USS King County
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| History | |
|---|---|
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| Name: | USS LST-857 |
| Builder: | Chicago Bridge & Iron Company, Seneca, Illinois |
| Laid down: | 19 September 1944 |
| Launched: | 6 December 1944 |
| Commissioned: | 29 December 1944 |
| Decommissioned: | 19 July 1960 |
| Renamed: | USS King County (LST-857), 1 July 1955 |
| Reclassified: | AG-157, 17 May 1958 |
| Struck: | Unknown |
| Honors and awards: |
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| Fate: | Sold for scrapping, 25 April 1961 |
| General characteristics | |
| Class and type: | LST-542-class tank landing ship |
| Displacement: |
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| Length: | 328 ft (100 m) |
| Beam: | 50 ft (15 m) |
| Draft: |
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| Propulsion: | 2 × General Motors 12-567 diesel engines, two shafts, twin rudders |
| Speed: | 12 knots (22 km/h; 14 mph) |
| Boats & landing craft carried: |
2 × LCVPs |
| Troops: | 16 officers, 147 enlisted men |
| Complement: | 7 officers, 104 enlisted men |
| Armament: |
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USS King County (LST-857) was an LST-542-class tank landing ship built for the United States Navy during World War II. Named after counties in Texas and Washington, she was the only U.S. Naval vessel to bear the name.
USS LST-857 was laid down on 19 September 1944 at Seneca, Illinois by the Chicago Bridge & Iron Company; launched on 6 December 1944, sponsored by Mrs. Beatrice S. Major; and commissioned at New Orleans, Louisiana, on 29 December 1944 with Lieutenant Roy C. Parlier in command.
After shakedown off the Florida coast, LST-857 departed New Orleans for the Pacific on 1 February 1945. Steaming via the Panama Canal, she touched the Hawaiian and Marshall Islands and reached Guam on 30 March. There she loaded bombs and ammunition and departed on 21 April for Iwo Jima. Steaming via Saipan, she reached Iwo Jima on 1 May, unloaded her cargo, then sailed on 18 May. Carrying 334 enemy prisoners, she returned to Guam the 21st.
Between 23 and 30 May, LST-857 carried a cargo of fog oil to Okinawa. She supplied ships at Hagushi until 24 June. Returning to Guam on 4 July, she loaded troops and Army construction equipment, then sailed for Okinawa on the 16th. She operated there from 28 July to 5 August; and, after returning to Saipan on 11 August, she loaded cargo and departed for the Philippines on 3 September.
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