Peter McCarthy (24 November 1845 – 29 May 1919) was an American manufacturer, businessman and philanthropist from

Troy, New York Troy is a city in the U.S. state of New York and the county seat of Rensselaer County. The city is located on the western edge of Rensselaer County and on the eastern bank of the Hudson River. Troy has close ties to the nearby cities of Albany ...

Biography

Early life

Peter McCarthy was born in

on November 24, 1845, to

Catholic The Catholic Church, also known as the Roman Catholic Church, is the largest Christian church, with 1.3 billion baptized Catholics worldwide . It is among the world's oldest and largest international institutions, and has played a ...

Irish Irish may refer to: Common meanings * Someone or something of, from, or related to: ** Ireland, an island situated off the north-western coast of continental Europe ***Éire, Irish language name for the isle ** Northern Ireland, a constituent unit ...

immigrants Florence McCarthy and Mary Crowley. McCarthy grew up poor. He was educated in Troy's

public school Public school may refer to: * State school (known as a public school in many countries), a no-fee school, publicly funded and operated by the government * Public school (United Kingdom), certain elite fee-charging independent schools in England an ...

system. After graduating Troy High School in 1863, he worked in the sash and bind business in Troy. In 1864 McCarthy traveled west to

Clinton, Iowa Clinton is a city in and the county seat of Clinton County, Iowa, United States. The population was 24,469 as of 2020. Clinton, along with DeWitt (also located in Clinton County), was named in honor of the sixth governor of New York, DeWitt C ...

and lived there for two years. He then moved to

Durham, Pennsylvania Durham is an unincorporated community in Durham Township in Bucks County, Pennsylvania, United States. Durham is located at the intersection of Pennsylvania Route 212 Pennsylvania Route 212 (PA 212) is a state highway in Bucks County, Pennsyl ...

and was employed by the safe manufacturer Lewis P. Lillie. When he returned to

, Peter and his brother Charles McCarthy founded C. & P. McCarthy and began trading in waste, rags, wool and cotton. C. & P. McCarthy was located on Riverstreet.

Marriage and personal life

On April 22, 1879, McCarthy married Julia F. Haley of Troy. They had ten children. McCarthy was also a member of the Catholic Club of New York and gave to Catholic Charities.

Textile industry and Troy Waste Manufacturing

The Troy Waste Manufacturing Company developed out of C. & P. McCarthy. The company obtained scraps from the local mills and processed them into new materials It was incorporated in February 1883. He served as president of the Troy Waste Manufacturing Company and Faith Knitting Company. He was treasurer of the Hope Knitting Company of Cohoes, the Clover Knitting Company of

Waterford "Waterford remains the untaken city" , mapsize = 220px , pushpin_map = Ireland#Europe , pushpin_map_caption = Location within Ireland##Location within Europe , pushpin_relief = 1 , coordinates ...

, and the Wayside Knitting Company of

Troy Troy ( el, Τροία and Latin: Troia, Hittite: 𒋫𒊒𒄿𒊭 ''Truwiša'') or Ilion ( el, Ίλιον and Latin: Ilium, Hittite: 𒃾𒇻𒊭 ''Wiluša'') was an ancient city located at Hisarlik in present-day Turkey, south-west of Ç ...

. He was treasurer of the Troy Knitting Company. In addition to dealing paper, wool, and cotton waste, Troy Waste Co. began manufacturing shoddies and cotton batting.

Railroads and other business ventures

After his success with the Troy Waste Manufacturing Company, he began to branch out into the Railroad industry. He served as director for the Hudson Valley Railroad, Troy and Cohoes Railroad Company, Columbus, Marion and Bucyrus Railroad Company, and the Lansingburgh and Cohoes Railroad. By 1900 he was director for the

Troy Gas Light Company The Troy Gas Light Company was a gas lighting company in Troy, New York, United States. The Troy Gasholder Building is one of only ten or so remaining examples of a type of building that was common in Northeastern urban areas during the 19th centu ...

, National State Bank of Troy, International Pulp Company, Troy and West Troy Bridge Company, and Federal Signal Company. He was vice-president of the Troy Trust Company.

The McCarthy Building

In 1883 he built the McCarthy Building. It was destroyed by a fire in 1903, and he rebuilt the current McCarthy Building in the

Central Troy Historic District The Central Troy Historic District is an irregularly shaped, area of downtown Troy, New York, United States. It has been described as "one of the most perfectly preserved 19th-century downtowns in the ountry with nearly 700 properties in a var ...

in 1904.

Philanthropy and the McCarthy Charities Inc.

McCarthy was a philanthropist and contributor to many charities in

, particularly to organizations focused on orphans and the poor. He built the Seton Day Home run by the

Sisters of Charity Many religious communities have the term Sisters of Charity in their name. Some ''Sisters of Charity'' communities refer to the Vincentian tradition, or in America to the tradition of Saint Elizabeth Ann Seton, but others are unrelated. The ...

and the McCarthy Memorial Chapel. He was a notable benefactor of Saint Peter's Parish of Troy. In 1917, two years before his death, he founded and endowed the McCarthy Charities, Incorporated to be a lasting fund.

Death

McCarthy died on May 28, 1919 in his home on 1827 Fifth Avenue

. at age 74; he is buried in St. Peter's Catholic Cemetery in Troy.

Politics

McCarthy was a republican and served in the

United States Electoral College The United States Electoral College is the group of presidential electors required by the Constitution to form every four years for the sole purpose of appointing the president and vice president. Each state and the District of Columbia a ...

. He was Presidential Elector for New York in the 29th

1900 United States presidential election The 1900 United States presidential election was the 29th quadrennial United States presidential election, presidential election, held on Tuesday, November 6, 1900. In a re-match of the 1896 United States presidential election, 1896 race, incumbe ...

for

William McKinley William McKinley (January 29, 1843September 14, 1901) was the 25th president of the United States, serving from 1897 until his assassination in 1901. As a politician he led a realignment that made his Republican Party largely dominant in ...

for President and for

Theodore Roosevelt Theodore Roosevelt Jr. ( ; October 27, 1858 – January 6, 1919), often referred to as Teddy or by his initials, T. R., was an American politician, statesman, soldier, conservationist, naturalist, historian, and writer who served as the 26t ...

for

Vice President of the United States The vice president of the United States (VPOTUS) is the second-highest officer in the executive branch of the U.S. federal government, after the president of the United States, and ranks first in the presidential line of succession. The vice ...

Legacy

The McCarthy Charities, Incorporated is a family

foundation Foundation may refer to: * Foundation (nonprofit), a type of charitable organization ** Foundation (United States law), a type of charitable organization in the U.S. ** Private foundation, a charitable organization that, while serving a good cause ...

focused on improving the quality of life in

Rensselaer County Rensselaer County is a county in the U.S. state of New York. As of the 2020 census, the population was 161,130. Its county seat is Troy. The county is named in honor of the family of Kiliaen van Rensselaer, the original Dutch owner of the ...

, especially in education, social services and housing. It is operated today by a Board of Directors composed of Peter McCarthy's direct descendants.

References

1845 births 1919 deaths People from Rensselaer County, New York Businesspeople from Troy, New York Philanthropists from New York (state) American people of Irish descent American industrialists 19th-century American businesspeople New York (state) Republicans {{US-business-bio-stub 1900 United States presidential electors