'Buried on Staten Island'

[hasta]

Hi all
I have Thomas McGrane born in Dublin in 1899. He joins the British Merchant Navy and I have his records from them. He then turns up in NYC in 1922 on board the Karkonhson and later applies for Naturalization. I think from the records  I have, that this is finally granted in 1926. I have lots of records of him entering the US up to 1940s - by 1934 when he is aged 35 he is still giving his mother in Ireland as Next of Kin so not married so far.
I have no idea if he ever married.  I do know is that the family story is that he is 'buried on Staten Island' I'm not familiar with US records and have had a look but not getting any lead on him.
A Google search of his name+Staten Island gives a result to a Tom McGrane who was a ticket seller on the Staten Island ferry.
Other than that I am clueless as where to look. He may have never married If anyone can point me in the direction of a death record or his burial at Staten Island it would be most appreciated.

[Erato]

Do you have him in the censuses?  The closest match I see in NY in 1940 was born in 1896 in Northern Ireland, married, with one son aged 14.  He was a laborer in a concrete company.

https://familysearch.org/pal:/MM9.3.1/TH-1942-27834-13507-54?cc=2000219&wc=MMY4-P5T:n467611447

This seems to be the same individual who registered for the draft in 1942, at which time he listed his sister Mrs. Theresa McGrane McGlinche as his closest relative.  The wife and son were not mentioned.

https://familysearch.org/pal:/MM9.3.1/TH-267-11849-58287-17?cc=1339071&wc=6304218
https://familysearch.org/pal:/MM9.3.1/TH-267-11849-92565-10?cc=1339071&wc=6304218

[shellyesq]

The Petition for Naturalization appears to give a date of birth of 24 Dec. 1899.  Unfortunately, he would have been a little too young to be on the WWII draft registration cards that are currently available to the public.

The problem is that there is a bit of a gap in records available online that could lead to a death date.  There is a New York City death index on www.italiangen.org that goes up to 1948.  There are some Thomas McGranes on there, but none that strike me as a match.  The Social Security Death Index (available on familysearch.org) mainly has deaths from the early 1960's to the present, and I don't see a Thomas McGrane with the above birth date on there.  He may have died outside of New York City prior to the Social Security Death Index's coverage beginning.  The SSDI doesn't cover 100% of deaths, so that may be an issue here too. 

[hasta]

Erato and Shellyesq - Thanks both for your replies.
He is not the man working at the concrete factory. I should have said that I have looked through the 1930 and 1940 census and couldn't identify him at all.
I don't think he was ever drafted. He continued to work as an Able Bodied Seaman (ABS) after migrating to NY and I had a look at the manifest records that I have for him again today and the latest are in Sept 1944 on the
S.S George R Homes sailing NY to Liverpool, England and Feb 1945 on the S.S Eufaula Victory returning to NY from Swansea in Wales. (these were both so called 'Victory' ships delivering cargo so perhaps that exempted him from the draft ?)
Neither of those manifests have details of his marriage status or address.

The only addresses I have for him is 25 South Street in 1923/24 which I know was a Seamans Mission and also 944 9th Avenue - no date for that addresses though. I have pretty much given up on tracing him in the traditional way - record to record, so I thought I might try the one piece of info that I heard as a child very often i.e the Staten Island burial and possibly that might offer up some leads of it's own or it would just be really nice to know if I visit NY again.
I have googled away but still not sure of the possible places he could be buried and if any records are online or how they can be contacted.
He was Catholic and he wasn't very sure about his own birth date himself but always something during Nov or Dec 1899.
I've never done any American research before so any advice is really appreciated.

[shellyesq]

All men of a certain age had to register for the draft, but it doesn't mean they were actually drafted.  More information is here:  http://genealogy.about.com/od/records/p/wwii_draft.htm

[Erato]

There are a lot of cemeteries on Staten Island.  Here is a list and the names of organizations which deal with the preservation of SI cemeteries:

http://www.rootsweb.ancestry.com/~nyrichmo/cemeteries.html

[hasta]

Thanks a mil to both of you. That's exactly the kind of info I was looking for. Will let you know how I get on.