USN · LST
AfloatTank landing ship, LST-855, later named Kent County. Chicago Bridge and Iron, at Seneca, Illinois, laid her down on 6 September 1944 and launched her on 27 November 1944. Mrs. Jean Henning Hoerner sponsored the launch. Another reading of her name is Jeanne H. Hoerner. Commissioned on 21 December 1944. Lieutenant (junior grade) Thomas P. Kierl, USNR, had her through December 1945. She served in the Asiatic-Pacific theater, including a beach at Okinawa in 1945, then occupation duty in the Far East. Decommissioned at Bremerton on 15 February 1950, recommissioned on 3 November 1950 for the Korean War, six battle stars. Named Kent County on 1 July 1955. One account says 15 July. Decommissioned on 22 January 1958 and sunk as a target on 19 March 1958.
| Type | Tank landing ship (LST) |
|---|---|
| Hull | LST-855 |
| Builder | Chicago Bridge and Iron, Seneca |
| Launched | 1944-11-27 |
| Commissioned | 1944-12-21 |
| Fate | Afloat. Decommissioned at Bremerton on 15 February 1950 and placed in the Pacific Reserve Fleet, Columbia River Group. Recommissioned on 3 November 1950. Decommissioned again on 22 January 1958. Sunk as a target on 19 March 1958. One account strikes her name that same day. Another leaves the strike date blank. |
| Command |
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Laid down, displacement, length, beam, draft, speed, and complement are not stored for each hull, so this table leaves them out.
LST-855 about 1955, the hull number 855 on the bow. Lieutenant Richard Rodman Justice had her then. His son, John R. Justice, placed this print on Wikimedia Commons in 2017. The file is marked a work of the U.S. government. The upload note says it is probably an official Navy photograph.
The pictures on this page are the originals.
No color version yet. Colored pictures and film will be added here.
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