Forrest Sherman-class destroyer

The 18 Forrest Sherman-class destroyers comprised the first post-war class of US destroyers. Commissioned beginning in 1955, these ships served until the late 1980s. Their weaponry underwent considerable modification during their years of service. Four were converted to guided-missile destroyers. This class also served as the basis for the Charles F. Adams-class guided-missile destroyers.

USS Barry on 16 October 1983
Class overview
NameForrest Sherman class
Builders
Operators United States Navy
Preceded byMitscher class
Succeeded byFarragut class
Built1953–1959
In commission1955–1988
Completed18
Retired18
Preserved
General characteristics
TypeDestroyer
Displacement
  • 2,800 tons standard
  • 4,050 tons full load
Length
  • 407 ft (124 m) waterline
  • 418 ft (127 m) overall
Beam45 ft (14 m)
Draft22 ft (6.7 m)
Propulsion
  • General Electric steam turbines (Westinghouse in DD-931)
  • 4 × 1,200 psi (8.3 MPa) Foster-Wheeler boilers (Babcock & Wilcox in DD-937, DD-943, DD-944, DD-945, DD-946 and DD-948)
  • 70,000 shp (52 MW), 2 × shafts.
Speed32.5 knots (60.2 km/h; 37.4 mph)
Range4,500 nautical miles (8,300 km) at 20 knots (37 km/h)
Complement15 officers, 318 enlisted
Sensors and
processing systems		Mark 56 fire-control system
Armament

Two ships of the class became museum ships, nine were sunk in training exercises, and the others were scrapped.

Construction

Nine ships were constructed by Bath Iron Works of Bath, Maine, five were built by Bethlehem Steel at the Fore River Shipyard in Quincy, Massachusetts, two were built by Ingalls Shipbuilding at Pascagoula, Mississippi and two were built by Puget Sound Bridge and Dredging Company in Seattle, Washington. These destroyers were assigned hull numbers 931 to 951, but the series skipped over the numbers used to designate the war prizes DD-934 (the Japanese ex-Hanazuki), DD-935 (the German T35), and DD-939 (the German Z39). DD-927 to DD-930 were completed as destroyer leaders.

Description

At the time they entered service, these ships were the largest US destroyers ever built, 418 feet (127 m) long, with a standard displacement of 2,800 tonnes (2,800 long tons). Originally designed under project SCB 85, they were armed with three 5-inch (127 mm)/54 caliber guns mounted in single turrets (one forward and two aft), 4 3-inch (76 mm)/50 caliber AA guns in twin mounts, as well as hedgehogs and torpedoes for ASW.[1] However, over the years, weaponry was considerably modified. The hedgehogs and 3-inch (76 mm) guns were removed from all ships during the 1960s and 1970s. In addition the fixed torpedo tubes were replaced by two triple 12.75 inches (324 mm) Mark 32 torpedo tube mounts.

Hull and later ships were built under SCB 85A with their fire control directors reversed from the SCB 85 configuration.[2] They were equipped with B&W Bailey Meter Company's new automatic boiler combustion control system, and a modified hurricane bow/anchor configuration. These ships are listed as Hull-class destroyers in some references.

USS Decatur (DDG-31) after conversion to a guided-missile destroyer with one of the aft gun mounts replaced with a Mk 13 missile launcher.

DDG conversions

Four of the destroyers—John Paul Jones, Parsons, Decatur, and Somers—were converted to guided-missile destroyers under SCB 240, armed with Tartar missiles.[3]

USS Barry (DD-933) with aft gun mount removed and replaced with an ASROC launcher.

ASW Modernization

Eight of the class were modernized to improve their ASW capabilities under SCB 251: Barry, Davis, Jonas Ingram, Manley, Du Pont, Blandy, Hull, and Morton; these ships became known as the Barry sub-class. These ships were fitted with an eight cell ASROC launcher in place of the No. 2 5-inch (127 mm) gun, and with a variable-depth sonar system. Six other ship modernizations were cancelled due to Vietnam War budget constraints.[3]

8"/55 Mark 71 gun test

As a test platform, the Hull carried the Navy's prototype 8"/55 caliber Mark 71 light-weight gun from 1975 to 1978 when the program was canceled, and the 5-inch mount was restored. Hull remains the only modern (post–World War II) destroyer-type ship to have carried an 8-inch (203 mm) gun.

Disposition

Of the 18 completed, nine were disposed of in fleet training exercises, seven were sold by Defense Reutilization and Marketing Service (DRMS) for scrapping, and two became museums.

Ships in class
Ships of the Forrest Sherman destroyer class
Name Hull no. Builder Laid down Launched Commissioned Decommissioned Fate Ref
Forrest Sherman DD-931 Bath Iron Works 27 October 1953 5 February 1955 9 November 1955 5 November 1982 Stricken, sold for scrapping 15 December 2014 [4]
John Paul Jones DD-932 DDG-32 18 January 1954 7 May 1955 5 April 1956 15 December 1982 Disposed of in support of Fleet training exercise, 31 January 2001 [5]
Barry DD-933 15 March 1954 1 October 1955 7 September 1956 5 November 1982 Scrapped 11 February 2022 [6]
Decatur DD-936 DDG-31 Bethlehem Steel, Fore River Shipyard 13 September 1954 15 December 1955 7 December 1956 30 June 1983 Disposed of in support of Fleet training exercise, 21 July 2004 [7]
Davis DD-937 1 February 1955 28 March 1956 28 February 1957 20 December 1982 Disposed of, sold by Defense Reutilization and Marketing Service (DRMS) for scrapping, 30 June 1994 [8]
Jonas Ingram DD-938 15 June 1955 7 August 1956 19 July 1957 4 March 1983 Disposed of in support of Fleet training exercise, 23 July 1988 [9]
Manley DD-940 Bath Iron Works 10 February 1955 12 April 1956 1 February 1957 4 March 1983 Disposed of, sold by Defense Reutilization and Marketing Service (DRMS) for scrapping, 30 June 1994 [10]
Du Pont DD-941 11 May 1955 8 September 1956 1 July 1957 4 March 1983 Disposed of, sold by Defense Reutilization and Marketing Service (DRMS) for scrapping, 11 December 1992 [11]
Bigelow DD-942 6 July 1955 2 February 1957 8 November 1957 5 November 1982 Disposed of in support of Fleet training exercise, 2 April 2003 [12]
Blandy DD-943 Bethlehem Steel, Fore River Shipyard 29 December 1955 19 December 1956 26 November 1957 5 November 1982 Disposed of, sold by Defense Reutilization and Marketing Service (DRMS) for scrapping, 30 June 1994 [13]
Mullinnix DD-944 5 April 1956 18 March 1957 7 March 1958 11 August 1983 Disposed of in support of Fleet training exercise, 23 August 1992 [14]
Hull DD-945 Bath Iron Works 12 September 1956 10 August 1957 3 July 1958 11 July 1983 Disposed of in support of Fleet training exercise, 7 April 1998 [15]
Edson DD-946 3 December 1956 4 January 1958 7 November 1958 15 December 1988 Preserved, first New York from 1989, returned to navy in 2004, purchased as a museum/memorial. Now moored in Bay City, Michigan. [16]
Somers DD-947 DDG-34 4 March 1957 30 May 1958 9 April 1959 19 November 1982 Disposed of in support of Fleet training exercise, 22 July 1998 [17]
Morton DD-948 Ingalls Shipbuilding 4 March 1957 23 May 1958 26 May 1959 22 November 1982 Disposed of, sold by Defense Reutilization and Marketing Service (DRMS) for scrapping, 4 March 1992 [18]
Parsons DD-949 DDG-33 17 June 1957 17 August 1959 29 October 1959 19 November 1982 Disposed of in support of Fleet training exercise, 25 April 1989 [19]
Richard S. Edwards DD-950 Puget Sound Bridge and Dredging Company 20 December 1956 27 September 1957 5 February 1959 18 December 1982 Disposed of in support of Fleet training exercise, 10 April 1997 [20]
Turner Joy DD-951 30 September 1957 5 May 1958 3 August 1959 22 November 1982 Donated as a museum/memorial, 10 April 1991; now museum in Bremerton, WA [21]

References

Notes
  1. Friedman 1982, pp. 246–249.
  2. Friedman 1982, pp. 249.
  3. Fahey 1965, p. 13.
  4. "USS Forrest Sherman". Naval Vessel Register. Retrieved 6 May 2019.
  5. "USS John Paul Jones". Naval Vessel Register. Retrieved 6 May 2019.
  6. "USS Barry". Naval Vessel Register. Retrieved 6 May 2019.
  7. "USS Decatur". Naval Vessel Register. Retrieved 6 May 2019.
  8. "USS Davis". Naval Vessel Register. Retrieved 6 May 2019.
  9. "USS Jonas Ingram". Naval Vessel Register. Retrieved 6 May 2019.
  10. "USS Manley". Naval Vessel Register. Retrieved 6 May 2019.
  11. "USS Dupont". Naval Vessel Register. Retrieved 6 May 2019.
  12. "USS Bigelow". Naval Vessel Register. Retrieved 6 May 2019.
  13. "USS Blandy". Naval Vessel Register. Retrieved 6 May 2019.
  14. "USS Mullinnix". Naval Vessel Register. Retrieved 6 May 2019.
  15. "USS Hull". Naval Vessel Register. Retrieved 6 May 2019.
  16. "USS Edson". Naval Vessel Register. Retrieved 6 May 2019.
  17. "USS Somers". Naval Vessel Register. Retrieved 6 May 2019.
  18. "USS Morton". Naval Vessel Register. Retrieved 6 May 2019.
  19. "USS Parsons". Naval Vessel Register. Retrieved 6 May 2019.
  20. "USS Richard S. Edwards". Naval Vessel Register. Retrieved 6 May 2019.
  21. "USS Turner Joy". Naval Vessel Register. Retrieved 6 May 2019.

Sources
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