The Landing Ship, Tank was a design whose origin largely dates back to the British evacuation of Dunkirk and a requirement following that for a ship that could load and unload vehicles and personnel from "unimproved" shores. Over 1,000 of the ships were built before the end of the war and took part in landing operations in both the European and Pacific theaters from June of 1943 until the end of the war, as well as operations in the Korean and Vietnam wars.

The unique design of the "Large, Slow Target" allowed them to cruise the open seas as well as sail up to shores, beach themselves to disgorge cargo and soldiers, and then pull themselves off again. Noteable operations include "Husky" at Sicily and "Overlord" at Normandy in Europe and "Galvanic" at Tarawa and "Iceberg" and "Detachment at Okinawa and Iwo Jima in the Pacific.

Documents:
Booklet of General Plans
Project Goldrush - LST Testing in 1942