The Benson class was a class of destroyers of the U.S. Navy built 1939–1943. The thirty 1,620-ton Benson-class destroyers were built in two groups. The first six were authorized in fiscal year 1938 (FY38) and laid down at Bethlehem Steel, Quincy, Massachusetts, and three naval shipyards.

The Bensons were originally envisioned as a single class of 24 ships, the first eight of which were ordered in fiscal year 1938 (FY38). Six of these were designed by Bethlehem Shipbuilding, to be built at Bethlehem's Fore River and at several government yards (as mandated by Congress), and two were designed by Gibbs & Cox, to be built at Bath Iron Works. All were to have steam (references vary) superheated to , with cruising turbines and double-reduction gearing to maximize fuel efficiency. So the class was known through World War II as the Benson-Livermore class, and this name persisted in many references until at least the 1960s. In the spring of 1938 the Navy's Bureau of Steam Engineering requested that the FY39 and FY40 ships be modified for superheat.

The only external difference between the Benson and Gleaves classes was the shape of the stacks; the Bensons' were flat-sided and the Gleaveses' were round.

After the Fall of France in 1940, and before the outcome of the looming Battle of Britain was certain, a rapid expansion of the Navy was envisioned. As not all facilities were equipped to produce the new s or because of other concerns, an additional 72 "repeat" Benson- and Gleaves-class ships were ordered in FY41. 24 repeat Bensons were built by several Bethlehem yards, while an additional 48 repeat Gleaveses were built by various other builders.

In some references the Benson and Gleaves classes are combined as the Benson class. and they were originally contemplated to be DD-445 ... DD-452, i.e. Fletchers. In June 1940, 8 Gleaves were ordered instead.

Design

The Benson class was designed as an improved version of the with two stacks and a new "echeloned" machinery arrangement that featured alternating boiler and engine rooms, designed to give the ships a better chance at surviving torpedo damage. Loss of one compartment, or even two adjacent compartments, would no longer disable the entire propulsion system. They also introduced quintuple torpedo tube mounts. Their scantlings, or framing dimensions, were increased to carry the weight of the new machinery. This increased the ships' displacement by about sixty tons, to 1620 tons standard displacement.

Armament

The class was completed with four or five dual purpose guns (anti-surface and anti-aircraft (AA)), controlled by a Mark 37 Gun Fire Control System as in the previous Sims class. The introduction of two centerline quintuple torpedo tube mounts in this class was a significant improvement and was continued in subsequent World War II classes. This allowed a broadside of ten tubes with savings in space and weight compared to previous classes, which had twelve or sixteen tubes and an eight-tube broadside. The first six ships landed a torpedo tube mount early in the war while on Atlantic service, but as they were transferred to the Pacific in early 1945 they were re-equipped with the torpedoes at the cost of a 5-inch gun.

Service

The first six ships of the class began their careers on Neutrality Patrols, and after the attack on Pearl Harbor and the US entry into World War II continued to serve in the Atlantic and Mediterranean, supporting operations in North Africa, Italy, and southern France until transferred to the Pacific in early 1945. Several of the remaining ships spent the entire war in the Atlantic and Mediterranean. Others served entirely in the Pacific, at first in the Solomon Islands or Aleutians and later in other campaigns. Three were lost in the war; two in the Pacific and one in the Mediterranean. A fourth lost the bow section but was rebuilt and returned to service. After the war the survivors were decommissioned and placed in the Reserve Fleet in 1946–47; one was transferred to Italy and two were transferred to Taiwan in the 1950s. Modernization was considered in the 1950s but not implemented except on the transferred ships. The remainder were scrapped or otherwise disposed of in the late 60s and early 70s.

Decorations

USS Laffey received a Presidential Unit Citation for her role in the Battle of Guadalcanal. USS Bailey received a Navy Unit Commendation for her service in the Battle of the Komandorski Islands, 26 March 1943. Also, USS Hilary P. Jones received a Navy Unit Commendation for her actions in the final operations in the Mediterranean Sea in September 1944.