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NavSource Online: Amphibious Photo Archive
Contributed by Mike Smolinski

USS St Clair County (LST-1096)
ex
 USS LST-1096 (1945 - 1955)


International Radio Call Sign:
November - Alpha - Tango - Juliet
 NATJ
Awards, Citations and Campaign Ribbons





Precedence of awards is from top to bottom, left to right
Top Row - Combat Action Ribbon (2-Vietnam, 23-24 July 1968 and 30 July 1968) - Navy Unit Commendation - American Campaign Medal
Second Row - Asiatic-Pacific Campaign Medal (1) - World War II Victory Medal - Navy Occupation Service Medal (with Asia clasp)
Third Row - National Defense Service Medal (2) - Korea Service Medal (5) - Armed Forces Expeditionary Medal (3- Quemoy-Matsu)
Fourth Row - Vietnam Service Medal (2) - Republic of Vietnam Gallantry Cross Unit Citation (5) - Philippine Liberation Medal
Fifth Row - United Nations Service Medal - Republic of Vietnam Campaign Medal - Republic of Korea War Service Medal (retroactive)
LST-542 Class Tank Landing Ship:
  • Laid down, 27 November 1944, at Jefferson Boat and Machine Co., Jeffersonville, IN.
  • Launched, 10 January 1945
  • Commissioned USS LST-1096, 2 February 1945, LT. Lester W. Sperberg in command
  • During World War II USS LST-1096 was assigned to the Asiatic-Pacific Theater and participated in the following campaign:
    Asiatic-Pacific Campaign
    Campaign and Dates
    Okinawa Gunto operation
    Assault and occupation of Okinawa Gunto, mid-May to 1 July 1945
  • Decommissioned, 24 August 1946, at Astoria, OR.
  • Laid up in the Pacific Reserve Fleet, Columbia River Group
  • Recommissioned, 3 October 1950, at Puget Sound Naval Shipyard, Bremerton, WA.
  • During The Korean War USS LST-1096 participated in the following campaigns:
    Korean War Campaigns
    Campaign and Dates Campaign and Dates
    Communist China Spring Offensive
    20 June to 8 July 1951     		Third Korean Winter
    16 January to 1 March 1953
    13 to 26 April 1953
    UN Summer-Fall Offensive
    8 to 12 July 1951     		Korean Summer-Fall 1953
    7 to 17 May 1953
    27 May to 11 June 1953
    16 to 17 June 1953
    14 to 17 July 1953
    23 to 26 July 1953
    Korean Defense Summer-Fall 1952
    27 to 29 November 1952     		.

  • Named USS St. Clair County (LST-1096), 1 July 1955
  • During the Vietnam War USS St. Clair County (LST-1096) participated in the following campaigns:
    Vietnam War Campaigns
    Campaign and Dates Campaign and Dates
    Vietnam Counteroffensive
    21 to 28 February 1966
    7 June to 11 July 1966     		Vietnam Counteroffensive - Phase V
    25 July to 9 August 1968
    25 November to 11 December 1968

  • Decommissioned, 26 September 1969, at Bremerton, WA.
  • Laid up in the Pacific Reserve Fleet, Bremerton Group
  • Struck from the Naval Register, 1 April 1975
  • Sold for scrapping, 1 December 1975, by the Defense Reutilization and Marketing Service (DRMS) to Max Rouse & Sons, Beverly Hills, CA
  • Taken in hand by Marine Industries, Tacoma, WA. for conversion to commercial service
  • Sold to Landing System Technology Pte. Ltd., Singapore (Lauritz Kloster, Norway) and renamed MV LST 5 in 1976
  • Arrived at Piraeus, Greece having been acquired by Maritime & Commercial Co. Argonaftis S.A., Panama (Greek flag) and renamed MV Petrola 145, 30 June 1978
  • Entered Service, 20 September 1980
  • Sold for demolition in 1988
  • Final Disposition, scrapped.
  • USS St. Clair County earned one battle star for World War II service, five battle stars for Korean War service and two campaign stars for Vietnam War 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
    7 officers, 104 enlisted
    Troop Accommodations
    16 officers, 147 enlisted
    Boats 2 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
    Click On Image
    For Full Size Image    		 Size Image Description Source
    USS LST-1096
    St Clair County 36k USS LST-1096 underway, date and location unknown.
    US Navy photo    		 .
    St Clair County 11k USS LST-1096 underway, date and location unknown. LST Home Page web site
    Kent County 67k USS LST-1096 and USS LST-855 beached at Paengnyong-Do, Korea, December 1953 . D. E. Blackmore USS LST-855
    USS St Clair County (LST-1096)
    LCT-1273 177k A small mobile crane is loaded aboard beached LCU-1273 while DUKWs roll through doors of USS St. Clair County (LST 1096) during preparations for joint Navy-Marine amphibious exercises in the Pacific, circa 1956.
    US Navy photo from "All Hands" magazine, August 1956 issue.    		 Joe Radigan MACM USN Ret.
    St Clair County 22k USS St. Clair County (LST-1096) underway off Long Beach, CA., fall 1960 E. J. Morris, USS St. Clair County1959-1961
    Westchester County 184k USS Washoe County (LST-1165), USS Summit County (LST-1146) and USS St. Clair County (LST-1096) beached at Chu Lai, South Vietnam, circa 1966. Rich Krebs USS USS Washoe County (LST-1165)
    View the USS St. Clair County (LST-1096)
    DANFS history entry located at the US Naval Historical Center
    Crew Contact And Reunion Information
    U.S. Navy Memorial Foundation
    Fleet Reserve Association
    Additional Resources and Web Sites of Interest
    Mobile Riverine Force Association
    LST Home Port
    State LST Chapters
    United States LST Association
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    This page is created and maintained by Gary P. Priolo
    © 2005 Gary P. Priolo © 1996 - 2008 NavSource Naval History. All Rights Reserved.
    Last Updated 25 July 2008