Wells Darling ’49

Wells, a marine industry executive, yachtsman, devoted husband, father, and grandfather, died Sept. 24, 2024, at his home in Exeter, N.H. He was 96.

Born Feb. 7, 1928, in Bronxville, N.Y., he graduated from Roosevelt High School in Yonkers in 1945 and entered the Navy to train as a naval aviator. At Princeton, he joined the Class of ’49, majored in economics, and was a member of Elm Club, graduating in 1950.

Wells spent more than 35 years in the vehicle and boating industry in Long Island and Rhode Island, retiring as executive vice president of Grumman Allied Industries, which produced both the Grumman canoe and Pearson Yachts sailboats. He was an avid sailor on Long Island and Southern New England with a succession of boats named Kachina. His family, including his wife Mary Will, served as his sailing crew. He served as commodore of Lloyd Harbor Yacht Club in Huntington, Long Island, and the Ida Lewis Yacht Club in Newport, R.I., and was heavily involved in the development of Sail Newport, a public sailing center.

Wells is survived by his wife, Mary Will; children Tom ’75, Molly, Wendy Darling Lotz, and Bill — all of them sailors — and nine grandchildren and six great-grandchildren.