Ashland, LSD-1, was the first dock landing ship. Moore Drydock laid her down at Oakland on 22 June 1942, launched her on 21 December 1942, and the Navy commissioned her on 5 June 1943, Lieutenant Commander Francis J. Harris in command. A dock landing ship carries loaded landing craft in a flooded well deck and can serve as a repair ship for them.
She carried amphibious craft to Baker Island in September 1943 and took part in rehearsals for the Gilberts. For the Marshalls she sailed with Task Force 52 on 23 January 1944 and was in the assaults on Kwajalein Island and the other islands of the atoll from 1 to 5 February. On 15 February she embarked marines and equipment at Roi and Namur and went on to Eniwetok, entering the atoll on 17 February and acting as a repair ship there through 29 February.
She launched her boats at Saipan on 15 June 1944 and stayed as a repair ship, and she supported Tinian from 24 July. On 20 October she launched boats for the first assault at Leyte. She was at Lingayen Gulf in January 1945 and at Iwo Jima from 19 February, withdrawing to Eniwetok on 31 March. In the last months of the war she carried PT boats to Kerama Retto and Okinawa. She was at Jinsen, Korea, on 29 September 1945 and tended landing craft in the Far East until January 1946.
She was decommissioned in March 1946 and recommissioned on 27 December 1950. Postwar she took part in Thule, Greenland, and Arctic resupply operations, was fitted to tend six P5M-2 flying boats in 1957, and was decommissioned on 14 September 1957 (DANFS) or 1 September 1957 (NavSource). She was recommissioned on 29 November 1961, served with Amphibious Squadron 4 in the Atlantic, Caribbean and Mediterranean, was decommissioned on 22 November 1969, and was struck three days later. She was sold for scrap on 15 May 1970. She earned seven battle stars.