LANDING SHIP TANK LST AND 'CORNFIELD' SHIPYARDS

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Although similar in configuration to the LCT landing Craft Tank that was roughly half the size, the Landing Ship, Tank (LST) was a highly specialized design capable of ocean crossings as well as shore groundings.

During WW2 such a high priority was assigned to the construction of LST's that the keel of an aircraft carrier, previously laid in the dock, was hastily removed to make place for several LST's to be built instead.

Since most shipbuilding activities in the United States were located in coastal yards and were largely used for construction of large, deep-draft ships, new construction facilities were established along inland waterways seen in the film.

This posed the problem of getting the completed ships from the inland building yards to deep water and the Navy successfully undertook the modification of bridges through a "Ferry Command", One resident of East Liverpool Ohio recalls standing along the river watching LSTs pass on the way to New Orleans for final fitting and sea trials in the Gulf of Mexico.

Of the 1,051 LST's built during World War II, 670 were constructed by five major "cornfield" shipyards of the Middle West much to the astonishment of the long-established shipbuilders on the coasts.