User:Tblack214/sandbox

I think organizing by a taxonomy may be easier to do -- and would be a useful guide. I also think there may be an existing authority that could be used for reference, perhaps the Oxford Companion to Ships and the Sea, certainly Wikipedia by type in question (i.e. cutter https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Cutter_(boat)).

The challenge of course is -- like 'cutter' -- sometimes several varieties are associated with the same type name. A frigate for example could be the USS Constitution (a sailing frigate), a patrol frigate (small anti-submarine ship similar to a corvette), or fast frigate (FFG) of the modern Navy.

So a taxonomy might be like

Sailing -

Gunboat

Sloop-of-War

Frigate

Ship-of-the-Line...

Auxiliary Steam (generally combines both steam and sail, except for monitors and river gunboats)

Screw Gunboat

Screw Sloop-of-War

Sidewheel Frigate...

Ironclad, Tinclad Gunboat, Monitor

"New" Navy (1880-1915 roughly) - these are steel w/ reciprocating steam engines, often a mast or two with a small amount of sail.

Monitor

Coastal Battleship

Cruiser

Armored Cruiser...

'Modern" Navy - beginning from about 1915 or so, with ships powered by steam turbines, no sails at all, beginning of the classification+hull number scheme still in use today

Gunboat

Submarine

Frigate

Destroyer

Cruiser

Battleship

Aircraft Carrier, etc....

DANFS also uses a few type abbreviations but is not consistent (and could be improved upon). Examples -

Screw Sloop (of War) - ScSlp - https://www.history.navy.mil/content/history/nhhc/research/histories/ship-histories/danfs/e/enterprise-screw-sloop-of-war-v.html

Sidewheel Steamer - SwStr - https://www.history.navy.mil/research/histories/ship-histories/danfs/m/mississippi-i.html

Steam Frigate - https://www.history.navy.mil/research/histories/ship-histories/danfs/m/missouri-i.html