The Tucker and Sampson classes were the last of the prewar thousand-ton destroyer classes. Their raised forecastles resembled contemporary Royal Navy designs because both navies had to operate in Atlantic seas. Ships of this size were suited to Atlantic and Pacific distances despite objections that destroyers were becoming too large. Their capable crews and ocean-going hulls later served with the U.S. Coast Guard's Rum Patrol. Their stated performance was about 29.5 knots, with an estimated 2,000 to 2,500 nautical miles at roughly 20 knots on a good day. The criticism of their treaty-era scrapping rests on how little threat that performance posed to modern warships. The Navy still needed more destroyers for convoy and fleet escort, scouting, patrol, and defense of ports and infrastructure.
Chapter · 2:26-9:37
Tucker and Sampson classes set an Atlantic destroyer baseline
Ocean-going hulls made the Tucker and Sampson classes useful at sea and later on Coast Guard patrols, while their limited numbers left many missions competing for ships.