Built as a LST-1 class tank landing ship by Jeffersonville Indiana Boat & Machine Co, Jeffersonville, Indiana for the USA Navy.
28 July 1943 launched
Tonnage 1.780 ton standard, 3.880 ton full load, dim. 79.99 x 15.24 x 4.30 (maximum draught).
Powered by two General Motors 12-567 diesel engines, twin shafts, speed
Armament 5 – 40mm, 6 – 20mm guns, 2 – 50 cal. and 4 30 cal. MG.
Crew 8- 10 officers and 100-115 men.
Could carry around 140 troops.
Carried 2 to 6 LCVP craft.
01 September 1943 commissioned as LST-119, under command of Lt. R.D. Dewar.
She was assigned to the Asiatic-Pacific theater
January 1944 she embarked marines of the First Platoon, Company C, First Armoured Battalion, Fourth Marine Division and their equipment and proceeded to Kauai HI.
After more training she sailed from there on 20 January 1944 for the invasion of the Marshall Islands.
On the 31st she anchored in 20 fathoms of water off Roi Island and began discharging the LVT’s, LVTA’s and LVT2’s off the bow ramp.
Later was she assigned in the Marshall Islands as the Fleet Post Office in the Majuro Atoll.
21 April she sailed for Pearl Harbour and berthed in the West Loch, a few hours for the disastrous explosion on board the LST-353 on 21 May 1944 during the handling of ammunition.
Six LST near the LST-353 were sunk and two severe damaged. The explosion cost the life of 163 men and 396 were wounded.
The LST 119 moved to the K docks for loading for the upcoming invasion of the Mariana Islands. When loading was completed the LST 119 returned to West Loch where she assisted in recovering bodies from the water.
On 28 May 1944, after loading the personnel and gear of the 894th Engineer Aviation Battalion, she got underway for Saipan as flagship for the Northern Defense Group. The Engineers were bound for the construction of an airfield on Saipan. On the 20th of June she unloaded her deck cargo of self propelled barges and then beached and unloaded the Engineers and all their equipment. During the night of the 22nd the ship was hit by artillery fire from Tinian Island. The shell entered the fantail. at the water line, into the steering engine room and the stern void tank which was filled with fresh water. Extensive damage was done to the steering equipment but the fresh water absorbed the blast preventing the explosion from reaching the magazine which was immediately forward of the void tank. After temporary repairs were made the LST 119 left Saipan on the 3rd of July for Pearl Harbor and thence to San Pedro, CA.
After dry dock repairs were made, the LST 119 left for San Diego where she was assigned to the Amphibious Training Command. The LST 119 spent the remainder of the war training troops in amphibious landings and operations. She was also assigned to various experimental operations with pontoons, small boat radar, small amphibious tracked vehicles, etc.
In October 1945 the LST 119 sailed for Santa Barbara, CA, where she participated in the filming by MGM Studios of the movie to be ultimately titled "Gallant Bess". The movie can still be seen on TV from time to time. Eleven days of filming the ship in various situations and operations have resulted in, at best, 5 minutes of screen time.
In March 1946 the ship left San Diego for the last time and sailed for Panama and thence to Charleston, SC, where she was decommissioned on the 13th of May and struck from the Navy Register on 19 June, 1946. On 17 May, 1948 she was sold to the Beattie Oil Transport Company of New Orleans, LA, for conversion to a non self-propelled operation. Fate unknown
LST 119 earned two battle stars for her WWll service.
Marshall Islands 1989 25c sg 232, scott 230c
Mostly downloaded from http://www.intercom.net/~whynes/1st119.html
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