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USS Bristol County (LST 1198)

USS BRISTOL COUNTY was the 20^th and last ship in the NEWPORT - class of Tank Landing Ships. Her last homeport was San Diego, Ca. Decommissioned and stricken from the Navy list on July 29, 1994, BRISTOL COUNTY was transferred to Morocco where the ship was renamed SIDI MOHAMMED BEN ABDALLAH.

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Crew List:

This section contains the names of sailors who served aboard USS BRISTOL COUNTY. It is no official listing but contains the names of sailors who submitted their information.

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• Click here to see which USS BRISTOL COUNTY memorabilia are currently for sale on ebay.

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USS BRISTOL COUNTY Cruise Books and Pamphlets:

• WestPac Cruise Book 1991
• Decommissioning Pamphlet

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USS BRISTOL COUNTY's Commanding Officers:

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USS BRISTOL COUNTY History:

USS BRISTOL COUNTY was awarded on July 15, 1966, and her keel was laid by the National Steel and Shipbuilding Company at San Diego, California, on February 13, 1971. She was launched on December 4, 1971, sponsored by Mrs. Robert Lee Townsend, and was acquired by the Navy on July 27, 1972. USS BRISTOL COUNTY was commissioned on August 5, 1972, with Commander Donald L. Waggoner as her first commanding officer. She was named for Bristol County in both Massachusetts and Rhode Island. During April 1972, several months before commissioning, Commander Waggoner visited Bristol County, Rhode Island, to establish a relationship between the future ship and the communities of Bristol, Warren and Barrington. A local designer, Thomas Goff, assisted with the ship's coat of arms, which combined maritime and local symbols, while the motto "Shipshape 'n Bristol Fashion" linked the new ship with the long-established nautical expression associated with Bristol, England.

Following commissioning, USS BRISTOL COUNTY was assigned to the Amphibious Force, Pacific Fleet, with Long Beach, California, initially designated as her home port. During the remainder of 1972 and throughout 1973, she underwent the normal progression of fitting out, trials, inspections, qualification periods and amphibious training required of a newly commissioned ship. Training off southern California familiarized her crew with beaching operations, bow-ramp evolutions, operation of the stern gate, launching and recovering amphibious vehicles, loading and unloading heavy equipment, formation steaming and the communications procedures required for operations with embarked Marine units.

Commander Jerome A. O'Connell relieved Commander Waggoner on July 25, 1973. During this period, USS BRISTOL COUNTY entered the normal Pacific Fleet deployment cycle in which periods of training and maintenance on the U.S. West Coast alternated with extended deployments under Seventh Fleet control.

By early 1974, USS BRISTOL COUNTY was operating in the western Pacific with Amphibious Squadron 7. At Subic Bay in the Philippines on February 14 and February 15, the squadron relieved the preceding Amphibious Ready Group Alpha. USS BRISTOL COUNTY operated with USS OKINAWA (LPH 3), USS ST. LOUIS (LKA 116) and USS FORT FISHER (LSD 40), with the 31st Marine Amphibious Unit embarked within the amphibious group. The deployment took place during the final phase of the long conflict in Southeast Asia. Although U.S. ground combat forces had withdrawn from Vietnam, the deteriorating military position of the Cambodian government created the possibility that Americans and other designated civilians might have to be evacuated from Phnom Penh. The amphibious ready group therefore remained available for the contingency plan that would eventually become Operation Eagle Pull.

On February 22, 1974, an apparent temporary stabilization around Phnom Penh allowed the required response time of the 31st Marine Amphibious Unit and its supporting ships to be relaxed to 96 hours. On March 1, the response requirement was increased to 120 hours. The possibility of an evacuation nevertheless remained part of the group's contingency responsibilities. USS BRISTOL COUNTY consequently combined routine Seventh Fleet amphibious training with a readiness posture shaped by events in Cambodia.

The 1974 deployment also took USS BRISTOL COUNTY to Australian waters. During June, she participated in the multinational training associated with Exercise Kangaroo One in the Shoalwater Bay area. The exercise provided experience in combined amphibious operations with Australian forces at a time when the United States was adjusting its Pacific force posture after the withdrawal from Vietnam. The ship subsequently visited Sydney. At Hervey Bay on June 27 and June 28, USS BRISTOL COUNTY and other ships of the outgoing amphibious group conducted turnover with the arriving force. Among the ships relieving them were USS JUNEAU (LPD 10) and other Pacific Fleet amphibious units. The turnover marked the conclusion of USS BRISTOL COUNTY's period as part of the forward amphibious readiness organization, after which she began the return movement toward the United States.

After returning to the West Coast, USS BRISTOL COUNTY entered another cycle of maintenance, inspections and amphibious training. Commander Philip R. Given assumed command on April 18, 1975. During 1975 and the first half of 1976, the ship again served in the western Pacific. Contemporary amphibious-force records place USS BRISTOL COUNTY at Subic Bay on October 29, 1975, operating with USS NEW ORLEANS (LPH 11), USS ST. LOUIS and USS FORT FISHER. The group continued the post-Vietnam Seventh Fleet practice of keeping an amphibious force available in the western Pacific while conducting regular training with Marine units.

USS BRISTOL COUNTY remained associated with this deployment into 1976. On February 25, 1976, she was again at Subic Bay with USS ST. LOUIS and USS FORT FISHER while the composition of the amphibious force was changing. By May 5, the ships were at Okinawa preparing for relief by the following amphibious group. The operational pattern involved loading Marine personnel and equipment, moving between Okinawa and the Philippines, conducting beach and ship-to-shore exercises, and maintaining readiness for Seventh Fleet contingencies. Following turnover, USS BRISTOL COUNTY returned to the United States and resumed training and maintenance on the California coast.

During 1977, USS BRISTOL COUNTY continued Pacific Fleet operations. Commander Robert B. McManis relieved Commander Given on July 15. Later in the year, the ship again deployed to the western Pacific. By January 18, 1978, she was operating as a unit of Amphibious Ready Group Bravo together with USS DENVER (LPD 9), USS FORT FISHER and USS MOBILE (LKA 115). Battalion Landing Team 1/9 formed the principal Marine ground component. Company A, 1st Battalion, 9th Marines, together with an assault amphibian platoon, was specifically embarked aboard USS BRISTOL COUNTY. The group was at Subic Bay during January, with subsequent movements scheduled between Okinawa, Subic Bay and Guam.

After returning from the western Pacific in 1978, USS BRISTOL COUNTY resumed West Coast operations and prepared for another major cruise. Commander Carroll D. Brown assumed command on April 21, 1979. During April, the ship trained off the Pacific coast with USS TRIPOLI (LPH 10), USS DULUTH (LPD 6), USS JUNEAU and USS MOUNT VERNON (LSD 39). Part of the workup included a northern movement during which elements of the force visited Vancouver, British Columbia.

On July 23, 1979, USS BRISTOL COUNTY departed for another extended western Pacific deployment with Amphibious Squadron 5. The deploying force included USS TRIPOLI, USS DULUTH, USS JUNEAU, USS THOMASTON (LSD 28), USS MOUNT VERNON and USS TUSCALOOSA (LST 1187). The force proceeded across the Pacific and entered Seventh Fleet service. During August, the amphibious ships conducted Exercise Fortress Gale in the Okinawa area. USS BRISTOL COUNTY formally relieved USS BARBOUR COUNTY (LST 1195) of her western Pacific responsibilities at Okinawa on August 31.

The deployment continued with operations in the Philippines and then moved south for one of the largest exercises of the cruise. During October 1979, USS BRISTOL COUNTY participated with the other Amphibious Squadron 5 ships in Exercise Kangaroo III in the Shoalwater Bay area of Australia. The multinational exercise involved American, Australian and New Zealand forces and practiced large-scale naval, air and amphibious operations. The U.S. amphibious force then visited Sydney in early November. Other calls made by elements of the group during the extended deployment included ports in the South Pacific and Southeast Asia as the ships returned toward their normal Seventh Fleet operating areas.

USS BRISTOL COUNTY remained deployed into 1980. After operating from Subic Bay, the amphibious group embarked Marine elements for further training. On January 20, ships of the group departed toward Enewetak Atoll in the Marshall Islands. USS BRISTOL COUNTY operated there with USS TRIPOLI, USS DULUTH and USS MOUNT VERNON. Training in the central Pacific combined amphibious operations with the logistical requirements of supporting Marine forces at an isolated atoll. The force subsequently proceeded to Pearl Harbor, where embarked Marine personnel and equipment were unloaded, and then continued to California. USS BRISTOL COUNTY returned from the lengthy 1979-1980 deployment in February 1980.

The remainder of 1980 and much of 1981 consisted of maintenance, inspection periods and amphibious training in preparation for future deployments. Commander Carl A. Weegar assumed command on April 4, 1981. The ship remained an active element of the Pacific Fleet amphibious force, providing the heavy-vehicle and surface assault component needed by Marine landing forces. Her work included loading exercises and combined ship-Marine training.

The next deployment began in 1982. On April 2, USS BRISTOL COUNTY departed San Diego with Amphibious Squadron 7. The force included USS CLEVELAND (LPD 7), USS POINT DEFIANCE (LSD 31), USS PEORIA (LST 1183), USS SAN BERNARDINO (LST 1189), together with USS NEW ORLEANS, USS TUSCALOOSA and USS MOBILE. The ships reached Pearl Harbor on April 9. Marine units and equipment were embarked there, and beginning on April 12 the amphibious force participated in Rim of the Pacific 1982. The multinational exercise brought together naval forces from the United States, Canada, Australia, New Zealand and Japan and tested maritime operations across the Hawaiian operating area.

After turnover with the preceding amphibious force on April 22, the squadron continued west. From May 3 through May 6, 1982, USS BRISTOL COUNTY participated in Readex 82 in the Iwo Jima area. The exercise brought U.S. amphibious forces together with elements of the Japan Maritime Self-Defense Force and included major ship-to-shore and amphibious evolutions. The deployment continued through the western Pacific during the summer. By September, operational records placed USS BRISTOL COUNTY with USS POINT DEFIANCE and USS SAN BERNARDINO, while Battalion Landing Team 3/4 was ashore at Camp Fuji. The ships were operating from Sasebo and other Japanese facilities as the deployment approached its conclusion. USS BRISTOL COUNTY returned to the United States in October.

Her 1982 operating year was not finished. In November, she went north for a cold-weather amphibious operation in the Aleutians. USS BRISTOL COUNTY operated with USS PELELIU (LHA 5), USS CLEVELAND and USS SAN BERNARDINO as part of the force supporting the 17th Marine Amphibious Unit. The ships proceeded toward Amchitka Island, and from November 27 through December 1 they participated in Exercise Kernel Potlatch 82. Canadian naval units also took part. The exercise emphasized amphibious operations under the demanding weather and sea conditions of the North Pacific and Aleutian region, providing a sharp contrast to the tropical and subtropical operating environments in which USS BRISTOL COUNTY normally worked.

Commander Thomas A. Fitzgibbons assumed command on June 11, 1983. The ship subsequently prepared for another major western Pacific deployment. USS BRISTOL COUNTY formed part of Amphibious Squadron 5 for the 1984 deployment, together with USS BELLEAU WOOD (LHA 3), USS DUBUQUE (LPD 8), USS THOMASTON and USS MONTICELLO (LSD 35). The embarked Marine organization was the 31st Marine Amphibious Unit, with Battalion Landing Team 1/3, Marine Medium Helicopter Squadron 265 reinforced, and the associated combat service support element.

USS BRISTOL COUNTY and the other Amphibious Squadron 5 ships departed San Diego on January 18, 1984. Their first major exercise was Kernel Blitz 84-1 in Hawaiian waters from January 27 through January 30. The force then continued west and participated in Exercise Team Spirit 84 in South Korea during March. Team Spirit was the large annual U.S.-Republic of Korea exercise intended to rehearse reinforcement and defense of the Korean Peninsula. A photograph dated March 20 shows USS BRISTOL COUNTY off Tok Sok Ri Beach with Marine tracked landing vehicles maneuvering around the ship during preparations for an amphibious landing. For USS BRISTOL COUNTY, Team Spirit placed particular emphasis on her ability to carry heavy Marine equipment and launch tracked amphibious vehicles through the stern gate for movement to the beach.

After the Korean phase, Amphibious Squadron 5 participated in the U.S.-Philippine Exercise Balikatan. USS BRISTOL COUNTY then continued through a series of Seventh Fleet exercises and port visits. The deployment included Valiant Usher 84-7AS on the west coast of Australia from May 15 through May 18 and Valiant Usher 84-7KS with Republic of Korea forces from June 18 through June 24. Port calls by the group during the deployment included locations in Australia, Hong Kong, Japan, South Korea, Malaysia, the Philippines, Singapore and Thailand. The ships left Seventh Fleet operational control on July 12 and returned to their home ports on July 27, 1984.

During the remainder of 1984 and through 1985, USS BRISTOL COUNTY resumed maintenance, inspections and Pacific Fleet amphibious training. Commander David L. Brewer III relieved Commander Fitzgibbons on June 28, 1986. USS BRISTOL COUNTY conducted another western Pacific deployment during 1986, documented in the surviving cruise record for the ship. The ship remained part of the Seventh Fleet amphibious rotation and continued to carry Marine personnel, vehicles and equipment. Her readiness during this period is reflected in the Navy "E" award period extending from July 1, 1986, through December 31, 1987.

A new western Pacific deployment began on January 14, 1988. USS BRISTOL COUNTY sailed as part of Amphibious Ready Group Alpha with USS PELELIU, USS JUNEAU and USS FORT FISHER. The group reached Subic Bay on February 7. From February 8 through February 14, the ships participated in Exercise Valiant Usher 88-1 in the Philippine operating area. The exercise tested the ability of Navy and Marine Corps forces to organize and carry out amphibious operations on relatively short notice.

After a maintenance period at Subic Bay, the amphibious group departed on March 3 and moved north. Elements of the group visited Hong Kong from March 5 through March 9 before proceeding to Okinawa. Marine forces and equipment required for Team Spirit 88 were loaded there. Beginning on March 17, USS BRISTOL COUNTY participated in Team Spirit 88 off South Korea. The exercise continued through April 4 and involved forces of the U.S. Navy, Marine Corps, Army and Air Force operating with their South Korean counterparts. The amphibious phase again centered on moving Marine forces and heavy equipment from ships to the Korean coast.

Following Team Spirit, the amphibious group remained in the South Korean area before returning toward Okinawa and Subic Bay. After another upkeep period, the group departed Subic Bay on May 5 for Exercise Valiant Usher 88-3, conducted in the Korea Strait from May 10 through May 16. A further Hong Kong visit followed later in May, after which the force returned to Subic Bay. USS BRISTOL COUNTY completed the deployment and returned to the United States during June 1988. Commander Michael W. Treeman relieved Commander Brewer on September 9.

The next major western Pacific cruise began on July 8, 1989. USS BRISTOL COUNTY deployed as a unit of Amphibious Squadron 1 with USS TARAWA (LHA 1), USS VANCOUVER (LPD 2) and USS ANCHORAGE (LSD 36). The ships supported the 11th Marine Expeditionary Unit, whose principal ground combat element was Battalion Landing Team 1/9. The aviation element was Marine Medium Helicopter Squadron 163 reinforced, while Marine Service Support Group 11 provided the logistics component. The deployment was scheduled to continue through December 20.

During the 1989 cruise, USS BRISTOL COUNTY operated throughout the western Pacific and Southeast Asian region. Contemporary Seventh Fleet records document Marines and sailors aboard USS BRISTOL COUNTY during September and October and place the amphibious force in connection with training activities in Thailand. The deployment occurred during a period of political transition in the international system as U.S.-Soviet relations improved rapidly, but Pacific Fleet amphibious units continued their established readiness cycle and their regular program of combined exercises with regional allies. USS BRISTOL COUNTY completed the six-month deployment in December 1989 and returned to California.

Commander Ronald L. Alsbrooks assumed command on September 14, 1990. By then, events in the Middle East had transformed U.S. naval planning. Iraq had invaded Kuwait on August 2, 1990, prompting the buildup of American and coalition forces during Operation Desert Shield and, beginning in January 1991, combat operations during Operation Desert Storm. USS BRISTOL COUNTY did not participate in the principal January-February combat phase, but her next deployment took her into the postwar Persian Gulf security environment.

The workup for that deployment included Exercise Kernel Usher 91-1 from April 30 through May 12, 1991. USS BRISTOL COUNTY trained with USS PELELIU, USS CLEVELAND and the newly commissioned USS COMSTOCK (LSD 45). On May 29, the main body of Amphibious Ready Group Alpha departed San Diego with the 15th Marine Expeditionary Unit. USS CLEVELAND, which had experienced an engineering casualty, followed shortly afterward and rejoined the group later. USS BRISTOL COUNTY, USS PELELIU and USS COMSTOCK headed west across the Pacific.

The amphibious group initially operated in company with surface combatants and support ships associated with Battle Group Foxtrot. These included USS ROANOKE (AOR 7), USS LAKE CHAMPLAIN (CG 57), USS GARY (FFG 51) and USS MERRILL (DD 976). The amphibious group conducted Exercise Valiant Blitz in the Iwo Jima area on June 13 before continuing toward the western Pacific.

The deployment changed abruptly when Mount Pinatubo in the Philippines underwent its catastrophic eruption in June 1991. The eruption coincided with severe weather from Typhoon Yunya and deposited enormous quantities of volcanic ash over Clark Air Base, Naval Station Subic Bay and surrounding communities. Buildings collapsed under the weight of wet ash, electrical and communications systems were disrupted, and tens of thousands of American military personnel, dependents and other civilians had to be moved from the affected area. U.S. forces organized Operation Fiery Vigil to evacuate the population and move evacuees through safer locations in the Philippines before onward transportation.

USS BRISTOL COUNTY was assigned an important coordination and ship-to-shore role in the evacuation. Commander Destroyer Squadron 9 embarked aboard her and served as the on-scene coordinator for the debarkation of evacuees at Cebu City. Amphibious and other naval ships moved people from Subic Bay toward Cebu, where they could be transferred to onward transportation. On June 20, for example, USS COMSTOCK arrived carrying evacuees who were put ashore using landing craft from USS BRISTOL COUNTY and helicopters from USS ROANOKE. The ships repeatedly had to operate in an environment contaminated by volcanic ash, which presented problems for machinery, ventilation systems and aircraft. The wider operation evacuated more than 20,000 people from the affected area. USS BRISTOL COUNTY's participation from June 10 through June 28 was subsequently included in the Joint Meritorious Unit Award period associated with the operation.

Following the Philippine emergency, USS BRISTOL COUNTY resumed her scheduled deployment and continued toward the Indian Ocean and Persian Gulf. The 15th Marine Expeditionary Unit and Amphibious Squadron 3 entered the post-Desert Storm regional security mission in which American forces continued to support cease-fire arrangements, maintain a rapid-response presence and train with regional partners. By July 31, the Marines and ships had completed backloading personnel and equipment at Al Hamra in the United Arab Emirates. At that point, USS BRISTOL COUNTY separated temporarily from the remainder of the amphibious group and proceeded toward Bahrain for repairs to her boilers, arriving there in early August. USS BRISTOL COUNTY remained eligible for the Southwest Asia Service Medal for operations from July 16 through October 12, 1991. She subsequently began the return across the Pacific and completed the deployment late in 1991.

After post-deployment upkeep and training, USS BRISTOL COUNTY continued Pacific Fleet service during 1992. Commander Robert C. Massey relieved Commander Alsbrooks on September 12. One of the year's major events occurred almost simultaneously with the change of command. Hurricane Iniki struck the Hawaiian island of Kauai on September 11, 1992, causing widespread destruction to homes, utilities, roads and other infrastructure. Military forces were sent to support the civil authorities, and USS BRISTOL COUNTY participated in the subsequent humanitarian operation.

During the relief effort, Marine engineering and support units worked ashore on Kauai, operating water-purification equipment, generators and other emergency systems. By October 1, USS BRISTOL COUNTY had reached Pearl Harbor with the initial retrograde shipment of Marine equipment from the operation. Additional Marine personnel and equipment were being concentrated at Nawiliwili Pier on Kauai for return aboard the ship. Water-purification equipment, generators and selected personnel remained ashore while still required for relief operations. USS BRISTOL COUNTY's participation in the Hurricane Iniki response later qualified the ship for the Humanitarian Service Medal.

USS BRISTOL COUNTY remained operational during 1993 as the Navy continued the large post-Cold War reduction of its older amphibious fleet. An official Navy awards record credits the ship with a Navy Meritorious Unit Commendation for the period from July 15 through October 14, 1993. The ship continued active Pacific Fleet operations while plans for her eventual retirement and transfer abroad developed.

By 1994, USS BRISTOL COUNTY was the final product of a NEWPORT-class construction program that had begun more than two decades earlier, and many of her sister ships were already being decommissioned, transferred to foreign navies or placed in reserve. Her last months in U.S. service included local and Pacific movements connected with operational and transfer preparations. During March 1994, she also operated in company with the newly commissioned USS ESSEX (LHD 2) during the latter ship's movement toward Pearl Harbor, including underway maneuvering exercises in the Pacific.

USS BRISTOL COUNTY was decommissioned at San Diego on July 29, 1994, and was struck from the Naval Vessel Register on the same date. Her U.S. Navy commissioned service had lasted almost twenty-two years. Congressional authorization provided for her transfer to Morocco as an excess defense article on a grant basis under Section 516 of the Foreign Assistance Act rather than as a conventional commercial sale. The transfer was completed on August 16, 1994. The Royal Moroccan Navy renamed the ship SIDI MOHAMMED BEN ABDELLAH and assigned her pennant number 407. SIDI MOHAMMED BEN ABDELLAH continued in Royal Moroccan Navy service for approximately sixteen years. Her size and vehicle capacity made her considerably larger than most other Moroccan amphibious vessels, although maintaining a ship built in the early 1970s became increasingly demanding as she aged. She remained in Moroccan service until 2010. After withdrawal, the former USS BRISTOL COUNTY was retained for several more years before being used as a target and sunk in May 2013.

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About the Ship's Coat of Arms:

In April 1972 the Prospective Commanding Officer, Commander D. L. Waggoner, traveled to Bristol County, Rhode Island to establish close relations between the ship and the citizens of its namesake county. He spoke to several groups, including the State Senate, Rotary Club, and various town councils. Commander Waggoner told these groups about "their ship" while, at the same time, learning about the heritage of the county and its old seafaring towns of Bristol (1680), Warren (1747), and Barrington (1770). During his stay in Bristol County he arranged for a local artisan and highly respected plaque designer, Mr. Thomas Goff, to assist in designing the ship's coat-of-arms or plaque. The county newspapers also got in the act by running a contest for the best slogan or motto.

The coat-of-arms of USS BRISTOL COUNTY reflects the background and spirit of the area for which she is named. Basic to the coat-of arms is the anchor, and symbolic on the coat-of-arms are the state seal and flag of the State of Rhode Island, long symbols of strength and hope for mariners.

The Square-Rigger and Tank Landing Ship on the ocean are symbolic of the old sailing vessels that moored in the Port of Bristol, Rhode Island, and the new and versatile LSTs. Also shown are the coats-of-arms of the towns of Bristol, Warren, and Barrington, the three towns comprising Bristol County, and the dates these historical old seafaring towns were incorporated.

The motto, SHIPSHAPE'N BRISTOL FASHION, with its origin in the town of Bristol, England in the 18th century, is a saying that noted the excellence of the ships that sailed from that port. It is a well known complimentary expression still in use today.

The composite design symbolizes the historic relationship between USS BRISTOL COUNTY, Bristol County, Rhode Island, and the sea.

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USS BRISTOL COUNTY Image Gallery:

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