A Troy Connection to Belgium: Joseph Henry McGrath

In summer 2026, Troy City Hall received a query from a person in Belgium, wanting to know more about Joseph McGrath. He was a young soldier from Troy, a member of the 105th NY infantry, who was killed in action in Belgium in August 1918, at the height of World War I. He was interred in the Flanders Field military cemetery. The student who wrote had taken on the task of maintenance of Joseph’s grave, and expressed their gratitude for the American effort in freeing her country from the Germans. We were happy to take on the task of learning more about Joseph.

Joseph was born August 21, 1894, the son of Mary Everett (1856-1901) and John Henry (1855-1909) McGrath. The 1900 US Census for Troy listed the family on 6th Avenue in the city: John, 46, had an advertising agency. Wife Mary was 42. They had children John, 25, who worked in the advertising agency; Mamie (Mary), 21, who was a forelady in a collar factory; Edward, 18, who was a collar ironer; William, 10; future soldier Joseph, 6; and twins Emily and Sarah (Sadie), 1.

The McGraths had a business called the J.H. McGrath Program Publishing Company. Programs for events are often financed by selling ads, printed along with the information about the concert or whatever, so their company combined advertising and printing. And Troy is famously the Collar City. The detachable collar was invented here and thousands of men and women worked in several collar and shirt factories from the mid-19th to mid-20th centuries.

Joseph’s mom died in 1901, leaving John H. to care for a large family, with several young children. The 1905 NY Census for Troy listed him at age 50, with sons John and Edward working with him as “publishers.” Children William, Joseph, and the twins lived with him, of course, but daughter Mary, 27, was now married to a butcher, Uldric Courchaine, and they lived with the McGraths. They also had one servant.

Joseph’s dad died on December 26, 1909, in Manhattan. The 1910 US Census still listed the family living on 6th Avenue, but now the Courchaines were the heads of the household. Joseph, 16, was working as an errand boy for a newspaper office. His brother Edward was the publisher of programs, keeping up the family business.

Joseph enlisted in the local National Guard unit, the 2nd NY Infantry, on June 23, 1916 for three years. He was described as 23 years old, 5’7” tall, with grey eyes and dark brown hair. He worked as a box maker. He listed his sister Mary Courchaine as the person to be notified in case of his death.

The 2nd NY Infantry was federalized and renamed the 105th NY Infantry after the US declared war in April 1917. That is, it became part of the U.S. Army. The men went for extensive training in South Carolina and only reached Europe on May 17, 1918. Joseph was killed in action on August 14, 1918, just should of his birthday.

Back home, a requiem high mass was said for him on October 3, 1918 at the Church of the Sacred Heart, which was near his home. His sisters Sadie and Emily sang the hymn “Face to Face” at the service. The local newspaper included Joseph on the American Casualty list on October 12, 1918. And on June 23, 1919, the local newspaper reported that there was another memorial service for Joseph, held jointly by the church, members of the 105th Infantry, and the Hope Steamer Company (a fire department where Joseph was a volunteer member). First there was a mass at the church, which was filled to capacity, then a ceremony at the fire house, where a tablet was installed on the outside of the building in Joseph’s memory. The fire house still stands, but it is used as a community center and food pantry. After extensive inquiries, with the director of the community center and the chief of the Troy Fire Department, the location of the tablet is unknown.

Hope Steamer Company firehouse, now the Hope 7 Community Center.

Joseph’s parents and several of his siblings are buried at Troy’s Saint Mary’s Cemetery, including four children who died as infants: Willie, Maggie, Nellie, and Frankie. Brother John lived until 1946, sister Mary Courchaine until 1973, Edward until 1951, William until 1956, and twins Emily, until 1982 and Sadie until 1990.

It is unknown why Joseph’s family did not ask to have his remains returned for interment in Troy, but the author of this blog has been to a number of World War I cemeteries in Europe and they are taken care of very lovingly.