The Benson-class destroyers were designed with a clever, survival-focused engine room layout

Countries & Cities · Published 15 October 2026 Swipe more like this →

In short: Built between 1939 and 1943, the thirty Benson-class destroyers were the backbone of the U.S. Navy's Neutrality Patrols. These ships introduced an echeloned machinery arrangement, alternating boiler and engine rooms to ensure that torpedo damage would not instantly disable the entire propulsion system, marking a significant leap in naval survivability.

The Benson class was an evolution of the earlier Sims class, featuring increased framing dimensions to support heavier, more resilient machinery. By alternating boiler and engine rooms, designers ensured that the loss of one or even two adjacent compartments would not leave the ship dead in the water. This design choice proved critical, as these vessels participated in every major campaign of World War II, serving across the Atlantic, Mediterranean, and Pacific theaters.

The class is often conflated with the similar Gleaves class, with which they were frequently grouped as the Benson-Gleaves or Benson-Livermore class. The primary external difference between the two was the shape of their smokestacks: flat-sided for the Bensons and round for the Gleaveses. While the initial Benson design utilized single-reduction gears and lacked cruising turbines, later ships incorporated more complex machinery to improve fuel efficiency. Armament also evolved significantly throughout the war, shifting from a focus on torpedoes to an emphasis on light anti-aircraft guns to counter kamikaze threats.

Despite their robust design, the class faced the harsh realities of naval combat. Three ships were lost during the war, including USS Laffey and USS Barton, which were sunk at the Naval Battle of Guadalcanal in November 1942, and USS Lansdale, which fell to an air attack in the Mediterranean in 1944. Another vessel, USS Murphy, survived a catastrophic collision in 1943 that severed its bow, resulting in the loss of 38 crew members. Following the war, the survivors were decommissioned, with some transferred to foreign navies in the 1950s before the remainder were scrapped by the early 1970s.

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