USS Iron County (LST-840) 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 after counties in Michigan

Iron County, Michigan

-Demographics:As of the census of 2000, there were 13,138 people, 5,748 households, and 3,615 families residing in the county. The population density was 11 people per square mile . There were 8,772 housing units at an average density of 8 per square mile...

, Missouri

Iron County, Missouri

Iron County is a county located in the Lead Belt region in Southeast Missouri in the United States. As of the 2000 U.S. Census, the county's population was 10,697. A 2008 estimate, however, showed the population to be 9,918. The largest city and county seat is Ironton...

, Utah

Iron County, Utah

As of the census of 2000, there were 33,779 people, 10,627 households, and 8,076 families residing in the county. The population density was 10 people per square mile . There were 13,618 housing units at an average density of 4 per square mile...

, and Wisconsin

Iron County, Wisconsin

Iron County is a county located in the U.S. state of Wisconsin. As of 2000, the population was 6,861. Its county seat is Hurley.-Geography:According to the U.S...

, she was the only U.S. Naval vessel to bear the name.

Originally laid down as LST-840 by the American Bridge Company

American Bridge Company

The American Bridge Company is a privately held civil engineering firm specializing in the construction and renovation of bridges and other large civil engineering projects, founded in 1900, and headquartered in Coraopolis, Pennsylvania, a suburb of Pittsburgh.-Products and industry positioning:The...

 of Ambridge, Pennsylvania

Ambridge, Pennsylvania

Ambridge is a borough in Beaver County in Western Pennsylvania, incorporated in 1905 and named after the American Bridge Company. Ambridge is located 16 miles northwest of Pittsburgh, alongside the Ohio River. In 1910, 5,205 people lived in Ambridge; in 1920, 12,730 people lived there, and in...

 on 28 September 1944; launched on 15 November, sponsored by Mrs. C. W. Doerr; and commissioned on 11 December with Lieutenant David McC. Bon in command.

World War II, 1944–1946

Following shakedown off Florida

Florida

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-840 loaded cargo at Gulfport, Mississippi

Gulfport, Mississippi

Gulfport is the second largest city in Mississippi after the state capital Jackson. It is the larger of the two principal cities of the Gulfport-Biloxi, Mississippi Metropolitan Statistical Area, which is included in the Gulfport-Biloxi-Pascagoula, Mississippi Combined Statistical Area. As of the...

, then sailed on 14 January 1945 for the Pacific. Additional cargo stops were made at San Francisco and Seattle before departing for the Marshall Islands

Marshall Islands

The Republic of the Marshall Islands , , is a Micronesian nation of atolls and islands in the middle of the Pacific Ocean, just west of the International Date Line and just north of the Equator. As of July 2011 the population was 67,182...

; she arrived at Eniwetok on 24 March. After preparations in the Marshall and Caroline Islands

Caroline Islands

The Caroline Islands are a widely scattered archipelago of tiny islands in the western Pacific Ocean, to the north of New Guinea. Politically they are divided between the Federated States of Micronesia in the eastern part of the group, and Palau at the extreme western end...

, the landing ship departed Ulithi

Ulithi

Ulithi is an atoll in the Caroline Islands of the western Pacific Ocean, about 191 km east of Yap. It consists of 40 islets totalling , surrounding a lagoon about long and up to wide—at one of the largest in the world. It is administered by the state of Yap in the Federated States of...

 on 12 April for Okinawa. The battle for this strategic island, which lay at the gateway to the 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...

ese homeland, was well underway when LST-840 arrived on the 18th. She unloaded combat engineers and equipment, then returned Ulithi on 5 May. 5 August the ship dropped off 500 tons of bombs at Iwo Jima and secured 25 japanese pow's from the U.S. Marines and delivered them to Guam. For the remainder of World War II, she shuttled troops and cargo throughout the American staging areas in the Pacific. After V-J Day, LST-840 operated with U.S. occupation forces in Japan and Okinawa for the next three months. Embarking 500 marines

United States Marine Corps

The United States Marine Corps is a branch of the United States Armed Forces responsible for providing power projection from the sea, using the mobility of the United States Navy to deliver combined-arms task forces rapidly. It is one of seven uniformed services of the United States...

 at Guam, she departed on 11 November en route to 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...

 and the United States

United States

The United States of America is a federal constitutional republic comprising fifty states and a federal district...

. Arriving at San Diego on 15 December, she remained on the West Coast until she decommissioned at Vancouver, Washington

Vancouver, Washington

Vancouver is a city on the north bank of the Columbia River in the U.S. state of Washington. Incorporated in 1857, it is the fourth largest city in the state with a 2010 census population of 161,791 as of April 1, 2010...

 on 1 June 1946, joining the Columbia River Group, Pacific Reserve Fleet.

Korean War, 1950–1953

In the effort to stop Communist aggression in South Korea

South Korea

The Republic of Korea , , is a sovereign state in East Asia, located on the southern portion of the Korean Peninsula. It is neighbored by the People's Republic of China to the west, Japan to the east, North Korea to the north, and the East China Sea and Republic of China to the south...

, veteran ships were called out of reserve to provide support for the U.N. forces in Asia

Asia

Asia is the world's largest and most populous continent, located primarily in the eastern and northern hemispheres. It covers 8.7% of the Earth's total surface area and with approximately 3.879 billion people, it hosts 60% of the world's current human population...

. LST-840 recommissioned on 3 November 1950 with Lieutenant Merle A. Coe in command. Following training off the West Coast and Hawaii

Hawaii

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...

, she loaded trucks and equipment, then departed Honolulu on 1 May 1951 for the Pacific staging areas. From June to November, the loading ship operated between 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...

 and Japan, shuttling cargo and prisoners of war along the war-torn peninsula. She returned to the United States on 27 November and, following overhaul, she departed Oakland, California

Oakland, California

Oakland is a major West Coast port city on San Francisco Bay in the U.S. state of California. It is the eighth-largest city in the state with a 2010 population of 390,724...

 on 16 May 1952 for duty in 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...

. LST-840 performed cargo operations there for six months before returning to San Diego. On 13 March 1953 she sailed on her second Korean tour, arriving at Yokosuka on 1 May. For the duration of the conflict, she remained in the Inchon vicinity and after the July truce continued peacekeeping operations in the Far East until late November.

Post-war activities, 1954–1958

After a stay in the United States, LST-840 was back in 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,...

, arriving at Henrietta Pass, French Indochina

French Indochina

French Indochina was part of the French colonial empire in southeast Asia. A federation of the three Vietnamese regions, Tonkin , Annam , and Cochinchina , as well as Cambodia, was formed in 1887....

 on 28 October 1954. In the aftermath of the Indochina War, she loaded French troops and equipment and shuttled them along the coast of southeast Asia. Arriving Subic Bay

Subic Bay

Subic Bay is a bay forming part of Luzon Sea on the west coast of the island of Luzon in Zambales, Philippines, about 100 kilometers northwest of Manila Bay. Its shores were formerly the site of a major United States Navy facility named U.S...

 on 22 November, she operated in the Far East until April, 1955 then steamed for San Diego.

LST-840 was named USS Iron County (LST-840) on 1 July 1955, and on 10 January 1956 she was en route to Pearl Harbor, her new home port. From January 1956 to November 1957 she performed amphibious exercises out of Hawaii, returning to the West Coast on 23 November.

Decommissioning and transfer

Iron County remained at San Francisco until 1 July 1958, when she decommissioned, 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...

, and transferred to the Republic of China

Republic 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...

 under the Military Assistance Program, where she served the Chinese Nationalist Navy as ROCS Chung Fu (LST-223). Struck from the Republic of China Navy

Republic of China Navy

The Republic of China Navy is the maritime branch of the Armed forces of the Republic of China . The ROC Navy's primary mission is to defend ROC territories and the sea lanes that surround Taiwan against a blockade, attack, or possible invasion by forces of the People's Republic of China...

on 8 November 1997, her final fate is unknown.