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NavSource Online: Amphibious Photo Archive

LST-74

Awards, Citations and Campaign Ribbons

Precedence of awards is from left to right
American Campaign Medal - Europe-Africa-Middle East Campaign Medal (2) - World War II Victory Medal

LST-1 Class Tank Landing Ship:

Laid down, 1 January 1943, at Jeffersonville Boat & Machine Co, Jeffersonville, IN.

Launched, 31 March 1943

Commissioned USS LST-74, 15 June 1943

During World War II LST-74 was assigned to the European Theater and participated in the following actions/campaigns:

**Europe-Africa-Middle East Campaigns**
Campaign and Dates	Campaign and Dates
*Convoy UGS-36*, April 1944	Invasion of southern France, August and September 1944

Decommissioned, 21 December 1945

Struck from the Naval Register, 21 January 1946

Final Disposition, sold, 22 September 1947, to the Southern Shipwrecking Co., New Orleans, La., and subsequently scrapped

LST-74 earned two battle stars for World War II service

Specifications: (as reported by Office of Naval Intelligence-1945)
Displacement 1,625 t.(lt), 4,080 t.(fl) (sea-going draft w/1675 ton load)
Length 328' o.a.
Beam 50'
Draft

(light) - 2' 4" fwd, 7' 6" aft

(sea-going) 8' 3" fwd, 14' 1" aft

(landing) 3' 11" fwd, 9' 10" aft (landing w/500 ton load)
Speed 12 kts. (maximum)
Endurance 24,000 miles @ 9kts. while displacing 3960 tons
Complement

9 officers, 120 enlisted
Troop Accommodations

14 officers, 131 enlisted
Boats 6 LCVP
Cargo Capacity (varied with mission - payloads between 1600 and 1900 tons)

Typical loads

One Landing Craft Tank (LCT), tanks, wheeled and tracked vehicles, artillery, construction equipment and military supplies. A ramp or elevator forward allowed vehicles access to tank deck from main deck

Additional capacity included sectional pontoons carried on each side of vessel amidships, to either build Rhino Barges or use as causeways. Married to the bow ramp, the causeways would enabled payloads to be delivered ashore from deeper water or where a beachhead would not allow the vessel to be grounded forward after ballasting
Armament (varied with availability when each vessel was outfitted. Retro-fitting was accomplished throughout WWII. The ultimate armament design for United States vessels was

2 - Twin 40MM gun mounts w/Mk. 51 directors

4 - Single 40MM gun mounts

12 single 20MM gun mounts
Propulsion two General Motors 12-567, 900hp diesel engines, two shafts, twin rudders

Size	Image Description	Contributed By
168k	*LST-74* and *LST-140* loading for the invasion of southern France, at Naples, Italy, August 1944	Rich Heller Sgt. William Heller's World War II Memoirs 3rd Infantry Division, U.S. Army 1943-1945
171k	*LST-526, LST-140, LST-74 and LST-174* loading for the invasion of southern France, at Naples, Italy, August 1944	Rich Heller Sgt. William Heller's World War II Memoirs 3rd Infantry Division, U.S. Army 1943-1945
85k	*LST-603, LST-74* and *LST-141* load soldiers of the *US 3rd Infantry Division* at Bagnoli harbor, in the Formio area of Italy, 31st July, 1944, during an embarkation exercise prior to Operation 'Dragoon' the Invasion of Southern France.	Robert Hurst

View the LST-74
DANFS history entry located at the US Naval Historical Center web site

Crew Contact And Reunion Information
U.S. Navy Memorial Foundation
Fleet Reserve Association

Additional Resources and Web Sites of Interest
LST Home Port
State LST Chapters
United States LST Association

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Last Updated 27 October 2006