USS San Bernardino County (LST-1110) underway in a consolidated ice belt, northeast of Point Barrow, Alaska, during "DEW Line" support operations, 11 September 1955 |
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| Career (United States) | |
|---|---|
| Name: | USS LST-1110 |
| Builder: | Missouri Valley Bridge & Iron Company, Evansville, Indiana |
| Laid down: | 28 December 1944 |
| Launched: | 9 February 1945 |
| Commissioned: | 1 March 1945 |
| Renamed: | USS San Bernardino County (LST-1110), 1 July 1955 |
| Decommissioned: | 15 August 1958 |
| Struck: | 6 February 1959 |
| Honors and awards: |
1 battle star (World War II) |
| Fate: | Sold to the Republic of China, 16 August 1958 |
| Career (Republic of China) | |
| Name: | ROCS Chung Chiang (LST-225) |
| Acquired: | 16 August 1958 |
| Decommissioned: | 1993 |
| Fate: | Unknown |
| General characteristics | |
| Class and type: | LST-542-class tank landing ship |
| Displacement: | 1,625 long tons (1,651 t) light 4,080 long tons (4,145 t) full |
| Length: | 328 ft (100 m) |
| Beam: | 50 ft (15 m) |
| Draft: | Unloaded : 2 ft 4 in (0.71 m) forward 7 ft 6 in (2.29 m) aft Loaded : 8 ft 2 in (2.49 m) forward 14 ft 1 in (4.29 m) aft |
| Propulsion: | 2 × General Motors 12-567 diesel engines, two shafts, twin rudders |
| Speed: | 12 knots (22 km/h; 14 mph) |
| Boats and landing craft carried: |
4 × LCVPs |
| Troops: | 16 officers, 147 enlisted men |
| Complement: | 7 officers, 104 enlisted men |
| Armament: | • 2 × twin 40 mm guns w/Mk.51 directors • 4 × single 40 mm guns • 12 × single 20 mm guns |
USS San Bernardino County (LST–1110) was an LST-542-class tank landing ship built for the United States Navy during World War II. Named for San Bernardino County, California, 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; 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.
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Following shakedown off Florida, LST-1110 loaded creosote, piles, asphalt, and an LCT and departed New Orleans for Pearl Harbor on 15 April. From Oahu, she carried her cargo on to the Marianas; offloaded the piles and asphalt at Guam; took on gasoline drums at Saipan; and, on 20 June, sailed for Okinawa. She offloaded her cargo onto the Hagushi 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.
The war ended on 15 August; and, four days later, LST-1110 departed Guadalcanal. On the 30th, she anchored off Calicoan Island and completed offloading by 11 September. The LST then shifted to San Pedro Bay, whence she proceeded to Lingayen Gulf to join Amphibious Group 8 to participate in the occupation of eastern Honshū. Departing 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. In November, she transported Quartermaster Corps personnel to Sasebo, then sailed east. On the 27th, she arrived at Iwo Jima; 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 coast.
Arriving at San Pedro on 11 February 1946, she underwent overhaul at 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.
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 Summit County (LST-1146), to Seattle and Alaskan points. Later joined by the ice breaker, USS Burton Island, she reached Nome on the 29th; and, on the 31st, moved on to other northern stations: Point Lay, Barter Island, and Point Barrow. 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 during the summer and off California for the remainder of each year.
In the fall of 1953, LST-1110 was dispatched to Hawaii 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. Departing San Diego on the 20th, she arrived at Yokosuka, Japan on 22 October and began six months of cargo operations and training exercises in Japanese and Korean 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.
She returned to southern California 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. :)
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 China. 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 on 6 February 1959. Chung Chiang was discarded by the Republic of China in 1993, her final fate unknown.
LST-1110 received one battle star for World War II service.
This article incorporates text from the public domain Dictionary of American Naval Fighting Ships. The entry can be found here.
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