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| Porter-class destroyer | |
|---|---|
| Name | Porter-class destroyer |
| Caption | USS Porter (DD-356) off Hawaii, 1936 |
| Builders | Bethlehem Steel (Fore River), New York Shipbuilding Corporation, Mare Island Naval Shipyard |
| Built | 1933–1936 |
| In service | 1936–1945 |
| Fate | Many sunk or scrapped after World War II; several survived to 1947 |
| Displacement | 1,850 long tons (standard) |
| Length | 381 ft 6 in (116.3 m) |
| Beam | 36 ft 1 in (11.0 m) |
| Draft | 10 ft 5 in (3.2 m) |
| Speed | 37.3 knots (designed) |
| Complement | 183 officers and enlisted |
| Armament | 8 × 5 in/38 cal guns, 8 × 0.50 in MGs (as built), 8 × 21 in torpedo tubes |
Porter-class destroyer The Porter-class destroyer was a class of eight United States Navy destroyers built in the mid-1930s as large, treaty-era flotilla leaders intended to lead destroyer squadrons and to counter contemporary Royal Navy and Imperial Japanese Navy heavy destroyers. Designed under the constraints of the London Naval Treaty (1930) and influenced by interwar developments at Washington Naval Conference (1921–22), the Porters entered service in the mid-1930s and saw extensive action in the Atlantic Ocean and Pacific Ocean theaters during World War II.
The Porter class emerged from studies at the Bureau of Engineering (United States Navy) and the Bureau of Construction and Repair that sought a destroyer with the endurance of an ocean escort and the firepower to engage destroyers of the Imperial Japanese Navy such as the Fubuki-class destroyer and the Asashio-class destroyer. Naval architects looked to experience from the Tunney Committee debates and to foreign practice exemplified by the HMS Hood, HMS Daring (1949), and Italian Regia Marina designs, balancing London Naval Treaty (1930) displacement limits with requirements from Admiral William D. Leahy and Admiral William S. Sims. The resulting layout featured increased beam for stability, heavy 5-inch/38 caliber dual-purpose main battery in twin mounts influenced by trials on USS Mahan (DD-364), and a long hull to accommodate greater fuel and command facilities intended to serve as squadron flagships for commanders such as Raymond A. Spruance and Frank Jack Fletcher.
Keel-laying and construction were awarded to Bethlehem Shipbuilding Corporation plants including Fore River Shipyard and Mare Island Naval Shipyard as part of the naval expansion directed by Franklin D. Roosevelt administration plans. Hulls were numbered DD-356 through DD-363 and named for naval officers such as David Porter and David Dixon Porter. Commissioning ceremonies involved dignitaries from the United States Congress and officers from the Office of Naval Intelligence, with shakedown cruises to Guantanamo Bay Naval Base and San Diego, California before assignment to the Battle Force (United States Fleet).
Porter-class ships operated with the Scouting Force (United States Fleet) and later with Task Force 16 and Task Force 18 in early World War II actions, escorting carriers like USS Enterprise (CV-6) and USS Lexington (CV-2) and screening battleships including USS North Carolina (BB-55). In the Atlantic campaign several Porters conducted neutrality patrols tied to Destroyers for Bases Agreement logistics and escorted convoys under commanders such as Ernest J. King and William Halsey Jr., facing German Kriegsmarine threats including U-boat wolfpacks and surface raiders associated with Admiral Karl Dönitz. In the Pacific campaign engagements included the Battle of the Coral Sea, the Battle of Midway, and Solomon Islands operations where Porters supported amphibious landings and anti-aircraft screens against Imperial Japanese Navy carrier strikes and land-based aircraft of the Imperial Japanese Army Air Service.
Notably, USS Porter (DD-356) collided with and sank the submarine USS Squalus (SS-192) rescue vessel in peacetime operations and later served in early war patrols before being lost at the Battle of the Santa Cruz Islands circumstances; USS Selfridge (DD-357) survived and served through multiple theaters. Losses to air attack, submarine torpedoes, and surface action mirrored broader destroyer attrition during campaigns like Guadalcanal Campaign and the Aleutian Islands Campaign.
As built, Porter-class main battery comprised four twin 5 in/38 caliber dual-purpose mounts derived from improvements tested on USS Mahan (DD-364), enabling anti-surface and anti-air roles similar to mounts fitted to Fletcher-class destroyer predecessors. Torpedo armament included two quadruple 21-inch tube mounts for Mark 15 torpedo types used widely across United States Navy destroyers. Close-in armament originally featured .50 caliber machine guns and later saw addition of Browning M2 weapons replaced by 20 mm Oerlikon cannons and 40 mm Bofors as anti-aircraft threats escalated. Sensor fit evolved from early radar experiments at Naval Research Laboratory to SG radar and SC radar installations, along with sonar gear such as the QS Sonar and SG-1 variants for anti-submarine warfare.
Operational experience prompted major wartime refits: removal of some torpedo tubes to reduce topweight allowed installation of additional 40 mm Bofors and 20 mm Oerlikons, augmenting anti-aircraft capability to counter Kamikaze tactics later in the war. Fire-control upgrades included Mark 37 Gun Fire Control System integration and addition of Radar Picket equipment on survivors modeled after conversions on USS Gwin (DD-433). Hull strengthening and improved damage control practices advocated by Admiral Ernest J. King reduced post-attack losses. Some Porters received enhanced depth-charge stowage and Hedgehog anti-submarine mortars influenced by British ASDIC developments and by exchanges with Royal Navy escorts under Lend-Lease liaison.
The class comprised eight ships: USS Porter (DD-356), USS Selfridge (DD-357), USS Jarvis (DD-368), USS Blue (DD-387) — note: some allocations shifted — USS Dale (DD-353) (related hulls), USS Maury (DD-401) adjustments; several names echo 19th-century figures including David Porter and Moses Porter. Individual operational records intersect with commanders and actions involving Admiral Chester W. Nimitz, Admiral William S. Pye, Admiral Thomas C. Hart, and task groups under Raymond A. Spruance. Losses and decommissions occurred at locations such as Guadalcanal, Solomon Islands, Coral Sea, and Midway Atoll with survivors scrapped at yards including Charleston Navy Yard and Philadelphia Naval Shipyard.
Naval analysts at institutions like the Naval War College and historians such as Samuel Eliot Morison have assessed the Porter class as a transitional design bridging treaty-era limits and wartime needs, influencing subsequent classes including the Fletcher-class destroyer and informing postwar destroyer leaders like DLG-6 Farragut-class destroyer leader concepts. Lessons in anti-aircraft armament allocation, radar integration from Radar Research Laboratory, and command facilities for flotilla leaders affected doctrine promulgated in studies by Chief of Naval Operations (CNO) offices. Museums and archives at Naval History and Heritage Command preserve plans and logs, and the class remains a subject in scholarship by authors like Elliott Carlson and institutions such as Smithsonian Institution naval exhibits.
Category:Destroyers of the United States Navy