Search the Site with 
General Characteristics Crew List Memorabilia Cruise Books About the Name Coat of Arms About the Name "Carter Hall" Accidents aboard the Ship Image Gallery to end of page

USS Carter Hall (LSD 50)

USS CARTER HALL is the second HARPERS FERRY - class dock landing ship. The HARPERS FERRY class is the cargo variant of the WHIDBEY ISLAND - class. The CARTER HALL is the second amphibious ship in the Navy to bear the name.

General Characteristics:Awarded: December 22, 1989
Keel laid: November 11, 1991
Launched: October 2, 1993
Commissioned: September 30, 1995
Builder: Avondale Industries, New Orleans, Louisiana
Propulsion system: four 16 cylinder Colt-Pielstick Diesel Engines
Propellers: two
Length: 610 feet (186 meters)
Beam: 84 feet (25.6 meters)
Draft: 20 feet (6 meters)
Displacement: approx. 16,500 tons full load
Speed: 22 knots
Well deck capacity: two LCAC or one LCU or four LCM-8 or nine LCM-6 or 15 amphibious assault vehicles (AAV)
Aircraft: none, but two landing spots allow for operation of aircraft as large as the CH-53E
Crew: Ship: 24 officers, 328 enlisted     Marine Detachment: 504 Marines
Armament: two 20mm Phalanx CIWS, two Mk-38 Machine Guns, six .50 Machine Guns, Rolling Airframe Missile System
Cost: about $128 million
Homeport: Little Creek, VA


Back to topback to top  go to endgo to the end of the page



Back to topback to top  go to endgo to the end of the page

Crew List:

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


back to top  go to the end of the page



Back to topback to top  go to endgo to the end of the page

USS CARTER HALL Cruise Books:


Back to topback to top  go to endgo to the end of the page

About the Ship’s Coat of Arms:

The Shield:

The colors of the field, red, white, and blue, stand for the United States. The saltire recalls the heritage of the South in the history of the Carter Hall, Virginia. The anchor represents the Navy. The tines are in the form of pheons, symbolizing the mission of support to assault operations. The loose rope intertwined with the anchor signifies freedom. The border denotes unity. Dark blue and gold are the colors traditionally associated with the Navy; red for courage, white for integrity.

The Crest:

The griffin denotes courage and viligance. The crown refers to the heritage of CARTER HALL, recalling the Great grandfather of its builder, known as "King" Carter. The battle stars of the first CARTER HALL (LSD 3) are commemorated by the arc of battle, five gold for her service in Vietnam. The motto is underscored by the olive branch for peace and oak for war. Gold is for excellence and red for courage.

The Seal

The arms are emblazoned on a white oval enclosed by a blue collar edge on the outside with a gold rope and bearing the inscription "USS CARTER HALL" at the top and "LSD 50" at the bottom in gold.

The Motto:

"Working for Peace, Ready for War."


Back to topback to top  go to endgo to the end of the page

About the Ship’s Name, about the Carter Hall Estate:

The Landing Ship Dock CARTER HALL honors the name of a Virginian estate steeped in American history. Colonial Nathan Burwell built his country mansion on 8,000 acres in the lower Shenandoah Valley. The estate is located near the present town of Winchester in Northern Virginia.

The house took two years to build, 1790-1792. and Burwell named it after his great-grandfather, Robert "King" Carter. He chose a commanding site in a grove near a good spring. The clearing for the buildings left a fine body of oak and timber surrounding the estate, which still remains today. The panoramic view of the Blue Ridge Mountains and the Shenandoah River stills thrills visitors.

The mansion was used alternately as headquarters for the Union and Confederate troops during the Civil War. The family silver and other valuables were hidden in a secret place between the roof and ceiling to escape theft.

Burwell donated two acres of his land for a chapel where several notables are buried. Among those laid to rest there are Edmond Randolph, the first Attorney General of the United States and previously a governor of Virginia; novelist John Esten Cook and poet Phillip Pendleton Cooke.

In 1929, Gerald Lambert bought the mansion and grounds from J. Townsend Burwell and completely modernized Carter Hall. The People-to-People Foundation, Inc., parent organization for Project Hope, acqured the property in 1977. Carter Hall is now headquarters of Project Hope's worldwide health sciences education and training program.


Back to topback to top  go to endgo to the end of the page

Accidents aboard USS CARTER HALL:

DateWhereEvents
December 12, 2012off the coast of North Carolina
A crewmember dies after falling into the well deck while the CARTER HALL is underway off the US East Coast. Following the accident the sailor was medevaced to Greenville, NC, where he was pronounced dead.
April 9, 2016approx. 60 nautical miles east of Cape Hatteras
Gunner's Mate 3rd class Taylor KayJean Machado fell or jumped overboard while the CARTER HALL was operating off North Carolina. According to initial reports, her boots and an attached note were found at the ship's stern. A 72-hour search for her including 8 ships and Navy and Coast Guard aircraft was suspended on April 12.


Back to topback to top  go to endgo to the end of the page


The photos below were taken by Michael Jenning and show the CARTER HALL during an Extended Drydocking Selected Restricted Availability (E-DSRA) at General Dynamics NASSCO shipyard (ex-Metro Machine), Norfolk, Va., on May 8, 2014.



The photos below were taken by Michael Jenning and show the CARTER HALL still undergoing her Extended Drydocking Selected Restricted Availability (E-DSRA) at General Dynamics NASSCO shipyard, Norfolk, Va., on October 23, 2014.



The photos below were taken by Michael Jenning and show the CARTER HALL during her Extended Drydocking Selected Restricted Availability (E-DSRA) at General Dynamics NASSCO shipyard, Norfolk, Va., on April 29, 2015.



The photos below were taken by Michael Jenning and show the CARTER HALL near the end of her Extended Drydocking Selected Restricted Availability (E-DSRA) at General Dynamics NASSCO shipyard, Norfolk, Va., on October 6, 2015.



The photos below were taken by Michael Jenning and show the CARTER HALL at Naval Base Norfolk, Va., on April 13, 2016. The ship had just returned from an underway in support of the DWIGHT D. EISENHOWER (CVN 69) Strike Group's Composite Training Unit Exercise (COMPTUEX).



The photos below were taken me and show the CARTER HALL arriving at Kiel, Germany, on June 17, 2016, after participating in BALTOPS 2016. For the exercise, the CARTER CALL had two LCACs and several AAVs embarked.



The photos below were taken by me and show the CARTER HALL at Naval Base Kiel, Germany, on June 18, 2016, after her participation in BALTOPS 2016.

Click here for more Photos.


The photos below were taken me and show the CARTER HALL departing Naval Base Kiel, Germany, on June 19, 2016. She subsequently headed to Amsterdam, The Netherlands, where she arrived on June 21.



The photo below was taken by Michael Jenning and shows the CARTER HALL at Little Creek, Va., on October 12, 2016.



The photos below were taken by Michael Jenning and show the CARTER HALL at Naval Base Norfolk, Va., on October 4, 2017.



The photo below was taken by Michael Jenning and shows the CARTER HALL at General Dynamics NASSCO-Earl Industries shipyard in Portsmouth, Va., for a maintenance availability on September 21, 2018.



Back to topback to top



Back to Dock Landing Ship List. Back to ships list. Back to selection page. Back to 1st page.