[1] The first three of the class were ordered under the Act of 29 June 1906 "to have the highest practical speed, and to cost, exclusive of armament, not to exceed seven hundred and fifty thousand dollars each".

The remaining pair were ordered under the Act of 7 March 1907 "to have the highest practical speed, and to cost, exclusive of armament, not to exceed eight hundred thousand dollars each".

The latter four vessels were all sold in November 1919 following the end of World War I; Smith survived another two years as a bombing target until scrapped.

Also, the coal capacity was increased to 304 tons, nearly half the total full load displacement of the previous class.

The increased size and range meant that these were the US Navy's first truly ocean-going destroyers, capable of operating with battleships on long voyages.

Shortly before the Smith class entered service, the Great White Fleet of 1907–09 demonstrated that the US Navy was prepared to operate far from home.

This followed a trend set by the rearmament of the British River-class destroyers in 1906, which reflected the "all big gun" design of the battleship HMS Dreadnought.