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USS Dodge County (LST-722)
Encyclopedia
USS Dodge County (LST-722) was an built for the United States Navy
United States Navy
The United States Navy is the naval warfare service branch of the United States Armed Forces and one of the seven uniformed services of the United States. The U.S. Navy is the largest in the world; its battle fleet tonnage is greater than that of the next 13 largest navies combined. The U.S...
during World War II
World War II
World War II, or the Second World War , was a global conflict lasting from 1939 to 1945, involving most of the world's nations—including all of the great powers—eventually forming two opposing military alliances: the Allies and the Axis...
. Named after counties in Georgia
Georgia (U.S. state)
Georgia is a state located in the southeastern United States. It was established in 1732, the last of the original Thirteen Colonies. The state is named after King George II of Great Britain. Georgia was the fourth state to ratify the United States Constitution, on January 2, 1788...
, Minnesota
Minnesota
Minnesota is a U.S. state located in the Midwestern United States. The twelfth largest state of the U.S., it is the twenty-first most populous, with 5.3 million residents. Minnesota was carved out of the eastern half of the Minnesota Territory and admitted to the Union as the thirty-second state...
, Nebraska
Nebraska
Nebraska is a state on the Great Plains of the Midwestern United States. The state's capital is Lincoln and its largest city is Omaha, on the Missouri River....
, and Wisconsin
Wisconsin
Wisconsin is a U.S. state located in the north-central United States and is part of the Midwest. It is bordered by Minnesota to the west, Iowa to the southwest, Illinois to the south, Lake Michigan to the east, Michigan to the northeast, and Lake Superior to the north. Wisconsin's capital is...
, she was the only U.S. Naval vessel to bear the name.
LST-722 was laid down on 15 July 1944 at Jeffersonville, Indiana
Jeffersonville, Indiana
Jeffersonville is a city in Clark County, Indiana, along the Ohio River. Locally, the city is often referred to by the abbreviated name Jeff. It is directly across the Ohio River to the north of Louisville, Kentucky along I-65. The population was 44,953 at the 2010 census...
by the Jeffersonville Boat & Machine Company
Jeffboat
Jeffboat is the largest inland shipbuilder in the United States, located in Jeffersonville, Indiana. It is the second-largest builder of barges...
; launched on 21 August 1944; sponsored by Miss Rosemary Furey; and commissioned on 13 September 1944.
Service history
During World War II, LST-722 was assigned to the Asiatic-Pacific theater and participated in the following operations: Palawan IslandPalawan Island
Palawan Island is the largest island of the Palawan Province, Philippines. The northern coast of the island is along the South China Sea, while the southern coast forms part of the northern limit of the Sulu Sea. This island is very undeveloped and traditional...
landings (February and March, 1945) and Mindanao Island landings (April, 1945). Following the war, LST-722 performed occupation duty in the Far East
Far East
The Far East is an English term mostly describing East Asia and Southeast Asia, with South Asia sometimes also included for economic and cultural reasons.The term came into use in European geopolitical discourse in the 19th century,...
until April 1946. She was decommissioned on 13 July 1946.
Recommissioned on 16 November 1951, the ship was assigned to the Amphibious Force, U.S. Atlantic Fleet, for duty. On 1 July 1955 LST-722 was redesignated USS Dodge County (LST-722). She was decommissioned again on 3 January 1956.
Dodge County was recommissioned once again in 1961, and participated in the Cuban Missile Crisis
Cuban Missile Crisis
The Cuban Missile Crisis was a confrontation among the Soviet Union, Cuba and the United States in October 1962, during the Cold War...
, October to December 1962. Upon completion of this duty she was assigned again to the Amphibious Force, U.S. Atlantic Fleet. She was decommissioned for the final time in October 1969, and struck from the Naval Vessel Register
Naval Vessel Register
The Naval Vessel Register is the official inventory of ships and service craft in custody of or titled by the United States Navy. It contains information on ships and service craft that make up the official inventory of the Navy from the time a vessel is authorized through its life cycle and...
on 15 September 1974.
The ship was transferred and sold to Thailand
Thailand
Thailand , officially the Kingdom of Thailand , formerly known as Siam , is a country located at the centre of the Indochina peninsula and Southeast Asia. It is bordered to the north by Burma and Laos, to the east by Laos and Cambodia, to the south by the Gulf of Thailand and Malaysia, and to the...
under the Security Assistance Program on 1 November 1975 and renamed HTMS Prathong.
LST-722 earned one battle star for World War II service.