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USS San Bernardino County (LST-1110)
Encyclopedia
USS San Bernardino County (LST–1110) 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 for San Bernardino County, California
San Bernardino County, California
San Bernardino County is a county in the U.S. state of California. As of the 2010 census, the population was 2,035,210, up from 1,709,434 as of the 2000 census...
, she was the only U.S. Naval vessel to bear the name.
LST-1110 was laid down on 28 December 1944 by the Missouri Valley Bridge and Iron Company of Evansville, Indiana
Evansville, Indiana
Evansville is the third-largest city in the U.S. state of Indiana and the largest city in Southern Indiana. As of the 2010 census, the city had a total population of 117,429. It is the county seat of Vanderburgh County and the regional hub for both Southwestern Indiana and the...
; launched on 9 February 1945, sponsored by Mrs. Sidney Kolb; placed in reduced commission for transit to New Orleans on 1 March 1945; and commissioned in full on 7 March 1945 with Lieutenant Alton S. Lee, USNR, in command.
World War II, 1945
Following shakedown off FloridaFlorida
Florida is a state in the southeastern United States, located on the nation's Atlantic and Gulf coasts. It is bordered to the west by the Gulf of Mexico, to the north by Alabama and Georgia and to the east by the Atlantic Ocean. With a population of 18,801,310 as measured by the 2010 census, it...
, LST-1110 loaded creosote
Creosote
Creosote is the portion of chemical products obtained by the distillation of a tar that remains heavier than water, notably useful for its anti-septic and preservative properties...
, piles, asphalt
Asphalt
Asphalt or , also known as bitumen, is a sticky, black and highly viscous liquid or semi-solid that is present in most crude petroleums and in some natural deposits, it is a substance classed as a pitch...
, and an LCT and departed New Orleans for Pearl Harbor
Pearl Harbor
Pearl Harbor, known to Hawaiians as Puuloa, is a lagoon harbor on the island of Oahu, Hawaii, west of Honolulu. Much of the harbor and surrounding lands is a United States Navy deep-water naval base. It is also the headquarters of the U.S. Pacific Fleet...
on 15 April. From Oahu
Oahu
Oahu or Oahu , known as "The Gathering Place", is the third largest of the Hawaiian Islands and most populous of the islands in the U.S. state of Hawaii. The state capital Honolulu is located on the southeast coast...
, she carried her cargo on to the Marianas; offloaded the piles and asphalt at Guam
Guam
Guam is an organized, unincorporated territory of the United States located in the western Pacific Ocean. It is one of five U.S. territories with an established civilian government. Guam is listed as one of 16 Non-Self-Governing Territories by the Special Committee on Decolonization of the United...
; took on gasoline
Gasoline
Gasoline , or petrol , is a toxic, translucent, petroleum-derived liquid that is primarily used as a fuel in internal combustion engines. It consists mostly of organic compounds obtained by the fractional distillation of petroleum, enhanced with a variety of additives. Some gasolines also contain...
drums at Saipan
Saipan
Saipan is the largest island of the United States Commonwealth of the Northern Mariana Islands , a chain of 15 tropical islands belonging to the Marianas archipelago in the western Pacific Ocean with a total area of . The 2000 census population was 62,392...
; and, on 20 June, sailed for Okinawa. She offloaded her cargo onto the Hagushi
Hagushi
Hagushi bay was the primary unloading point for American supplies during the invasion of Okinawa during World War II. The bay, at the mouth of the Bishi River , was the dividing line between the First and Sixth US Marine divisions, which landed on the Hagushi beaches to the north, and the Seventh...
beaches and embarked elements of the 6th Marines between 26 June and 10 July; then sailed back to Guam, where she discharged her passengers. Availability at Saipan followed; and, at the end of the month, she moved on to the Solomons to load cargo for the Philippines
Philippines
The Philippines , officially known as the Republic of the Philippines , is a country in Southeast Asia in the western Pacific Ocean. To its north across the Luzon Strait lies Taiwan. West across the South China Sea sits Vietnam...
.
Post-war activities, 1945
The war ended on 15 August; and, four days later, LST-1110 departed GuadalcanalGuadalcanal
Guadalcanal is a tropical island in the South-Western Pacific. The largest island in the Solomons, it was discovered by the Spanish expedition of Alvaro de Mendaña in 1568...
. On the 30th, she anchored off Calicoan Island
Calicoan Island
Calicoan Island is a Philippine island, and is part of the town of Guiuan, in the province of Eastern Samar. It lies east of Leyte Gulf, off the southeast point of Samar.The island can be reached from Tacloban City by a two-hour bus ride.-External links:*...
and completed offloading by 11 September. The LST then shifted to San Pedro Bay
San Pedro Bay (Philippines)
San Pedro Bay is a bay in the Philippines, at the northwest end of Leyte Gulf, about 15 km east-west and 20 km north-south. The bay is bounded on the north and east by Samar and on the east by Leyte Island. It is connected by San Juanico Strait to Carigara Bay of the Samar Sea. The...
, whence she proceeded to Lingayen Gulf
Lingayen Gulf
The Lingayen Gulf is an extension of the South China Sea on Luzon in the Philippines stretching . It is framed by the provinces of Pangasinan and La Union and sits between the Zambales Mountains and the Cordillera Central...
to join Amphibious Group 8 to participate in the occupation of eastern Honshū
Honshu
is the largest island of Japan. The nation's main island, it is south of Hokkaido across the Tsugaru Strait, north of Shikoku across the Inland Sea, and northeast of Kyushu across the Kanmon Strait...
. Departing Luzon
Luzon
Luzon is the largest island in the Philippines. It is located in the northernmost region of the archipelago, and is also the name for one of the three primary island groups in the country centered on the Island of Luzon...
on 26 September, LST-1110 disembarked elements of the 8th Field Artillery, 25th Division, I Army Corps, at Nagoya on 25 and 26 October; then got underway to return to Lingayen Gulf
Lingayen Gulf
The Lingayen Gulf is an extension of the South China Sea on Luzon in the Philippines stretching . It is framed by the provinces of Pangasinan and La Union and sits between the Zambales Mountains and the Cordillera Central...
. In November, she transported Quartermaster Corps personnel to Sasebo
Sasebo, Nagasaki
is a city located in Nagasaki Prefecture, Japan. As of 2011, the city has an estimated population of 259,800 and the density of 609 persons per km². The total area is 426.47 km². The locality is famed for its scenic beauty. The city includes a part of Saikai National Park...
, then sailed east. On the 27th, she arrived at Iwo Jima
Iwo Jima
Iwo Jima, officially , is an island of the Japanese Volcano Islands chain, which lie south of the Ogasawara Islands and together with them form the Ogasawara Archipelago. The island is located south of mainland Tokyo and administered as part of Ogasawara, one of eight villages of Tokyo...
; embarked 20th Air Force personnel; and continued on to Saipan where she discharged her passengers on 5 December. LST-1110 remained at Saipan through December; and, on 8 January 1946, she sailed for Pearl Harbor and the California
California
California is a state located on the West Coast of the United States. It is by far the most populous U.S. state, and the third-largest by land area...
coast.
1946–1953
Arriving at San PedroSan Pedro, Los Angeles, California
San Pedro is a port district of the city of Los Angeles, California, United States. It was annexed in 1909 and is a major seaport of the area...
on 11 February 1946, she underwent overhaul at Long Beach
Long Beach Naval Shipyard
thumb|right|300px|Long Beach Naval Shipyard in 1993The Long Beach Naval Shipyard, which closed in 1997, was located at Terminal Island between the city of Long Beach and the San Pedro district of Los Angeles and approximately 23 miles south of the Los Angeles International Airport.The Long Beach...
; and, in June, proceeded to San Diego where she reported to ComPhibPac for duty. For the next two years, she provided amphibious training and logistic support services along the West Coast
West Coast of the United States
West Coast or Pacific Coast are terms for the westernmost coastal states of the United States. The term most often refers to the states of California, Oregon, and Washington. Although not part of the contiguous United States, Alaska and Hawaii do border the Pacific Ocean but can't be included in...
.
Then, in the summer of 1948, she commenced the first of many Arctic logistic support missions. She departed Port Hueneme on 25 June; proceeded to San Francisco, whence she continued north, with , to Seattle and Alaska
Alaska
Alaska is the largest state in the United States by area. It is situated in the northwest extremity of the North American continent, with Canada to the east, the Arctic Ocean to the north, and the Pacific Ocean to the west and south, with Russia further west across the Bering Strait...
n points. Later joined by the ice breaker, , she reached Nome
Nome
Nome may refer to:A country subdivision:* Nome an administrative division within ancient Egypt.* Nome , the administrative division immediately below the peripheries of Greece Places:* Nome, Norway* Nome, Alaska, US...
on the 29th; and, on the 31st, moved on to other northern stations: Point Lay, Barter Island
Barter Island
Barter Island is an island located on the Arctic coast of the U.S. state of Alaska, east of Arey Island in the Beaufort Sea. It is about four miles long and about two miles wide at its widest point....
, and Point Barrow
Point Barrow
Point Barrow or Nuvuk is a headland on the Arctic coast in the U.S. state of Alaska, northeast of Barrow. It is the northernmost point of all the territory of the United States, at...
. In mid-August, she began to move south again and arrived at Long Beach on the 28th. On 16 September, she returned to San Diego and resumed amphibious training and logistics operations along the California coast. For the next five years, she maintained a similar schedule, operating in the arctic
Arctic
The Arctic is a region located at the northern-most part of the Earth. The Arctic consists of the Arctic Ocean and parts of Canada, Russia, Greenland, the United States, Norway, Sweden, Finland, and Iceland. The Arctic region consists of a vast, ice-covered ocean, surrounded by treeless permafrost...
during the summer and off California for the remainder of each year.
1953–1957
In the fall of 1953, LST-1110 was dispatched to HawaiiHawaii
Hawaii is the newest of the 50 U.S. states , and is the only U.S. state made up entirely of islands. It is the northernmost island group in Polynesia, occupying most of an archipelago in the central Pacific Ocean, southwest of the continental United States, southeast of Japan, and northeast of...
for winter training exercises. In February 1953, she returned to San Diego; and, in September, she sailed west again for her first peacetime deployment to 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,...
. Departing San Diego on the 20th, she arrived at Yokosuka, Japan
Japan
Japan is an island nation in East Asia. Located in the Pacific Ocean, it lies to the east of the Sea of Japan, China, North Korea, South Korea and Russia, stretching from the Sea of Okhotsk in the north to the East China Sea and Taiwan in the south...
on 22 October and began six months of cargo operations and training exercises in Japanese and Korea
Korea
Korea ) is an East Asian geographic region that is currently divided into two separate sovereign states — North Korea and South Korea. Located on the Korean Peninsula, Korea is bordered by the People's Republic of China to the northwest, Russia to the northeast, and is separated from Japan to the...
n waters. On 12 April 1955 she departed Inchon for home and arrived at San Diego on the 28th. At the end of June, LST-1110 resumed Arctic resupply operations; and, on 1 July, while deployed, she was named USS San Bernardino County.
Southern California
Southern California is a megaregion, or megapolitan area, in the southern area of the U.S. state of California. Large urban areas include Greater Los Angeles and Greater San Diego. The urban area stretches along the coast from Ventura through the Southland and Inland Empire to San Diego...
in October and remained there until February 1956, when she was transferred to Pearl Harbor. She arrived at her new home port on 2 March, conducted operations from there through May; but, in June, she again sailed north. Her reassignment to Pearl Harbor did not change her summer deployments; and, in that year and in 1957, she carried supplies to Arctic bases. On 13 September 1957, she completed her last Alaskan mission.
Crew:
My father Cliff Ryerson was assigned to be Chief Quartermaster (navigator) on the 1110 during this period of time. A few great things happened for me as a young boy with my dad's assignment to the San Bernardino County.
First: Getting to move back to Hawaii from kindergarten to 3rd grade. My first air plane ride (San Diego to San Francisco) First sea cruise from San Fran to Hawaii, I can remember looking up at the bottom of the Golden Gate bridge.
Second: Arriving to where the 1110 was beached in a remote corner of Pearl Harbor I believe on Middle Loch there on the deck of the 1110 was a Bell 47 Army helicopter. Suspect this was the start of my love affair with helicopters. Since then I not only earned my private and commercial pilot licenses, I also built and flew a great kit helicopter the CH-7 Angel designed by Augusto Cicare.
I must have bugged my dad about wanting to go to sea with him on the 1110. Before Tiger cruises were conceived, I got to go on a 7-10 day deployment to the Big Island from Pearl when the 1110 took the Army on maneuvers. What great memories the 1110 holds for me, especially of a young sailor named BJ that carved me a wooden bat out of a 2X4 one day. Tendering in from Hilo bay where the 1110 laid at anchor and my dad n I went ashore to see the movie Moby Dick. Getting the chance to electrically control the 1110's guns , left n right, up n down. :)
Decommissioning and sale
On 31 December 1957, she was placed in commission, in reserve; and, on 15 August 1958 she was decommissioned for transfer to the Republic of ChinaRepublic of China
The Republic of China , commonly known as Taiwan , is a unitary sovereign state located in East Asia. Originally based in mainland China, the Republic of China currently governs the island of Taiwan , which forms over 99% of its current territory, as well as Penghu, Kinmen, Matsu and other minor...
. The following day, the transfer was completed, and the LST was commissioned as Chung Chiang (LST-225). USS San Bernardino County was 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 6 February 1959. Chung Chiang was discarded by the Republic of China in 1993, her final fate unknown.