Funnel count was both a machinery arrangement and a visual signal. More funnels made a warship look faster to contemporary observers even when engineering did not require them. American torpedo boats already carried three funnels, so a larger torpedo-boat destroyer could advertise higher status with four. The comparison between the torpedo boat Wilkes and the destroyer Barry illustrates that visual distinction.
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Four funnels advertised speed and a step beyond torpedo boats
The four-stacker silhouette grew from an era when funnel count visually implied speed and distinguished destroyers from smaller three-funnel torpedo boats.