The Alden was commissioned in 1919 as one of the many Clemson-class destroyers built after the First World War and the last of the "four-stacker" flush-deck type;  After spending most of its time in the Adriatic, she was decommissioned in 1923 until 1930. In 1936, Alden arrived in Chefoo.  The Sino-Japanese conflict saw the Alden accompany other ships of the Asiatic Fleet on a "goodwill visit"  to the Russia's Pacific port of Vladivostok -- the first official visit since the U.S. had established diplomatic relations with the USSR. 

Stationed in Manila in late 1937, Alden normally spent spring in China, summer in Chefoo, and a return to Cavite  for exercises and upkeep during fall and winter. The outbreak of the war saw her joining a Royal Navy task force out of Singapore. She survived the war and was decommissioned in June 1945.