Shipbucket

The next destroyer class, the Oakwoods, is on the drawing board. I'll put the Northampton's directors to good use.

In 1932, while the Hallettsville Class destroyers were starting their first refits, the Oakwood Class was commissioned:



The Oakwoods were the last new-build ships in the Texas Navy, replacing the 12 units of the Dallas Class over the next three years. By 1932, the Great Depression and the Dust-Bowl era had hit the Texas economy hard. After 1932, no new ships would be authorized for a five year period - only refits and rebuilds to keep costs down. The Oakwoods and four submarines, the S-18 Class, were allowed because they had been contracted before Congress imposed the restriction.

The Oakwoods were considered the best of the pre-war destroyers - fitted with the first fire directors installed for a dual-purpose battery (modified US Mk33s). Though they were extremely limited in capability, they provided an initial means of directing centralized fire agains aircraft.

Popular sentinement said the Oakwoods were what the Madisonville class should have been, and what the Hallettsvilles aspired to be.

Very very nice!

Good addition to already great thread.

A nice destroyer, it has that retro look and still looks pretty good too.

Very nice destroyer indeed!

Very aesthetically pleasing!

Great design and even better drawing. I love the trunked funnels and the platform deck over them. Only comment I would make is it seems a little under gunned for a ship built in the Americas during the 30's. I know the Farraguts are only being laid down when your ships are entering commission but they had 5x5"/38 to your 3x5"/25 and 1(or 2, not quite sure if its centerline or not)x3"/50.

it seems a little under gunned for a ship built in the Americas during the 30's.

They're not if you compare the US Navy's operational requirements with the Texas Navy's requirements. The US Navy's destroyers are built to operate in the Pacific, which needs a long-range hull. A long-range hull can accomodate more guns. The same principle can be seen in European destroyers in countries with Pacific colonies. I don't have to venture out beyond the Atlantic, so my operational range is shorter.

And I've got a manpower limit. I can man more ships if they're a little smaller than their US counterparts.

I rather like this modest design.