Cronan describes his boot camp experiences and his initial assignment to shore duty patrolling the beach at Nags Head N.C. during World War II. He details his training in preparation for serving on an LST (Landing Ship Tank) his assignment to LST-762 a newly-commissioned ship built in Pittsburg and its journey down the Mississippi River through the Panama Canal to San Diego picking up troops on to Pearl Harbor and finally unloading in the Philippines at Leyte. He recalls other assignments transporting supplies and troops to various places in the Pacific and the participation of his ship in the invasion of Okinawa.