Named for a city in Illinois, Peoria was assigned to the United States Pacific Fleet and home ported at San Diego.

The tank landing ship alternated between military exercises along the United States west coast and deployments to the western Pacific.

Peoria took part in the evacuations of Phnom Penh, Cambodia and Saigon, South Vietnam, both of which signaled the end of American involvement in the respective countries.

The LST carried 1,750 long tons (1,780 t) of diesel fuel for a range of 2,500 nautical miles (4,600 km; 2,900 mi) at the cruising speed of 14 knots (26 km/h; 16 mph).

[3][5] The Newport class were larger and faster than previous LSTs and were able to transport tanks, heavy vehicles and engineer groups and supplies that were too large for helicopters or smaller landing craft to carry.

[1][7] The vessels also have davits for four vehicle and personnel landing craft (LCVPs) and could carry four pontoon causeway sections along the sides of the hull.

[6] The LST was ordered as part of the Fiscal Year 1966 group[6] on 15 July 1966 and laid down on 22 February 1968 by the National Steel and Shipbuilding Company at their yard in San Diego, California.

[9] In January 1975, Peoria, operating with the amphibious ready group (ARG) Alpha in the western Pacific, was deployed to east Asian waters in preparation for the possible fall of the US-backed government in Cambodia.

[12] This was followed by Operation Frequent Wind, the evacuation of Saigon, South Vietnam, on 29–30 April in which Peoria's helicopter deck was one of the launch points of the mission.

The fleet departed the West Coast on 1 December 1990, making its way to the Persian Gulf via Hawaii, the Philippines, arriving in the Arabian Sea on 14 January 1991.