LST-637 was laid down on 24 May 1944 at Seneca, III., by the Chicago Bridge & Iron Co,; launched on 18 August 1944; sponsored by Mrs. Elizabeth Ann Michaels; and commissioned on 5 September 1944, Lt. C. E. Helfrich, USNR, in command.
During World War II, LST-637 was assigned to the Asiatic-Pacific theater and participated in the following operations:
Lingayen Gulf landing-January 1945
Visayan Island landings-March through May 1945
Tarakan Island operation-April and May 1945
Following the war, LST-637 performed occupation duty in the Far East until late October 1945. She was decommissioned on 29 March 1946 and struck from the Navy list on 5 June that same year. On 18 December 1947, the ship was sold to the Ships & Power Equipment Corp., of Barber, N.J., and subsequently scrapped.
LST-637 earned three battle stars for World War II service.
