The City of La Crosse WI to Host the LST 325 in August 31st – September 4th
The City of La Crosse and Captain Robert Kubota invite you to tour the LST 325 (Landing Ship Tank) at the waterfront in town Riverside Park. This ship was built in Philadelphia in 1942 by the US Navy Yard.
As stated, previous issues, we will follow the return of LST 325 to our country.
After serving the United States well during WWII and for 10 years in the early 1950s, the LST 325 was reactivated again in 1963 and transferred to Greece in 1964. She served the Greek Navy until 1999, when she was again decommissioned. Interesting, this ship was under US control for only 22 years, but under Greek control for 35 years. In 2000, she was acquired by the USS LST 325 Ship Memorial, Inc. through an act of Congress. This saved the LST 325 from going to the scrap yard in Souda Bay, Crete, Greece.
In March, 2000, some members of the LST Association went to Crete to inspect the ship and found it not seaworthy—in need of extensive repairs. By July, everyone chosen to be the crew had to take refresher training in seamanship, first aid, firefighting—important things to be a member of the crew of a Navy ship. They asked Robert Jornlin of Earlville, IL to be their Captain. Jornlin had been an officer on two LSTs in the early 1960s. Everyone had to contribute $2,100 to pay for their own airfare, food, and fuel for the ship. It took three and a half months to get the ship ready to sail.
There were 72 veterans on the crew list, but only 62 went to Greece, and quite a few did not stay for health reasons. CAPT Jornlin talked to some of the men out of going because of the 100 F conditions they would have to work in and their physical condition was not good. Some got sick, were hospitalized, and sent home as the physician suggested. A lot of the original crew thought this trip would be like going on a Caribbean cruise. They had forgotten how uncomfortable those ships were and the ship was far from being new. As some left, replacement were sent for. “The crew was great!” according to CAPT Jornlin. “They were the ones responsible for the successful mission. A lot of talent was on that ship.”
British Petroleum Oil Company donated 50,000 gallons of diesel fuel for the voyage from Greece to the U.S., which saved the day for the crew.
After months of getting the ship ready to sail, the ship left Crete on November 14, 2000. After stopping in Athens, one engine developed problems making it not operational and another had a cracked manifold. A 9 day voyage crossing the Mediterranean took 13 days. Along with other mechanical problems, the ship limped into Gibraltar. Everything was repaired in 12 days, compliments to the British, and the ship headed out to cross the Atlantic Ocean.
On January 10, 2001, the ship and its crew of 29, arrived in Mobile, Alabama to be greeted by the families of the crew and thousands of people from all over the United States. It seems like newspapers and television stations from all over the country had done a really good job. For weeks, they had run daily reports of the ship’s progress. They made it into a real epic voyage.
Come to La Crosse, WI to see this true American treasure.
Note: Next, LST 325’s homeport and its restoration. If you have personal recollections, contact this paper of write LST 325, 610NW Riverside Dr, Evansville, IN 47708.
