Raymond Durling was born in Acworth, New Hampshire on 25 April 1925. He grew up on the family farm with his parents, Rose and Raymond Senior, and his brothers Leslie, Richard, Kenneth, and Robert. The boys attended school in nearby Bellows Falls, Vermont.

Ray worked on his parents’ and grandparents’ farms as a youth, and in 1941 went to work with his father and older brother Les at the Fellows Gear Shaper plant in Springfield, Vermont. This was a valuable defense job, and Ray was the factory’s youngest employee.

In 1942, the Durlings moved to Rutland, Vermont. They had barely settled in when Les and Ray announced they were joinging the Marine Corps.

The Durling brothers, age 19 and 17, enlisted together on 30 November 1942 and were soon on their way to Parris Island. Les and Ray developed a reputation for sticking together. “Even though there is a difference of two years in their ages, the Durling boys of Rutland  act a good deal more like twins than many twins do,” noted a contemporary newspaper. “Leslie and Raymond were two out of three Marines selected from their platoon for advanced training…. They went through ‘boot camp’ together, and were in the same platoon at New River. Both boys made the same score on the rifle range and were both awarded Sharpshooter medals.”

The boys served together for the first eight months of their time in unform, deploying overseas with the 15th Replacement Battalion. In the fall of 1943, however, they were separated. Les was sent to IMAC Headquarters for duty as a baker, while Ray went to a rifle unit – Company C, First Battalion, 3rd Marines, encamped on Guadalcanal.

At the end of October 1943, Ray and Charlie Company boarded the USS President Adams for transit to a new beachhead at Cape Torokina on the island of Bougainville.

On the morning of 1 November 1943, C/1/3rd Marines boarded their landing craft from the Adams. Ray Durling boarded Boat 21, which carried two squads of 2 Platoon, a detachment from Headquarters Company, and a demolition squad from the 19th Marines.

The landing was stiffly opposed by the Japanese defenders ashore, and a number of Adams landing craft were hit before reaching shore. Boat #21, in the third wave, took the most punishment. Three 75mm shells slammed through the ramp in quick succession, killing or wounding most of the Marines aboard as well as members of the boat crew.

Boat #21 careened up onto the beach, where five Marines managed to escape over the side. A member of the Adams shore party took command, backed the boat off the beach, and headed towards the transports at top speed. As the boat filled with water, those still able to move struggled to put on life jackets.

The wrecked boat finally sank at an unspecified point near Puruata Island. One sailor and five Marines were rescued from the water; the rest, including Private Durling, were lost at sea.

Ray Durling was reported as missing in action “after initial landing” on Bougainville. He was officially declared dead on 2 November 1944.

“It was 7:30 in the morning, and we were headed for the beaches. We were about 50 feet from shore when we sighted a 77 millimeter gun right in front of us… there was no chance for escape. We were hit right on the corner of the boat with the first shell, and the second hit directly in the center of the bow, with fragments going all through the boat. We were all crouched down and it came in on a line with our heads. Two more shells came at us but I went over the side. There were about 32 men in that boat. Six of us got out. That was all who were able to go on in and fight. A friend saw Ray get it in the neck. He died instantly.”
– PFC Virgil C. Johnson, C/1/3

“After the first shell hit, the men in the forward part of the boat fell back toward the center as if a big wave had pushed them over. A shell fragment from the second hit me in the left thigh. The boat grounded, and I started over the side. It was an awful mess. Bloody men pulled themselves off the deck and forced themselves over the side. One man had part of his back blown off. Everyone kept hold of his rifle. Some of them only had half a rifle. The water was up to my chin. As I hit the sand, I looked back and saw that Smith wasn’t going to make it; he had a wound in his head. He was one of my boys. I went back, pulled him in, and dragged him behind a coconut log.”
Sergeant Dick K. McAllister, C/1/3

“Of the eight boats in the third wave, Boat #21 received three 75mm hits through the ramp just prior to hitting the beach. Five Marines were seen to climb out over the side, the remainder were killed or wounded. NICKELS (coxswain) and BALSCHUESMAN (bowman) jumped off stern of boat and were picked up by Boat #10. A member of the beach party, F1c Gilbert VARRIA backed boat #21 off the beach. The majority of the Marines embarked were wounded or killed. CM3 Raymond SCAPPAROTTA and MoMM2c Harvey PETERSON of the Ship’s Company were killed or wounded. VARRIA operated the boat at the highest speed away from the beach. It was filling rapidly. A few Marines were able to move to put on life jackets. This boat sank after passing between Puruata and Torokina Islands. In all, five Marines and VARRIA were the only ones saved….”
– Action Report of Torokina Point Landings, USS President Adams, 1 November 1943

CENOTAPHS
Manila American Cemetery and Memorial