Crowds of people in one Mississippi River town raised their phones to take a picture and record a piece of World War II history as it made its way up the Mississippi River on Saturday.

The LST-325, a World War II vessel that played a pivotal role in the D-Day operation in Europe, is traveling up the Mississippi River to its home in Evansville, Indiana, after spending several months dry-docked in Texas. Every 10 years, the boat travels back and forth from Indiana to Texas to get crucial inspections and maintenance to keep its operation status.

On Saturday, the vessel passed by Natchez, where people lined up along the riverfront and the high bluff to catch a glimpse of the boat returning to its home.

The boat is scheduled to return to Evansville by the end of the month and host a solar eclipse party on April 8. 

Click here for a link to the LST Memorial website, for more about the boat and its location in Evansville. 

Information about the LST-325

LST-325 was launched on 27 October 1942 at Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, and commissioned on 1 February 1943 under Lt. Ira Ehrensall, USNR.

The ship operated in the North Africa area and participated in the invasions at Gela, Sicily and Salerno, Italy.

On 6 June 1944, LST-325 was part of the largest armada in history by participating in the Normandy Landings at Omaha Beach. She carried 59 vehicles, 30 officers and a total of 396 enlisted men on that first trip. On her first trip back to England from France, LST-325 transported 38 casualties back to a friendly port.

Over the next nine months, Navy records show LST-325 made more than 40 trips across the English Channel, carrying thousands of men and pieces of equipment needed by troops to successfully complete the liberation of Europe. The ship continued to run supply trips between England and France before returning to the United States in May 1945.