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NavSource Online: Amphibious Photo Archive

USS LSM-437

Awards, Citations and Campaign Ribbons


Precedence of awards is from top to bottom, left to right
Top Row - American Campaign Medal
Bottom Row - Asiatic-Pacific Campaign Medal - World War II Victory Medal - Navy Occupation Service Medal (with Asia clasp)
LSM-1 Class Landing Ship Medium:
  • Laid down, 23 January 1945, at Dravo Corporation, Wilmington, DE.
  • Launched, 10 March 1945
  • Commissioned USS LSM-437, 31 March 1945, LT. William W. Perkins USNR in command
  • During World War II USS LSM-437 was assigned to the Asiatic-Pacific Theater:
    LSM Flotilla Fifteen;
     LSM Group Forty-Three;
     LSM Division Eighty-Five;
  • Following World War II USS LSM-437 was assigned to Occupation service in the Far East from 15 September 1945 to 20 July 1946
  • USS LSM-437 ran aground, 9 October 1945, during Typhoon Louise, at Buckner Bay, Okinawa and was refloated, 15 October 1945
  • Decommissioned, 11 December 1947, at San Francisco, CA.
  • Struck from the Naval Register, date unknown
  • Final Disposition, sold for scrapping, 26 February 1948, to New Orleans Shipwrecking Corp., Chicago, IL.
    Specifications:
    Displacement 520 t.(light), 743 t. (landing) 1,095 t.(fully loaded)
    Length 203' 6" (ovl)
    Beam 34' 6"
    Draft
    light, 3' 6" forward, 7' 8" aft
    fully loaded, 6' 4" forward, 8' 3" aft
    Speed 13.2 kts. (max.), (928 tons displacement)
    Complement
    5 officers
    54 enlisted
    Armament
    one twin bow mounted 40mm gun
    four single 20mm gun mounts
    Vehicle/Boat Capacity 5 medium or 3 heavy tanks, or 6 LVT's, or 9 DUKW's
    Fuel Capacity
    Diesel 1,225 Bbls
    Troop Accommodations
    2 officers
    46 enlisted
    Armor 10-lb. STS splinter shield to gun mounts, pilot house and conning station
    Endurance 4,900 miles @ 12kts.(928 tons displacement)
    Propulsion
    two General Motors (model GM 16-278A, reversible with hydraulic clutch) Diesel engines, direct drive with 1,440 BHP each @ 720rpm
    Ship's Service Generators
     two Diesel-drive 100Kw 450V A.C.
     one Diesel-drive 20Kw 120V D.C.
    twin propellers, 2,800shp
    Click On Image
    For Full Size Image    		 Size Image Description Contributed
    By
    LSM-437 45k LSM-437 launch at Dravo Corporation, Wilmington, DE., 10 March 1945. USS LSM / LSMR Association
    LSM-437 87k USS LSM-437 overhead view under way after World War II.
    US Naval History and Heritage Command Photo # NH 84896, courtesy D.M. McPherson, 1976.    		 Bill Greenfied to the USS LSM / LSMR Association
    The history extract for USS LSM-437 is from LSM-LSMR Amphibious Forces, Vol. II. Paducah, Kentucky: Turner Publishing Company, © 1997. (ISBN 1-56311-389-9).
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    Commanding Officers
    01LT. Perkins, William W., USNR31 March 1945 - August 1945
    02LT. Williams W., A., USNRAugust 1945 - March 1946
    03LTjg. Gibbs, Jr., Walter M., USNR March 1946 - ?
    Courtesy Wolfgang Hechler
    Crew Contact And Reunion Information
    U.S. Navy Memorial Foundation - Navy Log
    Back to the Navsource Photo Archives Main Page Back To The Amphibious Ship Type Index Back To The Landing Ship Medium (LSM) Photo Index
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    This page is created and maintained by Gary P. Priolo
    All pages copyright NavSource Naval History
    Last Updated 22 August 2025