LTJG G. P. Hammond, USCG
LTJG J. E. Hollis, Jr., USCGR
LTJG D. H. Davis, USCGR
LTJG W. W. Allen, USCGR
LT W. P. Swift, USCGR
LTJG J. J. Woens, USCGR
Boatswain G. G. Neal, USCG
History: Flotilla 4 / 10 / 35, Group 104, Division 208
The Coast Guard-manned USS LCI(L)-321 was built by the Brown Shipbuilding Company, Houston, Texas, where she was commissioned February 6, 1943. After outfitting at Galveston, she was underway on March 2, 1943, en route Little Creek, Virginia, via Key West, Florida, where she arrived March 12, 1943, for drydocking and amphibious training of crews at Solomons Island, Maryland.
On April 1, 1943, now assigned to LCI(L) Flotilla 4, she got underway for Port Lyautey, French Morocco, North Africa Africa via Bermuda, arriving there on the 29th where she remained until May 16, 1943. On that date she left for logistics and a series of beaching exercises that took her to Gibraltar, Port d'arzew, Beni Saf Harbor, Nemours and Port d'arsew, Algeria and Bizerte, Ferrysville and La Goutette, Tunisia finally mooring at Bizerte on June 19, 1943. On July 11, 1945, she embarked 127 troops and departed for Licata, Sicily arriving on the 12th and disembarking troops. Taking aboard Army Air Corps troops and casualties and Italian prisoners of war, she returned to Bizerte on the 13th. On August 7, 1943, 103 more troops were embarked at La Goulette, Tunisia and on August 8th she was underway en route Palermo via Tunis Bay mooring on the 9th and disembarking troops. On September 5th she embarked 183 British troops and departed for Castlellamare, Sicily, disembarking them same day and embarking troops from an LCT for Gulf of Salerno, Italy. Here, after dis-embarking troops she began embarking casualties which were taken to a hospital ship, two deceased casualties being buried at sea in the Gulf of Salerno. She returned to Salerno September 11, 1943, and on the 19th again embarked 155 U. S. troops for Salerno, disembarking them there on the 21st and carrying troops from British ships to the beach. She returned to Bizerte on the 24th and, effecting repairs, was underway on October 16, 1943, for Plymouth, Devonshire, England, via Oran, Algeria and Port Mers-el-Kebir, Oran and Gibraltar.
She arrived at Plymouth on October 29, 1943, and on November 7, 1943, moved to Saltash, Devon, where she was drydocked for overhaul and repair. By this time Flotilla 4 had been redesignated as Flotilla 10. On December 19, 1943, she proceeded to Falmouth, Cornwall to embark troops for Dartmouth where maneuvers, drills and general training ensued. On February 13, 1944, 135 troops were embarked for Torguay Bay where she beached and disembarked troops, returning to Dartmouth the same day. On the 16th she was en route Brixham, Devon for training operations and on March 2, 1944, returned to Southampton. Numerous other training operations took place along the South England coast until on June 5, 1944, she left Salcombe, Devon for Baie de la Seine at 1519 laying off Green Beach, Utah Beach, in the Transport Area at 0730 on June 6, 1944, disembarking troops in LCMs. Guiding LCMs to the beach, towing pontoons, causeways and LSTs, watching for inbound vessels and convoys and as a "buoy" off Star Point, Cherbourg Peninsula until June 17, 1944, she departed for Weymouth and Portland. Other trips to Normandy were made June 30, 1944, July 3, 1944, July 10, 1944, July 14, 1944, August 2, 1944, August 22, 1944 and September 5, 1944, carrying troops to the Normandy beaches.
On October 5, 1944, she was underway en route Charleston, South Carolina, and then to Mayport, Florida and Jacksonville, Florida where she drydocked for repairs and overhaul. Returning to Charleston December 13, 1944, she proceeded to Norfolk on the 22nd and thence to Little Creek, Virginia and Solomon's Island, Maryland, for beaching operations with new crew. On January 14, 1945, she sailed for San Diego, California via Key West, Florida and the Canal Zone, where she arrived February 3, 1945. From then to April 20, 1945, she was engaged in amphibious training at San Nichols Island, Coronado, California, San Clemente Island, California, Imperial Beach and Oceanside, California. On April 20, 1945, she departed for Pearl Harbor arriving April 29, 1945. On May 6th, she was en route Guam via Eniwetok to engage in ditching drills with 315th Bomb Wing, U. S. Army Air Force until June 27th. After patrolling off Guam's north coast until July 9 she returned to Guam for drydocking and restocking and on August 3rd departed for Eniwetok where from August 7th to October 25th, 1945, she was engaged in making a ready duty ferry run between the islands of Eniwetok Atoll. Returr.ing to Guam on November 1, 1945, she made runs to Saipan and back to Guam on the 3rd and then to Iwo Jima, Saipan and back to Guam on November 14, 1945, collecting personnel for transportation home.
She departed Guam on the homeward journey early in December 1945 and arrived at Galveston, Texas, February 6, 1946. Here she was decommissioned on April 2, 1946.
The LCI(L)-321 earned four battle stars for her service in World War II. All LCI(L)s of Flotilla 10 were retroactively awarded the Coast Guard Unit Commendation for their service in the invasion of Normandy.
Sources
LCI(L) file, Coast Guard Historian's Office.
United States Coast Guard. The Coast Guard At War. V. Transports and Escorts. Vol. 2. Washington: Public Information Division, Historical Section, U.S. Coast Guard Headquarters, May 1, 1949, pp. 117-130.