.JPG) USSCassin in Coast Guard service | |
| Class overview | |
|---|---|
| Name | Cassin class |
| Builders | Various |
| Operators | |
| Preceded by | Paulding class |
| Succeeded by | Aylwin class |
| Built | 1912–1915 |
| In commission | 1913–33 |
| Completed | 4 |
| Retired | 4 |
| General characteristics | |
| Type | Destroyer |
| Displacement |
|
| Length | 305 ft 3 in (93.04 m) |
| Beam | 30 ft 4 in (9.25 m) |
| Draft | 9 ft 3 in (2.82 m) |
| Installed power |
|
| Propulsion | 2 ×screws |
| Speed | 29 knots (54 km/h; 33 mph) (design) |
| Capacity | 312 tons oil (fuel) |
| Complement | 5 officers, 93 enlisted |
| Armament |
|
Fourdestroyers in theUnited States Navy comprised theCassin class. All served as convoy escorts duringWorld War I. TheCassins were the first of five "second-generation" 1000-ton four-stack destroyer classes that were front-line ships of the Navy until the 1930s. They were known as "thousand tonners" for their normal displacement, while the previous classes were nicknamed "flivvers" for their small size, after theModel T Ford.[1]
They were the first to carry the new4-inch (102 mm)/50 caliber guns. The number oftorpedo tubes was increased from the six carried by thePaulding class to eight. The additional armament significantly increased their tonnage to over 1,000 tons and decreased their speed to less than 30knots (56 km/h; 35 mph), despite an increase from 12,000shaft horsepower (8,900 kW) to 16,000 shp (12,000 kW).[2]
TheAylwin class was built concurrently, and those four ships are often considered to beCassins. Both classes were ordered infiscal year 1912.[2][3][4]
The class performed convoy escort missions in theAtlantic inWorld War I. Hulls 43–45 served in theUnited States Coast Guard as part of theRum Patrol in 1924–31. All were scrapped 1934–35 to comply with theLondon Naval Treaty.[3]
The increase in normal displacement to over 1,000 tons was due to the desire to combine a heavy armament with a substantial cruising range. The US Navy at the time had only three modernscout cruisers of theChester class, so the destroyers had to double as scouts.[4] The engineering arrangement of two-shaftdirect driveturbines was similar to some previous ships, but the poor performance of early cruising turbines caused a reversion to reciprocating engines for cruising. Hulls 43 and 44 had atriple expansion engine that could be clutched to one shaft for cruising; the other pair of ships had a similar arrangement on both shafts.[4]
The "thousand tonner" type included 26 destroyers in five classes: fourCassins, fourAylwins, sixO'Briens, sixTuckers, and sixSampsons.[1] The ships were commissioned 1913–17. As the type developed the gun armament of four 4 inch (102 mm) guns remained the same, torpedo armament greatly increased, and displacement rose by about 100 tons. TheCassin andAylwin classes had eight18-inch (450 mm)torpedo tubes in twin broadside mounts, two mounts on each side. TheO'Briens introduced the 21-inch (533 mm) torpedo to the US destroyer force, but the number of tubes remained at eight. In theSampsons, torpedo armament was increased to twelve21 inch (533 mm) tubes by replacing the twin mounts with triple mounts.[4] The subsequent "flush deck" types retained the gun and torpedo armament of theSampsons on a new hull with displacement increased by about 100 tons, and with a new engineering plant. The thousand tonners also debuted US destroyeranti-aircraft armament: two1-pounder (37 mm)autocannons were specified for theTuckers but not fitted until theSampsons.[3]
In engineering, cruising turbines were re-introduced with theTucker andSampson classes.USS Wadsworth had prototype fullygeared turbines without cruising turbines; this arrangement was later adopted for theClemson-class "flush deckers"; other flush deckers had geared turbines with varying cruising arrangements.[3]
The gun armament of four4-inch (102 mm)/50 caliber Mark 9 guns was a significant increase from the five 3-inch (76 mm) guns of thePaulding class, and remained the standard US destroyer gun armament through the "flush deck"Clemson-class destroyers commissioned through 1921. It reflected the increasing size of foreign destroyers that theCassins might have to fight. Thetorpedo armament of eight 18-inch (450 mm)torpedo tubes was an increase of two tubes over thePauldings. A factor in the size of the torpedo armament was theGeneral Board's decision to use broadside rather than centerline torpedo tubes.[4] This was due to the desire to have some torpedoes remaining after firing a broadside, and problems experienced with centerline mounts on previous classes with torpedoes striking thegunwales of the firing ship.[4]
The class was probably equipped with one or twodepth charge racks each foranti-submarine convoy escort missions inWorld War I.[5]
Most references list the propulsion plant ofCassin andCummings as standard for the class.[3] However, the Navy's officialShips' Data Book for 1912 shows there was some variation.[6]Cassin andCummings had fourNormand boilers supplying steam to twodirect-driveParsons-typesteam turbines driving two shafts for a total of 16,000 shp (12,000 kW). A smalltriple-expansion engine could be clutched to one shaft for economical cruising at moderate speeds. Early steam turbines were inefficient at low speed, and this was only remedied with the rise in steam pressure and the introduction ofgeared cruising turbines during World War I.Downes hadThornycroft boilers andDuncan hadYarrow boilers. Both of these had Curtis steam turbines and triple-expansion cruising engines on both shafts.[6]
Downes made 29.14 knots (53.97 km/h; 33.53 mph) on trials at 14,254 shp (10,629 kW). Normal fuel oil capacity was 312 tons.[4]
| Name | Hull no. | Shipyard | Laid down | Launched | Commissioned | Decommissioned | Fate |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Cassin | DD-43 | Bath Iron Works,Bath, Maine | 1 May 1912 | 20 May 1913 | 9 August 1913 | 29 March 1922 | USCG 1924–33, scrapped 1934 |
| Cummings | DD-44 | Bath Iron Works | 21 May 1912 | 6 August 1913 | 19 September 1913 | 23 June 1922 | USCG 1924–32, scrapped 1934 |
| Downes | DD-45 | New York Shipbuilding,Camden, New Jersey | 27 June 1912 | 8 November 1913 | 11 February 1915 | 6 June 1922 | USCG 1924–31, scrapped 1934 |
| Duncan | DD-46 | Fore River Shipbuilding,Quincy, Massachusetts | 17 June 1912 | 5 April 1913 | 30 August 1913 | 1 August 1922 | Scrapped 1935 |
This article incorporates text from thepublic domainDictionary of American Naval Fighting Ships.
