Please report any broken links or trouble you might come across to the Webmaster. Please take a moment to let us know so that we can correct any problems and make your visit as enjoyable and as informative as possible.

NavSource Online: Amphibious Photo Archive

USS LST-847


International Radio Call Sign:
November - India - Kilo - Lima
 NIKL
Awards, Citations and Campaign Ribbons


Precedence of awards is from top to bottom, left to right
Top Row - China Service Medal (extended) - American Campaign Medal
Bottom Row - Asiatic-Pacific Campaign Medal - World War II Victory Medal - Navy Occupation Service Medal (with Asia clasp)
542 Class Tank Landing Ship:
  • Laid down, 1 November 1944, at American Bridge Co., Ambridge, PA.
  • Launched, 17 December 1944
  • Commissioned USS LST-847, 15 January 1945, LT. Robert S. Marshall, USNR, in command
  • During and following World War II USS LST-847 was assigned to the Asiatic-Pacific Theater:
    LST Flotilla Thirty-One, CAPT. H. S. Covington USN (23);
     LST Group Ninety-Three CDR. E. R. Sperry USN (23);
     LST Division One Hundred Eighty-Six
  • Following World War II USS LST-847 was assigned to Occupation and China service in the Far East for the following periods:

    Navy Occupation Service Medal
    China Service Medal (extended)
    25 December 1945 to 6 March 194625 December 1945 to 6 March 1946

  • Decommissioned, 16 June 1946
  • Struck from the Naval Register, 31 July 1946
  • Sold for operation, 13 May 1948, to Alexander Shipyards, Inc., New Orleans, LA.
  • Final Disposition, fate unknown
    Specifications:
    Displacement
    1,625 t.(lt)
    4,080 t.(fl) (sea-going draft w/1675 ton load)
    2,366 t. (beaching displacement)
    Length 328' o.a.
    Beam 50'
    Draft
    light 2' 4" fwd, 7' 6" aft
    sea-going 8' 3" fwd, 14' 1" aft
    landing 3' 11" fwd, 9' 10" aft (landing w/500 ton load)
    limiting 11' 2"
    maximum navigation 14' 1"
    Speed 11.6 kts. (trial)
    Endurance 24,000 miles @ 9kts. while displacing 3960 tons
    Complement
    13 officers
    104 enlisted
    Troop Accommodations
    16 officers
    147 enlisted
    Boats 2 LCVP
    Cargo Capacity (varied with mission - payloads between 1600 and 1900 tons)
    Typical loads
    One Landing Craft Tank (LCT), tanks, wheeled and tracked vehicles, artillery, construction equipment and military supplies. A ramp or elevator forward allowed vehicles access to tank deck from main deck
    Additional capacity included sectional pontoons carried on each side of vessel amidships, to either build Rhino Barges or use as causeways. Married to the bow ramp, the causeways would enabled payloads to be delivered ashore from deeper water or where a beachhead would not allow the vessel to be grounded forward after ballasting
    Armament (varied with availability when each vessel was outfitted. Retro-fitting was accomplished throughout WWII. The ultimate armament design for United States vessels was
    2 - Twin 40MM gun mounts w/Mk. 51 directors
    4 - Single 40MM gun mounts
    12 single 20MM gun mounts
    Fuel Capacity
    Diesel 4,300 Bbls
    Propulsion
    two General Motors 12-567A, 900hp Diesel engines
    single Falk Main Reduction Gears
    three Diesel-drive 100Kw 230V D.C. Ship's Service Generators
    two propellers, 1,700shp
    twin rudders
    Click On Image
    For Full Size Image    		 Size Image Description Contributed
    By
    LST-847 27k USS LST-847 ready for launching, at American Bridge Co., Ambridge, PA., 17 December 1944
    US National Archives photos, NARA II, College Park, MD., Still Photos Research Room, Record Group 19-LCM, Box 491    		 Mike Grobbel for his father Robert C. Grobbel S1/c USS LST-847
    LST-847 71k USS LST-847 launching, at American Bridge Co., Ambridge, PA., 17 December 1944
    US National Archives photos, NARA II, College Park, MD., Still Photos Research Room, Record Group 19-LCM, Box 491    		 Mike Grobbel for his father Robert C. Grobbel S1/c USS LST-847
    LST-847 23k USS LST-847 at anchor off Saipan, 28 June 1945.
    Robert C. Grobbel S1/c USN, served on the LST-847 and included this snapshot in a letter to his parents 31 Aug 1945    		 Mike Grobbel for his father Robert C. Grobbel S1/c USS LST-847
    LST-847 63k USS LST-847 moored pierside, US Naval Operating Base, Shanghai, China, circa 20 Sept to 10 Oct 1945. Photo from the collection of Joe Grassoni, S2/c, USS LST-847
    LST-847/724/1056 77k USS LST-847, USS LST-724 and USS LST-1056 beached at Buckner Bay, Okinawa, circa 1-5 March 1946. Photo from the collection of Joe Grassoni, S2/c, USS LST-847
    LST-847 83k USS LST-847 beached, probably at Buckner Bay, Okinawa, circa 1-5 March 1946. Crew members are unidentified. Photo from the collection of Joe Grassoni, S2/c, USS LST-847
    LST-847 153k USS LST-847 under way in San Francisco Bay, CA., in early 1946.
    US Naval History and Heritage Command Photo # NH 79570. Courtesy of D.M. McPherson, 1974.    		 US Naval History and Heritage Command
    USS LST-847
    Dictionary of American Naval Fighting Ships (DANFS)
    Commanding Officers
    01LT. Marshall, Robert Scott, USNR15 January 1945 - 24 September 1945
    02LT. Hoffman, Gustav A., USNR24 September 1945 - 16 December 1945
    03LT. Wolf, Benjamin V., USNR 16 December 1945 - 16 January 1946
    04LTjg. Olszewski, Edward J., USNR 16 January 1946 - 16 June 1946
    Courtesy Wolfgang Hechler and Ron Reeves
    Crew Contact And Reunion Information
    U.S. Navy Memorial Foundation - Navy Log
    Additional Resources and Web Sites of Interest
    The USS LST Ship Memorial
    USS LST-847
    LST Home Port
    State LST Chapters
    United States LST Association
    Back To The Navsource Photo Archives Main Page Back To The Amphibious Ship Type Index Back To The Tank Landing Ship (LST) Photo Index
    Comments, Suggestions, E-mail Webmaster.
    This page is created and maintained by Gary P. Priolo
    All pages copyright NavSource Naval History
    Last Updated 9 June 2017