Page 315 - 4095-BOOK2

LOT 1309
Grouping of Medals and Documentation for a Marine Raider, Ray F. Costello,
Killed in Action During the New Georgia Campaign - Included with this lot are
the personal effects and vintage documents for Private First Class Ray F. Costello.
According to his included birth certificate, Costello was born in Ottawa, Illinois in
1924, Costello joined the United States Marine Corps directly out of high school
and later volunteered for the Marine Raiders. One of several World War II units
that served as the forefathers of the modern special forces/special operations
concept, the Marine Raiders were modeled after the British Commandos and
Chinese irregular forces, engaging in amphibious raids, deep jungle infiltration,
and similar activities. While the Raiders would be shut down before the close of
the war, their lineage is carried on by the modern Force Recon and Marine Raider
special operations units. While assigned to the 4th Raider Battalion, Costello
was killed in action on July 1st, 1943, during the New Georgia Campaign. Much
of the particulars of Costello’s fate come from a Captain Earl Snell, Costello’s
commanding officer at the time, who had reached out to Costello’s sister (herself
a WAC Lieutenant at the time) to give more details. When the 4th Raiders were
trying to mount a river crossing, Costello and some squadmates had crossed over
in advance of the unit and found themselves under fire from multiple machine gun
positions. The others died nigh-instantly, but Costello was still alive. Badly injured,
he was able to observe the Japanese positions and relay the information back to
his comrades, helping them “walk in” their grenades on the enemy defenses until
a Navy Corpsman was able to haul him back to the rest of the unit. Though he
survived his initial encounter, his luck ran out shortly after, as an enemy sniper
put a bullet through his leg while he was being transported to aid, and then an
advance of the Japanese against the nearest aid station delayed his ability to get
medical attention to the point where his cumulative wounds proved fatal. Costello
would receive a Purple Heart and the Distinguished Service Cross posthumously
and would also be entitled to the appropriate campaign medals at the close of
the war. A large number of documents related to Costello are included, including
a wide variety of condolence letters (both military and civilian) sent to his family,
documentation for his medals and promotions, papers related to Costello’s
youth, correspondence related to attempts by his sister and parents to gain
more information on his death and locate his body (he had been “temporarily”
interred on Vangunu Island, but the precise location was lost in the chaos of
war), and information on the activities of the Marines in World War II. The items
include an enlarged portrait of Costello in uniform, three Marine Raider patches,
two screwback USMC emblem pins, a set of range qualification badges, and the
following medals; Distinguished Service Cross (engraved to Costello), Purple Heart
(engraved to Costello), Asiatic/Pacific Campaign (with two stars) and the World War
II Medal.
CONDITION: Very good overall, with mild stains and wear on the medals and
patches. The paper items show wear and tear appropriate to age.
Provenance: The Putnam Green/Sycamore Collection.
Estimate: 9,500 - 16,000
313