USS Suffolk County

	USS Suffolk County (LST-1173) underway, circa 1965. Note the causeways attached to both the port and starboard sides.
History
United States
Name	USS Suffolk County
Namesake	Suffolk County in MA and NY
Builder	Newport News Shipbuilding & Drydock Company, Newport News, Virginia
Laid down	17 July 1955
Launched	5 September 1956
Commissioned	15 August 1957
Decommissioned	25 August 1972
Identification	IMO number: 8450354
Fate	Sold for scrapping, 31 March 1999
Badge
General characteristics
Class and type	tank landing ship
Displacement	3,560 long tons (3,617 t) light; 7,823 long tons (7,949 t) full load;
Length	446 ft (136 m)
Beam	62 ft (19 m)
Draft	17 ft (5.2 m)
Propulsion	6 × 2400 hp Fairbanks Morse opposed piston diesel engines, direct reversible
Speed	17 knots (31 km/h; 20 mph)
Boats & landing ; craft carried	4 LCVPs
Capacity	28 medium tanks or vehicles to 75 tons on 288 ft (88 m) tank deck; 100,000 gal (US) diesel or jet fuel, plus 7,000 gal fuel for embarked vehicles;
Troops	410 officers and enlisted men
Complement	170 officers and enlisted men
Armament	3 × twin 3"/50 caliber gun mounts

USS Suffolk County (LST-1173) was a

tank landing ship built for the United States Navy during the late 1950s. Named after counties in Massachusetts

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

Suffolk County was designed under project

Boston Naval Shipyard, Boston, Massachusetts; launched on 5 September 1956; sponsored by Mrs. Thomas P. O'Neill, Jr.

; and commissioned on 15 August 1957.

Service history

1957 –1959

Suffolk County fitted out at Boston and sailed for

Rota, Spain on 12 March 1959. After disembarking the marines at Morehead City on 24 March, she returned to Norfolk on the 26th. In June, she participated in "Operation Inland Seas" which was the formal opening of the St. Lawrence Seaway

for ocean-going ships.

1960–1961

Suffolk County returned to Norfolk in August and was assigned to Amphibious Squadron (PhibRon) 8 which promptly deployed to the Mediterranean until 12 June 1960 when it returned to Norfolk. After a leave and upkeep period, she moved to

Little Creek, Virginia

on 16 December 1961.

1962–1972

Suffolk County operated along the east coast, participating in various operations, deployments, and exercises which took her as far south as the Caribbean, Panama, and the Dominican Republic.From October to November 1962, she was part of the President Kennedy naval blockage of Cuba. Elements of the 2nd Marine Division, Camp Lejeune, North Carolina were deployed on this ship. From September to December 1964 she was involved in the cross Atlantic operation, "

North Atlantic Treaty Organization

(NATO) fleet units which ended on 18 November 1970. Her normal routine was next broken in September 1971 when she deployed to the 6th Fleet for her longest tour in years which lasted until mid-March 1972.

Decommissioning

When Suffolk County arrived at Norfolk, she was ordered to prepare for inactivation. A "stand-down" phase was begun on 24 May 1972 which lasted until 1 July when she was placed in commission, in reserve. On 25 August Suffolk County was placed out of commission, in reserve.

Disposed of by transfer to the Maritime Administration (MARAD) on 15 April 1992 for lay-up in the National Defense Reserve Fleet at

Fort Eustis, Virginia, the ship was sold for $500 to Transforma Marine of Brownsville, Texas

for scrapping, 31 March 1999. Suffolk County was removed from the Reserve Fleet 23 November 1999 and scrapped.

References

This article incorporates text from the public domain Dictionary of American Naval Fighting Ships. The entry can be found here.
"LST-1173 Suffolk County". Amphibious Photo Archive. Retrieved 4 July 2007.