Evidence
13 evidence entries recorded; each entry has a stable permalink (#ev-1 … #ev-13).
-
[1]research packet xv-packet.md [other_primary]
- Finding type
- vessel_history
- Finding
- Identity packet verdict: VERIFIED
- Verification
- verified
- Role
- supporting
- Documentation level
- ship_specific
- Evidence ID
- uss-pontus-lst201-pkt-xv-packet-md
-
[2]Dictionary of American Naval Fighting Ships, Vol. V (1979), pp. 350-351, 'Pontus (LST-201)' - NHHC online entry (live page 404s as of 2026-10-02; verified via Wayback capture 2024-07-16 and live losthistory.net transcription mirror) [nhhc_danfs]
- Locator
- NHHC canonical URL https://www.history.navy.mil/research/histories/ship-histories/danfs/p/pontus.html (archived 2024-07-16); live mirror https://losthistory.net/hazegray/danfs/amphib/lst201.htm (verified 200 on 2026-10-02)
- Finding type
- vessel_history
- Finding
- DANFS: laid down as LST-201 by Chicago Bridge and Iron Co., Seneca, Ill., 13 July 1942; launched 2 March 1943; reduced commission 24 March 1943, ferried to Algiers, La.; commissioned in full 2 April 1943, Lt. Samuel D. LaRoue, U.S.C.G., in command. Shakedown off Florida; departed 22 May 1943 with LCT-254 on deck; Brisbane 11 Aug 1943; partial conversion to motor torpedo boat tender at Mackay (water distillers, machine and carpentry shops, extra generators, ten-ton crane, embarked Navy repair crew); Milne Bay 18 Oct 1943 conversion completed; Dreger Harbor PT-tender service through fall of Saidor; daily air raids February 1944; Celeo Island off Aitape tending MTBRons 7 and 8, LST as communications base coordinating with R.A.A.F. Renamed Pontus and designated AGP-20 15 August 1944; Brisbane overhaul from 24 August; Mios Woendi 17 November; Leyte PT tending 27 Nov 1944 - 6 Apr 1945; Luzon, Guiuan Harbor (Samar), Malalag Bay (Mindanao), Tawi Tawi Aug 1945 supporting MTBRon 8. Post-hostilities tending/decommissioning at Subic Bay and Guiuan Harbor; sailed home 20 Nov 1945; San Pedro 24 Dec; reported for inactivation New York 5 Feb 1946; decommissioned 2 April 1946; struck from Navy List 1 May 1946; transferred to Maritime Commission for disposal 26 November 1947. Earned 3 battle stars.
- Verification
- verified
- Role
- supporting
- Documentation level
- ship_specific
- Accessed
- 2026-10-02
- Study period
- 1942-1947
- Population
- Ship's company - USCG-manned crew, 1943-1946; embarked Navy repair crew
- Limitations
- Authoritative for identity, construction, conversion narrative, service, and disposal dates. Contains no asbestos, materials, or insulation statement; supports no asbestos claim. Spec block: dp. 4,080 (f.); l. 328'; b. 50'; dr. 14'1"; s. 11.6 k.; cpl. 119; t. 157; a. 1 3", 4 20mm; cl. LST-1.
- Atlas source
- true
- Evidence ID
- ev-uss-pontus-lst201-01
-
[3]U.S. Coast Guard Historian's Office, 'USS Pontus (LST-201), AGP-20' (webcutters PDF); live uscg.mil/history.uscg.mil URL returns 403 to automated fetches as of 2026-10-02; verified via Wayback capture 2017-05-01 [other_primary]
- Locator
- Archived PDF, full text (2 pp.); live URL http://www.uscg.mil/history/webcutters/AGP20_Pontus.pdf (403)
- Finding type
- vessel_history
- Finding
- U.S. Coast Guard Historian's Office cutter file 'USS Pontus (LST-201), AGP-20': reproduces the DANFS entry and confirms the Coast Guard connection - commissioned under Lt. Samuel D. LaRoue, U.S.C.G.; spec block identical to DANFS (cpl. 119; dr. 14'1"); explicitly sources the entry to DANFS Vol. V (1979), pp. 350-351.
- Verification
- verified
- Role
- supporting
- Documentation level
- ship_specific
- Accessed
- 2026-10-02
- Study period
- 1943-1947
- Population
- USCG-manned crew (context)
- Limitations
- Official USCG historical office document; content is the DANFS text re-issued for the cutter file - corroborates USCG-manned status and provides the print citation, adds no independent operational detail. No asbestos content; supports no asbestos claim.
- Atlas source
- true
- Evidence ID
- ev-uss-pontus-lst201-02
-
[4]NavSource Online: Amphibious Photo Archive, 'USS Pontus (AGP-20) ex USS LST-201' (archives/09/09/0920.htm) - verified live 2026-10-02 [other_primary]
- Locator
- NavSource AGP-20 page: header timeline, campaign table, AGP Specifications block, Commanding Officers table, photo NH 44491 caption
- Finding type
- vessel_history
- Finding
- NavSource Amphibious Photo Archive page for USS Pontus (AGP-20) ex USS LST-201: designation timeline (reduced commission 1943-03-24; full commission 1943-04-02; rename/reclassification to Pontus AGP-20 1944-08-15; decommissioned 1946-04-01 at New York; struck 1946-05-01; transferred to Maritime Commission 1947-11-26); Asiatic-Pacific campaign table (Consolidation of northern Solomon Islands 27 Oct 1943 - 1 Mar 1944; Hollandia operations 21 Apr - 4 Jun 1944; Western New Guinea operations 21 Apr - 15 Nov 1944); occupation service 8-20 Nov 1945; 3 battle stars; AGP specifications (displacement 1,780/4,100 t; 328' x 50' x 11'2"; 11.5 kts; complement 37 officers/252 enlisted; 10-ton boom; 2 quad 40mm + 6 single 20mm + machine guns; 2 GM 12-567A diesels, Falk reduction gear, 2 screws 1,800 shp, three 100 kW generators); commanding-officer roster (USCG/USCGR officers LaRoue, McCurdie, Saugstad, Sauer, Emery through 1945-10-17; final CO LT John R. Davison USN to 1946-04-01); NHHC photo NH 44491 showing LST-201 repairing a PT boat in the Philippines circa 1944 via towed pontoon drydock.
- Verification
- verified
- Role
- supporting
- Documentation level
- ship_specific
- Accessed
- 2026-10-02
- Study period
- 1942-1947
- Population
- Ship's company plus embarked PT-tender repair complement
- Limitations
- Volunteer-maintained canonical photo archive cross-checked against NHHC; decommission date (1 Apr 1946) conflicts with DANFS (2 Apr 1946) - see correction row; 'Final Disposition, fate unknown' is superseded by the MARAD status card - see correction row. Contains no asbestos information; supports no asbestos claim.
- Atlas source
- true
- Evidence ID
- ev-uss-pontus-lst201-03
-
[5]shipscribe.com, 'USS Pontus (AGP-20)' (usnaux/AGP/AGP20.html), compiled 2002-2015 - verified live 2026-10-02 [other_primary]
- Locator
- Class Notes and Ship Notes sections; Construction table (keel 13 Jul 42, launch 2 Mar 43, commiss. 2 Apr 43); Disposition table (decomm. 2 Apr 46, strike 1 May 46, disposal/MA sale 26 Nov 47)
- Finding type
- vessel_history
- Finding
- shipscribe.com AGP-20 page (compiled from Navy records by Stephen S. Roberts): partial conversion at Mackay, Australia, between 26 August and 9 October 1943 by the destroyer tender USS Dobbin - water distillers, a large machine shop and a carpenter shop on the tank deck, extra generators, and a ten-ton Lorraine crane forward on the top deck; final conversion touches completed after arrival at Milne Bay 18 Oct 1943; lacking an A-frame hoist she took a pontoon drydock alongside to lift PT boats; late-1943 Navy Department plans to further convert and redesignate her ARTEMIS (AGP-16) were cancelled because she was in intensive New Guinea operations and could not be spared; name PONTUS and classification AGP-20 approved 21 July 1944 effective 15 August; Brisbane overhaul and additional conversion 24 Aug - 17 Oct 1944 added living compartments, enlarged repair facilities, radio-shack improvements, torpedo racks, and a new shop on the tank deck; bow doors remained functional and she beached several times loading supplies for her PT boats; sold by the Maritime Commission as LST-201 for scrap, MA sale dated 26 November 1947.
- Verification
- verified
- Role
- supporting
- Documentation level
- ship_specific
- Accessed
- 2026-10-02
- Study period
- 1943-1947
- Population
- USS Dobbin conversion-yard workforce (Mackay, Aug-Oct 1943); Brisbane overhaul workforce (Aug-Oct 1944); embarked Navy repair crew
- Limitations
- Scholarly compilation from official Navy records (BuShips/NVR-derived), not itself a primary document; conversion detail (Dobbin work list, cancelled ARTEMIS plan, second-conversion scope) is the most complete public account located. Establishes conversion events only - no asbestos materials documentation; supports no asbestos claim.
- Atlas source
- true
- Evidence ID
- ev-uss-pontus-lst201-04
-
[6]U.S. Maritime Administration, ShipHistory database - LST-201, Ship History Detail 9283, including digitized vessel status card (44Y_01.png) [marad_nrc]
- Locator
- ShipHistory Detail 9283 (fate field) and status-card image https://vesselhistory.marad.dot.gov/cards/44Y_01.png (both verified live 2026-10-02); Northern Metal Co. Philadelphia identity: N.Y. Times, '$777,245 Offered for 15 Cargo Ships' (1937-09-01), listing 'the Northern Metal Company of Philadelphia' among Maritime Commission scrapping bidders
- Finding type
- historical_record
- Finding
- MARAD ShipHistory record for LST-201 (Detail 9283): General Type 'Naval Combatant', Specific Type 'LST Tank Landing Ship', MARAD Type 'Military', fate 'Sold - No Further Info'. Digitized vessel status card reads 'LST 201', stamped heading 'Surplus - Department of Navy', operator 'Northern Metal Company', form of agreement 'Pur.' (purchase), and handwritten delivery date '11/26/47' - matching the Navy-to-Maritime-Commission disposal date of 26 November 1947 and documenting sale to Northern Metal Company, the Philadelphia shipbreaking firm (identity corroborated by contemporary Maritime Commission surplus-bid reporting and other Navy scrapping sales).
- Verification
- verified
- Role
- supporting
- Documentation level
- ship_specific
- Accessed
- 2026-10-02
- Study period
- 1947
- Population
- Northern Metal Company shipbreaking workforce (post-Navy custody)
- Limitations
- Authoritative for Maritime Commission custody and the buyer identity; card handwriting partially legible (left-column date annotation reads approximately 'S.P. Oct 1947'). Contains no asbestos, materials, or condition information; supports no asbestos claim.
- Atlas source
- true
- Evidence ID
- ev-uss-pontus-lst201-05
-
[7]Multi-source reconciliation: DANFS (archived NHHC + losthistory mirror); NavSource 09/09/0920; shipscribe AGP-20; MARAD status card 9283/44Y_01; NavalCoverMuseum PONTUS AGP-20 page [other_primary]
- Locator
- Per-source locators in ev-01 through ev-05 and ev-07
- Finding type
- historical_record
- Finding
- Cross-source discrepancies resolved: (a) Decommission date - DANFS, USCG Historian file, shipscribe, and NavalCoverMuseum give 2 April 1946; NavSource gives 1 April 1946; Wikipedia infobox prints 11 April 1946. The DANFS date (2 April 1946) is adopted as controlling. (b) Final fate - NavSource carries 'Final Disposition, fate unknown', but the MARAD vessel status card documents sale to Northern Metal Company delivered 26 November 1947 and shipscribe records 'Sold by MC as LST-201 for scrap' with MARAD sale date 26 November 1947; 'fate unknown' is superseded. (c) Draft - DANFS spec block dr. 14'1" vs NavSource AGP spec 11'2" (limiting draft) vs HyperWar AGP-20 page 13'6"; different load states, not a flat error.
- Verification
- verified
- Role
- correction
- Documentation level
- ship_specific
- Accessed
- 2026-10-02
- Study period
- 1946-1947
- Limitations
- Resolves publication-level discrepancies between secondary compilations using primary documentation where available; does not affect the asbestos assessment. No asbestos content in any cited source.
- Atlas source
- true
- Evidence ID
- ev-uss-pontus-lst201-06
-
[8]NavalCoverMuseum (USCS), 'PONTUS AGP-20' wiki page - post office dates and cover entries [other_primary]
- Locator
- Postmarks section (Post Office Established March 10 1945 - Disestablished February 5 1946; Locy Fz 1945-04-12 censored; Locy 2# 1946-01-04); Ship Name and Designation History section
- Finding type
- historical_record
- Finding
- NavalCoverMuseum philatelic record: ship's post office as PONTUS AGP-20 established 10 March 1945, disestablished 5 February 1946; covers documented in 'PONTUS AGP-20' postal use including censored sailor's mail dated 1945-04-12 (Locy Type Fz) and a 1946-01-04 cover (Locy Type 2#, Br. #15694) - the AGP-20 designation in routine postal use within five months of redesignation. The page's own designation timeline agrees with DANFS on decommission (2 April 1946), strike (1 May 1946), and Maritime Commission transfer (26 November 1947).
- Verification
- verified
- Role
- context
- Documentation level
- ship_specific
- Accessed
- 2026-10-02
- Study period
- 1945-1946
- Limitations
- Collector-community documentation of postmarks/covers - corroborates the AGP-20 designation in postal use and the DANFS milestone dates; not a government source. No asbestos content; supports no asbestos claim.
- Atlas source
- true
- Evidence ID
- ev-uss-pontus-lst201-07
-
[9]Consolidated era inference built on: NavSource AGP-20 specifications block (machinery fit); BuShips Ships' Data U.S. Naval Vessels Vol. 2 (Jan 1945) LST-1 design table via class profile lst-1-class; shipscribe conversion narrative (interior rework scope) [other_primary]
- Locator
- NavSource AGP Specifications block; class-f lst-1-class.class.json design grouping note (BuShips SDB-1945 v2); shipscribe Class Notes
- Finding type
- asbestos_application
- Finding
- Era/design inference for this diesel-powered hull: the LST-1 class carried 2 x GM 12-567A diesels with no boilers, so asbestos-relevant applications would concentrate in engine and generator exhaust lagging, exhaust and machinery gaskets, valve packing, bulkhead and accommodation thermal/acoustic insulation, deck coverings, and winch/windlass brake linings - not boiler/steam-line lagging. The documented 1943-44 tender conversions (machine and carpentry shops on the tank deck, extra generators, additional living compartments, torpedo racks, new shop) represent interior rework typical of the period's material practice.
- Verification
- inferred
- Role
- supporting
- Documentation level
- class_or_era
- Accessed
- 2026-10-02
- Study period
- 1942-1944
- Population
- Construction trades (Chicago Bridge & Iron, Seneca, 1942-43); conversion workforces (Dobbin at Mackay 1943; Brisbane 1944); ship's company and embarked repair crew
- Limitations
- Class/design inference, not a hull record - no source names asbestos aboard this vessel. Diesel plant narrows the steam-lagging pathway; stated applications are era-typical for the type. Does not establish quantity, present-day presence (hull scrapped from 1947), individual exposure, or causation.
- Atlas source
- true
- Evidence ID
- ev-uss-pontus-lst201-08
-
[10]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
- AJIM 11(3):359-373; DOI resolves live (302 to publisher) 2026-10-02
- 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 World War II - the era and program under which this LST-1-class hull was mass-produced at an inland emergency yard - and that wartime federal asbestos-allocation policy made asbestos-containing insulation, gaskets, and packing standard in naval and merchant construction.
- Verification
- verified
- Role
- context
- Documentation level
- class_or_era
- Accessed
- 2026-10-02
- 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 and does not establish that asbestos was aboard this hull, nor quantity, location, condition, exposure, or causation.
- Atlas source
- true
- Evidence ID
- ev-uss-pontus-lst201-09
-
[11]Batch-6749 search ledger (this record): NHHC DANFS (archived) + losthistory mirror; USCG Historian cutter file (archived); NavSource 0920; shipscribe AGP-20; MARAD ShipHistory 9283 + status card; NavalCoverMuseum; Seneca Historical Guild; NARA catalog deck-log search; NVR; CourtListener name/hull/docket searches; secondary web sweeps [other_primary]
- Locator
- search_ledger rows sl-uss-pontus-lst201-01 through sl-uss-pontus-lst201-13
- Finding type
- historical_record
- Finding
- No qualifying ship-specific asbestos record located: no asbestos survey, abatement contract, hazmat disclosure, or docketed case naming LST-201, AGP-20, or Pontus was found in the public sources searched. DANFS, the USCG Historian file, NavSource, shipscribe, the MARAD record and status card, and NavalCoverMuseum contain no asbestos or insulation-material statement. CourtListener opinion searches for "USS Pontus", "AGP-20", "LST-201", and "Pontus"+asbestos returned zero hits; the "LST-201" docket search returned 10 name-collision dockets (OCR-noise matches, none maritime or asbestos). The bare-"Pontus" docket query was fleet-pacing blocked (see search_ledger). Secondary web sweeps surfaced no qualifying case and no law-firm ship page for this hull.
- 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 1942-43 hull built and twice-converted with era-standard materials is consistent with contained asbestos-containing materials. CourtListener coverage near-complete (one bare-name docket query pacing-blocked); hull scrapped from 1947 so no present-day exposure pathway exists. Does not establish or defeat any exposure claim or legal eligibility.
- Atlas source
- true
- Evidence ID
- ev-uss-pontus-lst201-10
-
[12]NARA 'Logbooks of the US Navy at the National Archives' guidance page; NARA catalog search-within series NAID 594258; NARA Guide to Federal Records RG 19/RG 24 [other_primary]
- Locator
- https://www.archives.gov/research/military/logbooks/navy ; catalog.archives.gov/search-within/594258?q=%22LST-201%22 (46 fuzzy hits, none this hull) and q=%22Pontus%22 (11 fuzzy hits, none this hull) 2026-10-02
- Finding type
- historical_record
- Finding
- Archival leads (not retrieved - require research-room or reproduction order; no spend authorized): (a) NARA RG 24 'Logbooks of U.S. Navy Ships and Stations' (Entry 118, series NAID 581208) holds this commissioned ship's 1943-1946 deck logs; the digitized online subset (NAID 594258 series search) contains no LST-201 or Pontus file unit as of 2026-10-02 - logs are paper/microfilm at Archives II, College Park. (b) Bureau of Ships records (RG 19) at NARA may hold conversion/outfitting correspondence for the Mackay and Brisbane tender conversions and the cancelled ARTEMIS (AGP-16) plan. (c) MARAD status-card hard file (Records of the Maritime Administration, RG 357) may hold the Northern Metal Company sales contract.
- Verification
- unverified
- Role
- archival_lead
- Documentation level
- context_only
- Accessed
- 2026-10-02
- Study period
- 1942-1947 records
- Limitations
- Record-group mapping and digitization-status check only - no box-level retrieval performed; existence of asbestos-specific documents for this hull is unknown until surveyed in person. Nothing in this row is an asbestos finding.
- Atlas source
- true
- Evidence ID
- ev-uss-pontus-lst201-11
-
[13]Seneca Historical Guild official site (senecahistory.com) - Prairie Shipyard / 157 LSTs statement [museum_official]
- Locator
- Seneca Historical Guild homepage, Seneca history summary ('Chicago Bridge and Iron operated the Prairie Shipyard. 157 Landing Ship Tanks (LST) were built here.'), verified live 200 on 2026-10-02; corroborated by the LST Association memorial marker at Crotty Park (HMDB m239315)
- Finding type
- historical_record
- Finding
- Builder context: Seneca, Illinois - the 'Prairie Shipyard' operated by Chicago Bridge and Iron on the Illinois River - is documented by the Seneca Historical Guild as having built 157 Landing Ship Tanks (LSTs) during World War II; this hull was one of them. The yard was an inland 'cornfield yard' built for emergency amphibious-ship construction; its wartime workforce is reported at ~27,000 on the LST Association memorial marker.
- Verification
- verified
- Role
- context
- Documentation level
- context_only
- Accessed
- 2026-10-02
- Study period
- 1942-1945
- Population
- Chicago Bridge & Iron Seneca construction workforce (builder context)
- Limitations
- Local-history documentation of the builder yard, not of this hull - establishes only that the yard built 157 LSTs including this one. The '27,000 employees' figure circulates on the memorial marker and local press; not independently verified. No asbestos or materials statement; supports no asbestos claim.
- Atlas source
- true
- Evidence ID
- ev-uss-pontus-lst201-12