USS ''Lowndes'' (APA/LPA-154) was a ''Haskell''-class attack transport in service with the United States Navy from 1944 to 1946. She was scrapped in 1983.

History

''Lowndes'' was launched under a Maritime Commission contract by Oregon Shipbuilding Co., Portland, Oregon, 18 July 1944; sponsored by Mrs. Fred J. Lundberg; acquired by the Navy 14 September 1944; and commissioned the same day.

World War II

After shakedown, ''Lowndes'' departed San Pedro, California, 23 October for amphibious training in the

Hawaiian Islands The Hawaiian Islands ( haw, Nā Mokupuni o Hawai‘i) are an archipelago of eight major islands, several atolls, and numerous smaller islets in the North Pacific Ocean, extending some from the island of Hawaii in the south to northernmost Kur ...

. She continued landing rehearsals for the rest of the year in preparation for the

Iwo Jima Iwo Jima (, also ), known in Japan as , is one of the Japanese Volcano Islands and lies south of the Bonin Islands. Together with other islands, they form the Ogasawara Archipelago. The highest point of Iwo Jima is Mount Suribachi at high. ...

and Okinawa operations. Departing Pearl Harbor 27 January 1945, ''Lowndes'' carried troops and equipment to staging areas in

Saipan Saipan ( ch, Sa’ipan, cal, Seipél, formerly in es, Saipán, and in ja, 彩帆島, Saipan-tō) is the largest island of the Northern Mariana Islands, a Commonwealth (U.S. insular area), commonwealth of the United States in the western Pa ...

before continuing toward

. She arrived off the southeast coast of the volcanic island 19 February and lowered her boats for the massive amphibious assault. She carried the 3rd Battalion 23rd Marines and C Co 133 NCB (their assigned Shore Party). For the next eight days ''Lowndes'' stood by as her beach party went ashore to attend and evacuate casualties to salvage boats, and to clear the beaches for

landing craft Landing craft are small and medium seagoing watercraft, such as boats and barges, used to convey a landing force (infantry and vehicles) from the sea to the shore during an amphibious assault. The term excludes landing ships, which are larger. Pr ...

. The transport returned to

3 March to prepare for the final leg on the island hopping campaign which was pushing

Japan Japan ( ja, 日本, or , and formally , ''Nihonkoku'') is an island country in East Asia. It is situated in the northwest Pacific Ocean, and is bordered on the west by the Sea of Japan, while extending from the Sea of Okhotsk in the north ...

back to her home islands. ''Lowndes'' sailed 27 March for the 1 April

invasion of Okinawa The , codenamed Operation Iceberg, was a major battle of the Pacific War fought on the island of Okinawa by United States Army (USA) and United States Marine Corps (USMC) forces against the Imperial Japanese Army (IJA). The initial invasion of ...

arriving there in the morning hours of D Day. The transport waited in the retirement area until 12 April when under constant enemy air raids she debarked troops and unloaded cargo for the vigorous campaign ashore. Returning

18 April ''Lowndes'' performed training exercises there and in the Southwest Pacific Ocean until she departed Guam 11 July for San Francisco, California.

Decommissioning and fate

The transport made another cruise to the western Pacific (August October) carrying troops and cargo to the Philippines and Japan for occupation duty. Loaded with homeward bound veterans ''Lowndes'' departed

6 October for the United States. Sailing to the

U.S. East Coast The East Coast of the United States, also known as the Eastern Seaboard, the Atlantic Coast, and the Atlantic Seaboard, is the coastline along which the Eastern United States meets the Atlantic Ocean, North Atlantic Ocean. The eastern seaboard ...

in February 1946, she decommissioned at

Norfolk, Virginia Norfolk ( ) is an independent city in the Commonwealth of Virginia in the United States. Incorporated in 1705, it had a population of 238,005 at the 2020 census, making it the third-most populous city in Virginia after neighboring Virginia Be ...

, 17 April 1946, and returned to War Shipping Administration (WSA) for disposal.

Awards

''Lowndes'' received two battle stars for World War II service.

References

External links

NavSource Online: Amphibious Photo Archive - USS ''Lowndes'' (APA/LPA-154)

USS ''Lowndes'' (APA-154) website
{{DEFAULTSORT:Lowndes World War II amphibious warfare vessels of the United States Haskell-class attack transports Lowndes County, Alabama Lowndes County, Georgia Lowndes County, Mississippi Ships built in Portland, Oregon 1944 ships