Paulding-class destroyer

The ''Paulding''-class destroyers were a series of United States Navy destroyers derived from the with the torpedo tubes increased from three to six via twin mounts. They were the first destroyers in the US Navy with oil-fired boilers. The 21 ''Paulding''s doubled the number of destroyers in the US Navy. The ''Paulding'' class derived its name from the class's lead ship, , named for Rear Admiral Hiram Paulding (1797–1878). Like the ''Smith''s, they were nicknamed "flivvers" after the small and shaky Model T Ford once the larger "thousand tonner" destroyers entered service.

Generally 21 ships, hull numbers 22 through 42, are considered ''Paulding''s. However, some references list hull numbers 32 through 42 as the ''Monaghan'' class.Gardiner and Gray, p. 122 Others break out hulls 24–28, 30, 31, 33 and 36 as ''Roe'' class, with hulls 32, 35, and 38–42 as ''Monaghan'' class. Curiously, ''Jane's Fighting Ships of World War I'' refers to hulls 22–42 as the 21 hips of the'' ''Drayton'' class, going on to say "Unofficially known as 'Flivver Type'"; the book includes ''Paulding'' in the class listing, but not as the class leader.

Design

Armament

The torpedo armament was six 18-inch (450 mm) torpedo tubes in three twin mounts. This was an easy upgrade from the three single tubes with reloads of the ''Smith'' class, as the new design twin mounts actually weighed less than the older single mounts.Friedman, pp. 26–27, 455–457 The gun armament was the same as the ''Smith'' class, with five /50 caliber guns.DiGiulian, Tony, early 3"/50 USN guns at NavWeaps.com
/ref> During World War I, one or two depth charge tracks were equipped for the convoy escort mission.Friedman, p. 68

Engineering

There was some variation in engineering among the ships of this class. The most visible was that hulls 24–27, 30–32, 34, 36, 37, 39, and 40 had three stacks instead of four, with the middle stack being larger as two boiler uptakes were trunked together in it. Most of the ships' direct drive turbines were arranged as in the ''Smith'' class on three shafts, with a high-pressure center turbine exhausting to two low-pressure turbines on the outboard shafts. Cruising turbines were also fitted on the outboard shafts in these ships to improve fuel economy at low speeds. However, hulls 26–27, 30–31, and 34 had two turbines on two shafts (Zoelly or Curtis), with cruising stages included in the turbine casings.

This was the first USN destroyer class with oil-fired boilers. Compared with the ''Smith'' class, the ''Paulding''s had instead of , making them about a knot faster. From DD-32 on, most references state that Thornycroft boilers instead of Normand were equipped. However, the Navy's official ''Ships' Data Book'' for 1911 shows that other types of boilers were used as well, including Yarrow and White-Forster.

''Paulding'' made on trials at . Normal fuel oil capacity was 241 tons with a design range of at .

Service

The ''Paulding''s were commissioned in 1910–1912 and were active throughout World War I, primarily as convoy escorts in the Atlantic. They were equipped with one or two depth charge tracks for this mission. All served in the United States Navy; twelve were transferred to the United States Coast Guard 1924–30 for the Rum Patrol; and all were scrapped 1934–35 to comply with the London Naval Treaty.

Ships in class

Gallery

File:Henley DD39 43-1273M.jpg , ''Henley'' in dazzle camouflage
File:USS_Perkins_(DD-26).jpg, ''Perkins'' with three stack design
File:USS_Trippe_(DD-33).jpg, ''Trippe'' with four stacks

See also

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References

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Bibliography

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External links

Tin Can Sailors @ Destroyers.org - ''Paulding'' class destroyerDestroyerHistory.org ''Paulding'' class destroyerDestroyerHistory.org Flivver type destroyers

{{WWI US ships

Destroyer classes