- Locator
- navalmarinearchive.com lstpart3.html, LST-903 row; DANFS Lyman County entry (custody chain)
- Finding type
- historical_record
- Finding
- CORRECTION: the navalmarinearchive registry table carries this hull's disposition as 'To China 1946, Lyman County' (keel/launch/delivery dates in its columns otherwise match: 15-Oct-44 / 23-Dec-44 / 20-Jan-45). That disposition is a documented error: DANFS places this hull in continuous U.S. Navy custody from commissioning to sinking - decommissioned at Vancouver, WA, 10 September 1946, Pacific Reserve Fleet, renamed in reserve 1 July 1955, target designation 20 October 1958, struck 1 November 1958, torpedoed by Menhaden (SS-377) and sunk off Baja California 28 March 1959. No China transfer or loan occurred for this hull.
- Verification
- verified
- Role
- correction
- Documentation level
- ship_specific
- Accessed
- 2026-10-03
- Study period
- 1945-1959
- Limitations
- Corrects a circulating secondary-source disposition error, not a material claim. The error likely reflects table-row misattribution (genuine China transfers occurred for neighboring LST-9xx hulls). No asbestos content either way.
- Atlas source
- true
- Evidence ID
- ev-uss-lyman-county-lst903-10