She was authorized on 13 September 2002 and was built by Northrop Grumman Ship Systems. The keel was laid down on 4 October 2006 at the company's shipyard in Pascagoula, Mississippi. On 26 January 2008, "Dewey" was christened in a ceremony in Pascagoula, by Deborah Mullen, the wife of Admiral Mike Mullen. "Dewey" was commissioned in Seal Beach, California on 6 March 2010, as the 55th "Arleigh Burke"-class destroyer. This is the first ship commissioning for the City of Seal Beach.