Here are some pictures of my Navy Jeep that came off of USS Dunn County LST. This LST earned 3 battle stars in WW II and 5 more during the Korean War. This Jeep was declared surplus and sold after the LST was retired to the scrap yard after serving many years for U.S. Marine beach landing training at Camp LeJune, North Carolina. This may have been the LST that I trained on as a young Marine trainee around 1958. The Jeep was restored a couple of years ago by the fellow who purchased it out of Norfolk, Virginia. The engine was rebuilt by Jasper Engines to factory specs. The Willys only has a little over 18 K miles.
I am the director of the Cecil D. Buchanan War Museum located at American Legion Post 3 in Greenville SC, so a lot of admirers each nice weekend (I never drive it in bad weather) get to enjoy it. It is embarrassing for a former Marine grunt to ride around in a Navy Jeep, but since I did serve some time as a Marine MP at the Naval Brig in Philadelphia Navy Yard, maybe this will be OK. I recently purchased some new windshield wiper blades from you for the old workhorse and I appreciate the great service.
Kindest Regards
Peter Butchart
Greenville, South Carolina
Peter, I am a retired Army Officer, and I have an Army M38A1. The only functioning LST is 325, which is located in Evansville, IN. LST 325 participated in the invasions of North Africa and Normandy. There is quite a story there, and you should check the website if you aren’t aware of it. I visited LST 325 last summer and became an honorary crew member. I had an uncle who served on an LST in WWII. As a child, I remember Uncle Arthur talking about shooting down a Japanese bomber. I think Arthur actually fired on it, along with everyone else on the LST. When I checked Arthur’s record, I learned that he was on LST 783 and participated in the landings in the Philippines, Iwo Jima, and Okinawa. 783 was, indeed, credited with shooting down a Japanese plane in the Philippines. When I checked out LST 783, I found that Arthur had served with the son of Emmett Kelley, the famous clown. Kelley’s grandson, Joey Kelley, has published a book on 783 based on the ship’s log and the wartime diary of his dad. It’s a very interesting account of the war in the Pacific in 1944 and ‘ 45. The LST was an amazing ship. My only experience with the Navy was landing from an LCM in Ranger School and patrolling in the Mekong Delta with the Vietnamese on those “brown water” PBR boats. I enjoyed looking at your jeep photos. I understand how difficult it must be for a former Marine to own a Navy Jeep, but it is good that you kept it original. If I am through Greenville, I will check out the American Legion Post.
Gene Phillips
Georgetown, KY