La Salle (AGF 3) - Naval Cruise Book

Page 7 text:

Rene Robert Cavelier, Sieur de La Salle, was born in 1643. He left the reli- gious life of a Jesuit Novitiate to become an explorer and developer of America. He arrived in Canada from France in 1666 and developed trade at Fort Frontenac and was granted a patent of nobility. He then re- turned to France and obtained a patent to build fdrts, explore and trade. When he came back to America he brought with him Henri de Tonti, who was his lieutenant in later enterprises. After building a blockade at the outlet of the Ni- agara River in 1697, he set out across the Great Lakes, to what in now Green Bay, Wisconsin, then by land along Lake Michi- gan to erect Fort Miami on the site of pres- ent day St. Joseph,kMichigan. He next pro- ceeded along the Illinois River where Fort Creve Coeur was built. He sent an expedi- tion to the upper Mississippi while he re- turned to Fort Frantenac for supplies. He returned to find the Illinois Posts deserted by Henri de Tonti, whose work had been in- terrupted by Iroquois Indian attacks. La Salle organized an Indian Federation of the Illinois, the Miami, and small tribes to fight the Iroquois. I Reunited with Tonti at Macinac Is- land, La Salle descended the Mississippi River with a small party that reached the river mouth on 09 April 1682. He took pos- ' far A- if lt if . 1 I t XX:.,w,.' . Q If - QXN, 'M ta . ,.,,wfz.f ,z,:ff,-., , . 'err' W 'X 'j'5iT.. ' f 1..- ' Mffffff t'tt --fff 1 ff fog' X iigjss, W , :QP ff ,LL .554 -se- 1: itt X---f X' Q .. N .,t, X . -. ., X --ss session of the whole Mississippi Valley in the name of France, calling the region Loui- siana. La Salle completed Fort St. Louis in 1683 and left for France, where he obtained power to colonize and govern the region be- tween Lake Michigan andthe Gulf of Mex- ico. He set sail from France in four ships, hoping to reach the mouth of the Mississip- pi, but diasaster overtook the expedition. One ship was captured by Spaniards, a sec- ond was wrecked and a third turned back to France. The coast of the Gulf of Mexico was such a sandy sameness to the eye that La Salle did not find the mouth of the Mis- sissippi. Instead, he landed on the Texas shore, probably at Lavaca Bay, an arm of Matagorda Bay. From here, futile attempts were made to reach the Mississippi over- land. His men grew mutinous. The great ex- plorer died in 1687 while attempting to find the Mississippi. He was murdered by his own men. 'N-sua,f43,,Wi..,,,X,X.,.. ' X NX.. ..,.,,,,,,..,,, 7 X . 1 1 1 1 x . ,... .,,,,,,,,M,w,-'vm-nxt Q ,V I O Q . W., .. ,, .X 2,1 ,. - X., fy ff X x ,,.,f x MMM XXX XXX .... .A W. LU AW X 5 1 X S WSAX XX? X S X XX 1, ' Xi 85' ' X M W' X 8 l 8 Kill . X 2 -' XXX Q X Q 4 X 5 .XXNXW NM W X, W2 ff ,XX K'-:A XXX X-X ff 1 wi ,f QQ XX f fy XX 1 NS f J X X f f f - f +1 N ff W 4 X N J f N W .WM X me X -4 wwf ,wx X X XX if f X 0 1 X is f X me SX X 94. X X i I .nv 1 N X N X 1 1 , X f x .,,. I NN N X K Q f ,f 1, f VI X , 1 ,F A 1 M :Z l'u- l 5 X li XX N Em: Q3-' X I ...Mg msg ,. ? . 2 XX EXE.-XX 'six 'I fix If X xi ,,,...XXXwg-X SX gg, ff K -RX 'A' Y 'XX ,-XXP A v 4, 1 X Z f 5 , 5 'SEXEXT X ff 3. N 'S Y' N Qagkkhv V X ww. ..,,f,,w- NX W N N kgx X X X SNK 'N fff vw, f X .X Q S ' X ff N ff ,ff gf X ff X f S X f, Y fa l WW Y WW F 1 XX XX f X X N X M F XX X X f N A lv 1 WZ, XXX ffm ff Ziff f W f pt rw X f lr f X Hg .X X f XX ff f X X YQ M HW MIL XXX ff XAX 'QM ' X X 6 , --f Qfkf-Q XM XX X fWW7'V mv X X :awww XXQXX ' Wax W .. 1 'Q X X I A ., AMN ,WXNX NX M 4 , X N N. X 4 A ,N , , My N f Suk N F ' XX -if? XX N5 X ff X X 4 .X X XXXXX 4 WOASX X W XX-X fwfrw XXX 'W c ,H XXX f X f XXXXX fyw XXXXX f I , ...X X N ,,, ,N WM ,X ffff M T - 1 .XX.....wf M i xilXX.X,,. RWM I 4,1 M X- K W QMS Q W Q X Nxwbrxx V WWW W XX V, XX -www XX f --s X X ff X WM NX XXX . ,sg JZW X W f X of 2 , W , K X X Z -XXNNX .-.,. xx .A f X. ,WM XO XX 5 H Kwiww 'W' f ,- QW NNN A fi, XSS M XXX N N , f QQ , X X X X XX 7 XXSNN X Z WWXX f X, X XXX, X X XX . , Q .ff M , ,,..v , X 91 XNXX X f ff , .fa-..... fllw ..., ff! ' XX M, ,XX XX? ff , X , X f ,, ,X X. ,-,.. , --...... . N M .. X,. , . X-. , .XX .X , W, .QM K :W ,,,, 5 7-A V N .. ., .,,N.Xj Q, I x ff,

Page 6 text:

3 Q AS AD LA SALLE'S CREST The shipls crest combines features relating to the explorer, the city and the ship. Its upper right corner bears the charges of the coat-of-arms of LA SALLE s family an eight-point star and a rabbit. The fort on the lower left side represents Fort St Louis which was built by LA SALLE in 1682 on the banks of the Illinois River. The elevat- ed ground' on which the fort stands is known as Starved Rock. The city of La Salle is not fasr from the site of this fort. The background anchor symbol- izes the Navy and the sea' the motto across the anchor s base Facilitas Ad Marem translates Versatility At ea THE FIRST LA SALLE The first ship of the U.S. Navy to bear the name LA SALLE, a troop transport, was commissioned on March 31, 1943 as USS HOTSPUR CAP 1021. Her name was changed to LA SALLE on April 6, 1943. During World War II, LA SALLE served with distinction in the Pacific earning eight Battle Stars, the Navy Gccupation Ser- vice Medal and the Philippine Repub- lic Presidential Unit Citation Badge. She decommissioned on 24 July 1946, and her name was stricken from the Navy rolls on 15 August 1946. LA SALLE'S NAME Amphibious Transport docks QLPDJ are named for cities which take their names from explorers and develo- pers of the United States. thus LA SALLE is named after the city of LA SALLE Illinois which took its name from the French explorer Rene Cavel- ier Sieur de La Salle The city of La Salle is located in the prosperous agricultural and indus- trial Illinois River Valley in north cen- tral Illinois. La Salle was founded in 1827 when the Illinois Michigan Canal was planned and was incorporated as a city 1852 Its development has been marked by the influences of explorers, missionaries, pioneers, traders, and emigrants. In 1832, Abraham Lincoln enlisted in the Army at La Salle. The city has been a virtual cross- road of America, giving it a colorful, rich history. Today, La Salle is a city of some 12,000 citizens employed in the manufacturing of clocks and watches, cement, electrical goods, chemicals, and shoes. La Salle has benefitted from the gifts of abundant natural resources and from the energetic people living in that modern, progressive American community. I I 9 a a . . ' 9 a 9 s , . ca as 7 9 , 44 - - . . . . , - as cc - - . a , S as - ' ' . , . A

Page 8 text:

LA SALLE S HISTORY On 22 February 1964 USS LA SALLE was commissioned in the U.S. Navy as an Amphibious Transport Dock CLPDJ She joined her sister ships USS RALEIGH and USS VANCOUVER, as the newest class of amphibious ships in the Navy. Mobili- ty flexibility and versatility were the trademarks of these ships. Each could transport over 800 combat-ready Ma- rines' along with their equipment vehi- 'cles ammunition fuel and cargo at high speeds to the site of an amphibious operation. A variety of boats cranes elevators and conveyors plus the abili ty to embark helicopters could be ut1l ized to enable these operations to be conducted quickly and efficiently Taking this capability to the fleet LA SALLE s operating schedule has been far from routine She has demon strated her flexibility in numerous var red operations In 1965 she served as the flag ship for Atlantic Fleet am ph1b1ous forces during the Dominican Crisis That same year she participated in the evacuatlon of Construction Ba tallion SIX from Guantanamo Bay Cuba during the Cuban M1ss1le Crisis In 1966 LA SALLE became the first ship of her size to successfully recover and return a Project GEMINI space capsule to Cape Canaveral During 1969 LA SALLE served as the test platform for the prototype AV 8 HAR RIER VTOL QVert1cal Take Off and Landingj fighter-bomber In 1972 after an extensive over- haul LA SALLE was designated as a Miscellaneous Command Ship CAGFJ and assumed duties as flagship for Commander Middle East Force Painted white to reflect the hot Middle East sun The Great White Ghost of the Arabian Coast has steamed an av- erage of 55 000 nautical miles annual- ly in that role calling on ports in Africa Asia and the Middle East. LA SALLE assisted in the evacu- ation of 260 American and foreign civi- lians from the Iranian seaport of Ban- dar Abbas in 1979. She became the fo- cal point of U.S. activity in the Arabian Gulf at the outset of the Iranian Hos- tage Crisis The combination of the Crisis The combination of this crisis and the initiation of the Iran Iraq War which began in 1980 brought about a dramatic increase in the command and support responsibilities placed on the ship and her crew USS CORONADO relieved LA SALLE in November 1980 and the Great White Ghost returned Stateside for the first time in 8b years On ar rival she began a major overhaul which included increasing her air con d1t1on1ng capacity replacing and up grading the ship s four turbine genera tors adding an extensive electronics and communications package and re placing two 3 50 caliber guns with the MK15 Close In Weapons System CCIWSJ USS LA SALLE returned to the Arabian Gulf and resumed flagship du tiesfor COMIDEASTFOR in June 1983. Since then, she has continued to provide the embarked staff with reli- able command and control facilities, all the while providing ongoing and varied support to the other Middle East Force ships operating in the area. In 1984, LA SALLE embarked three CH-53 helicopters and associated equipment from Helicopter Mine Countermeasure Squadron 14 to con- duct minesweep operations in the Red Sea in response to anonymous attempts to disrupt the free passage of shipping there. In the beginnig of 1986 LA SALLE was dispatched to conduct contingency operations off the coast of Yemen inthe Gulf of Aden during that country s civil war. With the onset of the gulf Tanker War LA SALLE has continued to serve as the command platform for Commander Middle East Force to coordinate force operations in the gulf. LA- SALLE played a vital role in March 1987 as both a flagshipand a logistics support ship during Northern Arabian Gulf contingency operation while the Arab League convened in Kuwait By providing needed fuel and supplies LA SALLE ensured the other ships of Middle East Force were able to remain on station for an extended pe- riod during this operation. In May 1987 LA SALLE rushed to the aid of the stricken U.S frigate STARK, which was adrift and still burning following an Iraqi missile at- tack. Initially LA SALLE provided crucial fire-fighting damage control and medical aid. Over the next days the ship and her crew became home and family for the surviving STARK sailors Until the arrival of the U S. tender ACADIA in June 1987 LA SALLE saw to initial repair require- ments of STARK, provided accommo- dations to her crew and served as a investigation and public relation func- tions associated with the tragic event. 4 an 19 , 7 7 7 7 ' 9 7 7 7 s 7 7 ' ' ' GE , . 7 , 77 , . 9 9 , 7 7 7 Q 7 7 7 7 7 , 7 7 7 ' -7 , , - . . . . 4 . . . u n u I . - , , . . . . , , . u n c u . . I - i , - -- - - - . central basefor all damage assessment, , . . . . , ' - . . - . . - ' , I n I u u I , I I , Q 1 v a Q u - . . . .. , A , . . , . - u , I , I . ' l ' ll ' , - - 7 4