Background
The destroyer type was at this time a relatively new class of fighting ship for the U.S. Navy. The type arose in response to torpedo boats that had been developing from 1865, especially after the development of the self-propelled Whitehead torpedo. During the Spanish-American War, it was realized that a torpedo boat destroyer was urgently needed to screen the larger warships, so much so that a special war plans board headed by Theodore Roosevelt issued an urgent report pleading for this type of ship.
A series of destroyers had been built over the preceding years, designed for high smooth water speed, with indifferent results. The results of these early destroyers was the appreciation of the need for true seakeeping and seagoing abilities. As a result, the size of U.S. destroyer classes increased steadily, starting at 450 tons and rising to over 1,000 tons between 1905 and 1916. The need for hulls large enough for high speed and heavy seas performance saw the inclusion of both oil fuel and reduction geared steam turbines.
A further need in the Navy was for scouting. There were few cruisers in the Navy, which was a fleet of battleships and destroyers. A report of October 1915 by Captain Sims noted that the smaller destroyers used fuel far too quickly, and that war games showed the need for fast vessels with a larger radius of action.
With World War I then in its second year and tensions between the U.S. and Germany increasing, the U.S. needed to expand its navy. The Naval Appropriation Act of 1916 called for a navy "second to none," capable of protecting both the Atlantic and Pacific coasts. The Act authorized 10 battleships, 6 Lexington-class battlecruisers, 10 Omaha-class scout cruisers, and 50 Wickes-class destroyers.
Read more about this topic: Wickes Class Destroyer
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