Backyard Adventures

BACKYARD ADVENTURES 2019 PIKE PUBLISHING 1D STORY BY ANDY HEURING PHOTOS BY ANDY HEURING AND CONTRIBUTED USS LST SHIP MEMORIAL MUSEUM Area residents have the chance to see and tour a key piece of military history. The LST 325 is the only operating and floating LST in the world. Docked on the Ohio River, just upstream of downtown Evans- ville, the LST is a living museum and a window into W WII. The LST 325 is open for tours everyday of the week, except Mondays in April and May. It is open everyday of the week June 1 through August 21, and then goes back to no Mon- days through the end of the year. Hours are typically 10 a.m. to 4 p.m., except on Sundays, when they open at noon. The LST was a crucial piece of the United States' and Allied Forces' logistical advantage that helped tip fortunes of W WII in the Allies' favor. LST 325 itself was involved in the invasion of Norman- dy and actually 43-round trips to Normandy, carrying roughly 3,000 vehicles and 10,000 men to the beaches of Normandy. On the Evansville waterfront, off of Water Works Road, LST 325 makes its home base. An LST is a unique boat that was designed after Dunkirk, where nearly the entire British military was trapped against the Atlantic Ocean by the German Army. British civilians in all manner of vessels helped evacuate them. The British brought their ideas for a large ocean- going ship that could land on a beach and unload men, tanks and other vehicles to the United States. Great Britain was in the heart of W WII and United States had not yet entered the war. So they collaborated on the ships and the U.S. began building them, which the Brit- ish continued building their battle ships. In all, there were 1,051 LSTs built. One hundred and sixty- seven were built in Evansville. They were also built in Jeffer- sonville and Pittsburgh. Because the LST had a very shallow draft, it could easily operate in navigable rivers, despite being 382 feet long and 64 feet wide. So they were able to build them at inland locations, like Evansville, Jeffersonville and Pittsburgh. The LSTs could be fully laden with as many as 20 Sherman tanks and numerous ONE-OF-A-KIND HISTORY The iconic WWII ship that helped the Allies win is the only remaining operat- ing LST even though there were more than 1,000 constructed. More than 200 of those were made in Evansville. It is docked on Water Works Road just upstream of downtown Evansville. Top: A 40 mm gun was the largest gun on the LST. Middle: A mannequin in uniform peers out from a bunk in one of the many bunk rooms that line an LST's exterior. Bottom: The control room of the LST 325. CONTINUED ON THE NEXT PAGE >

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