The First USS Jacob Jones: Sunk in World War I

From Wikipedia.

Joseph Tidwell's USS Jacob Jones (DD-130) was not the first American destroyer to fly the US flag. The USS Jacob Jones (DD-61) was a Tucker-class destroyer, 315 feet long and built in Camden, New Jersey.

Commissioned 10 February 1916 and patrolled the New England coast of the United States.. During World War I, it patrolled the Irish Sea and rescued survivors from torpedoed ships, including 300 from the Armed Merchant Cruiser Orama.

On December 6, 1917, while sailing from Brest, France it was torpedoed by the U-53 and so badly damaged it had to be scuttled. Sixty-six crew memebrs lost their lives, many when the preset depth charges started going off. It was the first U.S. destroyer sunk by enemy action during the war.

Another Ship, Another War. --GreGen