USS Douglas County

Last updated

USS Douglas County.jpg
USS LST-731 with LCT-971 loaded on her main deck, entering a harbor probably in 1946. This is possibly San Francisco Bay.
History
US flag 48 stars.svgUnited States
NameUSS LST-731
Builder Dravo Corporation, Neville Island, Pittsburgh
Laid down27 December 1943
Launched12 February 1944
Commissioned30 March 1944
Decommissioned2 June 1950
RenamedUSS Douglas County (LST-731), 1 July 1955
Reclassified
  • LSTH-731, 15 September 1945
  • LST-731, 6 March 1952
Stricken1 November 1958
Honours and
awards
2 battle stars (World War II)
General characteristics
Class and type LST-542-class tank landing ship
Displacement
  • 1,625 long tons (1,651 t) light
  • 3,640 long tons (3,698 t) full
Length328 ft (100 m)
Beam50 ft (15 m)
Draft
  • Unloaded :
  • 2 ft 4 in (0.71 m) forward
  • 7 ft 6 in (2.29 m) aft
  • Loaded :
  • 8 ft 2 in (2.49 m) forward
  • 14 ft 1 in (4.29 m) aft
Propulsion2 × General Motors 12-567 diesel engines, two shafts, twin rudders
Speed12 knots (22 km/h; 14 mph)
Boats & landing
craft carried
2 LCVPs
TroopsApproximately 130 officers and enlisted men
Complement8-10 officers, 89-100 enlisted men
Armament

USS Douglas County (LST-731) was an LST-542-class tank landing ship built for the United States Navy during World War II. Named after counties in 12 states, she was the only U.S. Naval vessel to bear the name.

Contents

LST-731 was laid down on 27 December 1943 at Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania, by the Dravo Corporation of Neville Island; launched on 12 February 1944; sponsored by Mrs. A. J. Ackerman; and commissioned on 30 March 1944.

Service history

During World War II, LST-731 was assigned to the Asiatic-Pacific theater and participated in the following operations: capture and occupation of Guam (July and August, 1944), and assault and occupation of Iwo Jima (February and March, 1945). Following the war, LST-731 was redesignated hospital ship LSTH-731 on 15 September 1945 and performed occupation duty in the Far East until mid-February, 1946. She was decommissioned on 2 June 1950 and redesignated LST-731 on 6 March 1952. The ship received the name USS Douglas County (LST-731) on 1 July 1955 and was struck from the Naval Vessel Register on 1 November 1958. Her final fate is unknown.

LST-731 earned two battle stars for World War II service.

Related Research Articles

USS LST/LST(H)-482/Branch County (LST-482) was an LST-1-class tank landing ship built for the United States Navy during World War II. Later renamed for Branch County, Michigan, she was the only US Naval vessel to bear the name.

USS <i>LST-483</i>

USS LST-483/Brewster County (LST-483) was an LST-1-class tank landing ship built for the United States Navy during World War II. Later renamed for Brewster County, Texas, she was the only US Naval vessel to bear the name.

USS LST-50 was an LST-1-class tank landing ship built for the United States Navy during World War II.

USS <i>LST-521</i>

USS Cape May County (LST-521) was an LST-491-class tank landing ship built for the United States Navy during World War II. Named for Cape May County, New Jersey, she was the only U.S. Naval vessel to bear the name.

USS <i>LST-350</i>

USS LST-350 was one of 390 tank landing ships (LSTs) built for the United States Navy during World War II.

USS <i>Chesterfield County</i> Tank landing ship

USS Chesterfield County (LST-551), originally USS LST-551, was an LST-542-class tank landing ship built for the United States Navy during World War II and in commission from 1944 to 1955 and again in the late 1960s. Named after Chesterfield County, South Carolina, and Chesterfield County, Virginia, she has been the only U.S. Navy vessel to bear the name.

USS <i>Chittenden County</i> American tank landing ship

USS Chittenden County (LST-561), originally USS LST-561, was an LST-542-class tank landing ship built for the United States Navy during World War II. Later named for Chittenden County, Vermont, she was the only U.S. Naval vessel to bear the name.

USS <i>DeKalb County</i>

USS DeKalb County (LST-715) was an LST-542-class tank landing ship built for the United States Navy during World War II. Named after counties in six states, it was the only U.S. Naval vessel to bear the name.

USS <i>LST-849</i>

USS LST-849 was an LST-542-class tank landing ship in the United States Navy during World War II. Late in her U.S. Navy career, she was renamed Johnson County (LST-849)—after counties in Arkansas, Georgia, Illinois, Indiana, Iowa, Kansas, Kentucky, Missouri, Nebraska, Tennessee, Texas, and Wyoming—but never saw active service under that name.

USS <i>LST-900</i> Ship in the US Navy

USS LST-900 was an LST-542-class tank landing ship in the United States Navy during World War II. Late in her career, she was renamed Linn County (LST-900)—after counties in Iowa, Kansas, Missouri, and Oregon—but saw no active service under that name.

USS <i>LST-689</i>

USS LST-689 was an LST-542-class tank landing ship built for the United States Navy during World War II. Late in her career she was renamed Daggett County (LST-689)—after Daggett County, Utah, the only U.S. Naval vessel to bear the name—but never saw active service under that name.

USS <i>Dunn County</i>

USS Dunn County (LST-742) was an LST-542-class tank landing ship built for the United States Navy during World War II. Named after counties in North Dakota and Wisconsin, she was the only U.S. Naval vessel to bear the name.

USS <i>Duval County</i>

The USS Duval County (LST-758) was an LST-542-class tank landing ship that was built for the United States Navy during World War II. Named after counties in Florida and Texas, she was the only U.S. naval vessel to bear the name.

USS <i>LST-761</i>

USS Esmeraldo County (LST-761) was an LST-542-class tank landing ship built for the United States Navy during World War II. Named after an erroneous spelling of Esmeralda County, Nevada, she was the only U.S. Naval vessel to bear the name.

USS <i>Floyd County</i>

USS Floyd County (LST-762) was an LST-542-class tank landing ship built for the United States Navy during World War II. Named after counties in Georgia, Indiana, Iowa, Kentucky, Texas, and Virginia, she was the only U.S. Naval vessel to bear the name.

USS <i>LST-759</i>

USS Eddy County (LST-759) was an LST-542-class tank landing ship built for the United States Navy during World War II. Named after counties in New Mexico and North Dakota, she was the only U.S. naval vessel to bear the name.

USS Ford County (LST-772) was an LST-542-class tank landing ship built for the United States Navy during World War II. Named after counties in Illinois and Kansas, she was the only U.S. Naval vessel to bear the name.

USS <i>Garrett County</i> Tank landing ship of the United States Navy

USS Garrett County (LST-786) was an LST-542-class tank landing ship built for the United States Navy during World War II. Named after Garrett County, Maryland, she was the only U.S. Naval vessel to bear the name.

USS Garfield County (LST-784) was an LST-542-class tank landing ship built for the United States Navy during World War II. Named after counties in Colorado, Montana, Nebraska, Oklahoma, Utah, and Washington, she was the only U.S. Naval vessel to bear the name.

USS <i>LST-871</i>

USS LST-871 was an LST-542-class tank landing ship in the United States Navy. Like many of her class, she was not named and is properly referred to by her hull designation.

References

This article incorporates text from the public domain Dictionary of American Naval Fighting Ships .

See also