O'Brien-class destroyer
The O'Brien class of destroyers was a class of six ships designed by and built for the United States Navy shortly before the United States entered World War I. The O'Brien class was the third of five classes of destroyers that were known as the "thousand tonners", because they were the first U.S. destroyers over Template:Convert displacement.
The design of what became the O'Brien class was the result of discussions between the General Board of the United States Navy and the U.S. Navy's Bureau of Ordnance. What resulted was a design that was an incremental development of the Template:Sclass, which itself was similar to the first of the thousand tonners, the Template:Sclass (which displaced about a third more than the preceding Template:Sclass). The key difference in the O'Brien class was the increase in torpedo size, going up to Template:Convert from the preceding classes' Template:Convert torpedoes.
The ships had a median displacement of Template:Convert, were just over Template:Convert in length, and had a beam of about Template:Convert. All of the ships had two direct-drive steam turbines and a combination of other engines for cruising at speeds less than Template:Convert. All of the ships were designed for a maximum speed of Template:Convert. As built, they were armed with four Template:Convert guns and had four twin 21-inch torpedo tubes with a load of eight torpedoes, but all were later equipped with depth charges. The ships were built by four private American shipyards—Bath Iron Works, Fore River Shipbuilding Company, New York Shipbuilding Corporation, and William Cramp & Sons—and were laid down between September and November 1913; launched between April 1914 and February 1915; and commissioned into the U.S. Navy between June 1914 and August 1915.
All six ships operated in the Atlantic or Caribbean until the U.S. entrance into World War I in April 1917, when all six were sent overseas to Queenstown, Ireland, for convoy escort duties. Several of the ships rescued passengers and crew from ships sunk by U-boats, and several had encounters with U-boats themselves; Template:USS helped sink Template:SMU in November 1917, the first U-boat sunk by the U.S. Navy. All six members of the class had returned to the United States in January 1919 and were decommissioned by June 1922. In 1924, two of the six—Template:USS and Template:USS—were commissioned into the United States Coast Guard to help enforce Prohibition as a part of the "Rum Patrol". They were returned to U.S. Navy custody in 1932 and 1933, respectively. All six ships had been sold for scrapping by June 1936.
BackgroundEdit
For the 1913 fiscal year,<ref name=Bauer-171 /> the General Board of the United States Navy determined that six destroyers would be authorized. The design for Destroyers No. 51 through No. 56—what became the O'Brien class, was to closely follow the design of the Template:Sclass and Template:Sclasses from fiscal year 1912. The chief of the U.S. Navy's Bureau of Ordnance (BuOrd) suggested that the new destroyers be equipped with ten torpedo tubes and urged that the new Template:Convert torpedo be adopted. The General Board agreed in principle, adopting the 21-inch torpedo tubes, but eliminated BuOrd's proposed centerline torpedo tubes and keeping the number of tubes at eight,<ref name=Friedman-29>Friedman, p. 29.</ref> the same as the Cassin and Aylwin classes.<ref name=Bauer-170>Bauer and Roberts, p. 170.</ref> The additional weight of the larger torpedoes, Template:Convert of top weight, was offset by reducing the planned two aft-facing guns to a single one.<ref name=Friedman-29 /> This gave the class four Template:Convert guns,<ref name=Friedman-29 /> which, again, matched the battery of the Cassin and Aylwin classes.<ref name=Bauer-170 /> The design for the O'Brien class was approved on 20 August 1912, and authorized by Congress on 4 March 1913.<ref name=Friedman-29 />
DesignEdit
As built, the O'Brien-class ships were Template:Convert in length (overall), were Template:Convert abeam, and had a standard draft of Template:Convert.<ref name="Con-122-123"/> The hull shape featured the distinctive high forecastle typical of U.S. destroyer classes since the 1908–09 Template:Sclass, the first destroyers designed to be truly ocean-going vessels.<ref name=Con-121>Gardiner, p. 121.</ref> The ships displaced between Template:Convert with a median of Template:Convert.<ref name=Bauer-171 />
The ships were equipped with two propeller shafts and two direct-drive, Zoelly steam turbines fed by four White-Forster boilers. The power plant of the ships generated Template:Convert which drive the ships to the design speed of Template:Convert.<ref name=Con-123>Gardiner, p. 123.</ref> Because of inherent inefficiency of turbines at low speeds,<ref name=Friedman-25>Friedman, pp. 25, 27.</ref><ref group=Note>While turbines were most efficient at high speeds, propellers were most efficient at low speeds. Turbines directly connected to the propeller shafts—as was the case with the main turbines of all the O'Brien ships—were particularly inefficient at low speeds. See: Friedman, pp. 25, 27.</ref> all of the ships were equipped with supplemental cruising engines for travel at speeds under Template:Convert.<ref name=Friedman-29 /> All except Template:USS were equipped with supplemental triple-expansion reciprocating engines: Template:USS, Template:USS, and Template:USS each had a pair of reciprocating engines for cruising; Template:USS and Template:USS were outfitted with only one. Instead of reciprocating engines, Cushing was equipped with a pair of geared steam turbines for cruising.<ref name=Bauer-171 />
The main battery of the O'Brien class consisted of four Template:Convert/50 Mark 9 guns.<ref name=Con-123 /><ref group=Note>The 50 denotes the length of the gun barrels; in this case, the gun is 50 calibers, meaning that the gun is 50 times as long as it is in diameter, Template:Convert in this case. The Mark number is the version of the gun; in this case, the ninth U.S. Navy design of the 4-inch/50 gun.</ref> They were also equipped with four twin Template:Convert torpedo tubes, for a total load of eight Mark 8 torpedoes. Although the General Board had called for two anti-aircraft guns for the O'Brien class, they were not originally outfitted with the weapons; the later Template:Sclass was the first American destroyer class so armed.<ref name=Friedman-31 /> Likewise, there is no record of any of the O'Brien ships being outfitted with mine-laying apparatus. During World War I, most American destroyers were used in anti-submarine warfare roles, and were equipped with depth charges and delivery systems, such as Y-guns and depth charge racks.<ref name=Con-121 /> O'Brien-class ships were equipped with depth charges during the war,<ref name=DANFS-all_six /> but no specific mentions of the types of depth charges used or delivery system are recorded in secondary sources.<ref name=Bauer-171 /><ref name=Con-123 />
Comparisons with other "thousand tonners"Edit
The "thousand tonners" were the 26 United States Navy destroyers of five classes—Cassin, Aylwin, O'Brien, Template:Sclass, and Sampson—so named because they were the first U.S. Navy destroyers to have displacements greater than 1,000 long tons.<ref name="Con-122-123" /><ref group=Note>The Template:Sclass is considered a part of the Template:Sclass by Conway's All the World's Fighting Ships 1906–1921 (p. 122), but is classed separately by the United States Navy. See, for example, Template:Cite DANFS</ref> The Cassin class, the first of the thousand tonners, displaced about a third more than the preceding Template:Sclass.<ref name=Con-122-123 /> The introduction of the thousand tonners led to the Pauldings and other older, smaller displacement destroyers of previous classes to be dismissively called "flivvers",<ref name=Con-121 /> a nickname also commonly applied to the Ford Model T.<ref>Cashman, p. 278.</ref><ref group=Note>According to Cashman (p. 278), a flivver—a portmanteau of "for the liver"—was any small, inexpensive automobile that shook the liver while in motion.</ref>
_and_destroyers_in_World_War_I.jpg){kind=link}
The O'Brien class was the third of the five classes of "thousand tonners". The earlier Cassin- (DD-43 to DD-46) and Aylwin-class (DD-47 to DD-50) ships were about the same length as the O'Brien ships and all had median displacements in the range of Template:Convert; the later Tucker- (DD-57 to DD-62) and Sampson-class (DD-63 to DD-68) ships were about Template:Convert longer and had median displacements of Template:Convert. All five classes were armed with four 4-inch guns, but the torpedo size and complement varied. All were equipped with four twin torpedo tubes loaded with eight torpedoes except for the Sampsons (which had four triple tubes carrying twelve torpedoes), but the Cassin and Aylwin classes were armed with Template:Convert torpedoes. The O'Brien ships were the first armed with the new 21-inch Mark 8 torpedoes; the Tucker and Sampson ships also used the 21-inch torpedoes. The Sampsons were the only group originally equipped with anti-aircraft guns, a pair of [[QF 1 pounder pom-pom|Template:Convert guns]] with a caliber of Template:Convert.<ref name=Con-122-123 />
ConstructionEdit
The construction of the six O'Brien-class ships was allocated to four U.S. shipbuilders. William Cramp constructed a trio of O'Brien destroyers, while the Fore River Shipbuilding Company, Bath Iron Works, and New York Shipbuilding Corporation built one ship each.<ref name=Con-123 /> The keels for all six ships were laid down between July and November 1913, with McDougal being the first and Ericsson the last.<ref name=Bauer-171>Bauer and Roberts, p. 171.</ref> All were launched between April 1915 and January 1915, with McDougal again being the first and Winslow being the last.<ref name=Con-123 /> McDougal was commissioned in June 1914, two months after her launch; the rest were commissioned between April and August 1915, with Cushing the final ship to enter service.<ref name=Bauer-171 /> The cost of each ship for hull and machinery was $790,000.<ref name=Friedman-31>Friedman, p. 31.</ref><ref group=Note>The hull-and-machinery cost does not include the costs of any weapons.</ref>
Ships in classEdit
All six members of the class served in the Atlantic or Caribbean throughout their U.S. Navy careers.<ref name=DANFS-all_six>Naval History & Heritage Command. "Cushing", "Ericsson", "McDougal", "Nicholson", "O'Brien", "Winslow". Dictionary of American Naval Fighting Ships (DANFS). Retrieved on 18 January 2015.</ref> In October 1916, with the United States still neutral in World War I, five of the six class members (all except Nicholson) were among the U.S. destroyers sent out to rescue survivors from five ships torpedoed by the German submarine Template:SMU off the Lightship Nantucket.<ref name=NYT-U53>Template:Cite news</ref><ref name=NYT-Levy>Template:Cite news</ref>
After the United States entered the war in April 1917, all six class members were sent overseas to Queenstown, Ireland, for convoy escort and anti-submarine duties.<ref name=DANFS-all_six /> McDougal was in the first group of six American destroyers that arrived at Queenstown on 4 May;<ref name=DANFS-McDougal>Template:Cite DANFS</ref> Ericsson and Winslow followed in the second group, which arrived thirteen days later,<ref name=DANFS-Ericsson>Template:Cite DANFS</ref><ref name=DANFS-Winslow>Template:Cite DANFS</ref> and Cushing, Nicholson, and O'Brien in the third group, a week after that.<ref name=DANFS-Tucker>Template:Cite DANFS</ref> Several of the ships had encounters with U-boats during the war: Nicholson, working with Template:USS in November 1917, helped to sink Template:SMU, which was the first U-boat sunk by the U.S. Navy;<ref name=Sweetman-124>Sweetman, p. 124.</ref> earlier, in June, O'Brien had depth-charged Template:SMU and was thought by the British Admiralty to have seriously damaged the U-boat, but post-war analysis of records showed that U-16 survived the attack and returned safely to port.<ref name=DANFS-OBrien>Template:Cite DANFS</ref>
All six ships returned to the United States in January 1919 and served in various roles over the next two years. Cushing was decommissioned in August 1920, followed by Nicholson and McDougal in May 1922, and the remaining three in the following month.<ref name=DANFS-all_six /> In June 1924, two of the six ships—Ericsson and McDougal—were reactivated for service with the United States Coast Guard's "Rum Patrol". Ericsson was returned to the U.S. Navy in May 1932, and McDougal in June 1933; both were sold for scrapping in 1934. O'Brien was sold for scrapping in 1935, and the remaining three in June 1936.<ref name=Bauer-171 />
USS O'Brien (DD-51)Edit
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{{#invoke:Labelled list hatnote|labelledList|Main article|Main articles|Main page|Main pages}} USS O'Brien (Destroyer No. 51/DD-51) was laid down by William Cramp & Sons of Philadelphia in September 1913 and launched in July 1914. The ship was the second U.S. Navy vessel named in honor of Jeremiah O'Brien and his five brothers, Gideon, John, William, Dennis, and Joseph who, together on the sloop Unity, captured a British warship during the American Revolutionary War.<ref name=DANFS-OBrien />
After O'BrienTemplate:'s May 1915 commissioning, she sailed off the east coast and in the Caribbean.<ref name=DANFS-OBrien /> She was one of the U.S. destroyers sent out to rescue survivors from five victims of German submarine U-53 off the Lightship Nantucket in October 1916.<ref name=NYT-U53 /> After the United States entered World War I in April 1917, O'Brien was sent overseas to patrol the Irish Sea out of Queenstown, Ireland.<ref name=DANFS-OBrien />
After returning to the United States in January 1919, O'Brien returned to European waters in May to serve as one of the picket ships for the NC-type seaplanes in the first aerial crossing of the Atlantic. O'Brien was decommissioned at Philadelphia in June 1922. She was struck from the Naval Vessel Register in March 1935 sold for scrapping in April.<ref name=DANFS-OBrien />
USS Nicholson (DD-52)Edit
{{#invoke:Labelled list hatnote|labelledList|Main article|Main articles|Main page|Main pages}} USS Nicholson (Destroyer No. 52/DD-52) was laid down by William Cramp & Sons of Philadelphia in September 1913 and launched in August 1914. The ship was the second U.S. Navy vessel named in honor of five members of the Nicholson family who gave distinguished service in the American Revolutionary War, the War of 1812, and the American Civil War: brothers James, Samuel, and John Nicholson; William Nicholson, son of John; and James W. Nicholson, grandson of Samuel.<ref name=DANFS-Nicholson/>
After NicholsonTemplate:'s April 1915 commissioning, she sailed off the east coast and in the Caribbean. After the United States entered World War I in April 1917, Nicholson was sent overseas to patrol the Irish Sea out of Queenstown, Ireland. In October 1917, Nicholson steamed to the rescue of Template:SS, driving off the German submarine Template:SMU, which had shelled the American cargo ship for over three hours.<ref name=DANFS-Nicholson>Template:Cite DANFS</ref> In November, Nicholson and another U.S. destroyer, Fanning, were responsible for sinking the German submarine U-58, the first submarine taken by U.S. forces during the war.<ref name=Sweetman-124 /> In September 1918, Nicholson helped drive off Template:SMU after that U-boat had torpedoed the American troopship Template:USS off the coast of France.<ref name=DANFS-Winslow />
Upon returning to the United States after the war, Nicholson was placed in reduced commission in November 1919. She was decommissioned at Philadelphia in May 1922. She was struck from the Naval Vessel Register in January 1936 sold for scrapping in June.<ref name=DANFS-Nicholson />
USS Winslow (DD-53)Edit
{{#invoke:Labelled list hatnote|labelledList|Main article|Main articles|Main page|Main pages}} USS Winslow (Destroyer No. 53/DD-53) was laid down by William Cramp & Sons of Philadelphia in October 1913 and launched in February 1915. The ship was the second U.S. Navy vessel named in honor of John Ancrum Winslow, a U.S. Navy officer notable for sinking the Confederate commerce raider Template:Ship during the American Civil War.<ref name=DANFS-Winslow />
After WinslowTemplate:'s August 1915 commissioning, she sailed off the east coast and in the Caribbean.<ref name=DANFS-Winslow /> She was one of the U.S. destroyers sent out to rescue survivors from five victims of German submarine U-53 off the Lightship Nantucket in October 1916.<ref name=NYT-U53 /> After the United States entered World War I in April 1917, Winslow was sent overseas to patrol the Irish Sea out of Queenstown, Ireland. Winslow made several unsuccessful attacks on U-boats, and rescued survivors of several ships sunk by the German craft.<ref name=DANFS-Winslow />
Upon returning to the United States after the war, Winslow was placed in reduced commission in December 1919. She was decommissioned at Philadelphia in June 1922. In November she dropped her name to free it for a new destroyer of the same name, becoming known only as DD-53. She was struck from the Naval Vessel Register in January 1936 sold for scrapping in June.<ref name=DANFS-Winslow />
USS McDougal (DD-54)Edit
{{#invoke:Labelled list hatnote|labelledList|Main article|Main articles|Main page|Main pages}} USS McDougal (Destroyer No. 54/DD-54) was laid down by Bath Iron Works of Bath, Maine, in July 1913 and launched in April 1914. The ship was the second U.S. Navy vessel named in honor of David Stockton McDougal, a U.S. Navy officer notable for his leadership during an 1863 battle off Japan while in command of Template:USS.<ref name=DANFS-McDougal />
After McDougalTemplate:'s June 1914 commissioning, she sailed off the east coast and in the Caribbean.<ref name=DANFS-McDougal /> She was one of the U.S. destroyers sent out to rescue survivors from five victims of German submarine U-53 off the Lightship Nantucket in October 1916, and carried 6 crewmen from a sunken Dutch cargo ship to Newport, Rhode Island.<ref name=NYT-Levy /> After the United States entered World War I in April 1917, McDougal was part of the first U.S. destroyer squadron sent overseas. Patrolling the Irish Sea out of Queenstown, Ireland, McDougal made several unsuccessful attacks on U-boats, and rescued survivors of ships sunk by the German craft. After a collision with a British cargo ship in February 1918, McDougal was under repair until mid-July, and afterwards, operated out of Brest, France.<ref name=DANFS-McDougal />
Upon returning to the United States after the war, McDougal conducted operations with the destroyers of the Atlantic Fleet until August 1919, when she was placed in reserve, still in commission. After a brief stint of operations in mid 1921, she was placed in reserve until she was decommissioned at Philadelphia in May 1922. In June 1924, Ericsson was transferred to the United States Coast Guard to help enforce Prohibition as a part of the "Rum Patrol". She operated under the name USCGC McDougal (CG-6) until May 1933, when she was returned to the Navy. In November she dropped her name to free it for a new destroyer of the same name, becoming known only as DD-54. She was struck for the Naval Vessel Register in July 1934 sold for scrapping in August.<ref name=DANFS-McDougal />
USS Cushing (DD-55)Edit
{{#invoke:Labelled list hatnote|labelledList|Main article|Main articles|Main page|Main pages}} USS Cushing (Destroyer No. 55/DD-55) was laid down by the Fore River Shipbuilding Company of Quincy, Massachusetts, in September 1913 and launched in January 1915. The ship was the second U.S. Navy vessel named in honor of William B. Cushing, a U.S. Navy officer best known for sinking the Confederate ironclad warship Template:Ship during the American Civil War.<ref name=DANFS-Cushing/>
After CushingTemplate:'s August 1915 commissioning, she sailed off the east coast and in the Caribbean.<ref name=DANFS-Cushing>Template:Cite DANFS</ref> She was one of the U.S. destroyers sent out to rescue survivors from five victims of German submarine U-53 off the Lightship Nantucket in October 1916.<ref name=NYT-U53 /> After the United States entered World War I in April 1917, Cushing was sent overseas to patrol the Irish Sea out of Queenstown, Ireland. Cushing made several unsuccessful attacks on U-boats, and rescued survivors of several ships sunk by the German craft.<ref name=DANFS-Cushing />
Upon returning to the United States after the war, Cushing was placed in reserve in reduced commission. She was decommissioned at Philadelphia in August 1920. She was struck for the Naval Vessel Register in January 1936 and was sold for scrapping in June.<ref name=DANFS-Cushing />
USS Ericsson (DD-56)Edit
{{#invoke:Labelled list hatnote|labelledList|Main article|Main articles|Main page|Main pages}} USS Ericsson (Destroyer No. 56/DD-56) was laid down by the New York Shipbuilding of Camden, New Jersey, in November 1913 and launched in August of the following year. The ship was the second U.S. Navy vessel named in honor of John Ericsson, the Swedish-born builder of the ironclad warship Template:USS during the American Civil War.<ref name=DANFS-Ericsson />
After EricssonTemplate:'s May 1916 commissioning, she sailed off the east coast and in the Caribbean.<ref name=DANFS-Ericsson /> She was one of the U.S. destroyers sent out to rescue survivors from five victims of the German submarine U-53 off the Lightship Nantucket in October 1916,<ref name=NYT-U53 /> and carried 81 passengers from a sunken British ocean liner to Newport, Rhode Island.<ref name=NYT-Six>Template:Cite news</ref> After the United States entered World War I in April 1917, Ericsson was part of the first U.S. destroyer squadron sent overseas. Patrolling the Irish Sea out of Queenstown, Ireland, Ericsson made several unsuccessful attacks on U-boats, and rescued survivors of several ships sunk by the German craft.<ref name=DANFS-Ericsson />
Upon returning to the United States after the war, Ericsson conducted operations with the destroyers of the Atlantic Fleet until August 1919, when she was placed in reserve, still in commission. After a brief stint of operations in mid 1921, she was placed in reserve until she was decommissioned at Philadelphia in June 1922. In June 1924, Ericsson was transferred to the United States Coast Guard to help enforce Prohibition as a part of the "Rum Patrol". She operated under the name USCGC Ericsson (CG-5) until May 1932, when she was returned to the Navy. She was sold for scrap in August 1934.<ref name=DANFS-Ericsson />
NotesEdit
ReferencesEdit
BibliographyEdit
- Template:Cite book
- Template:Cite book
- Template:Cite book
- Template:Cite book
- Template:Cite DANFS
- Template:Cite DANFS
- Template:Cite DANFS
- Template:Cite DANFS
- Template:Cite DANFS
- Template:Cite DANFS
- Template:Cite DANFS
- Template:Cite book
- Template:Cite book
- Silverstone, Paul H., U.S. Warships of World War I (Ian Allan, 1970), Template:ISBN.
External linksEdit
- DestroyerHistory.org Thousand Tonner page
- DestroyerHistory.org O'Brien class page
- Tin Can [email protected] O'Brien class Template:Webarchive
- NavSource Destroyer Photo Index Page
- DiGiulian, Tony Navweaps.com 4"/50 Mks 7, 8, 9, and 10
- DiGiulian, Tony Navweaps.com Pre-WWII US Torpedoes
- US Navy Torpedo History, part 2 Template:Webarchive