Patch served from 1909 to 1945, and he attained the rank of major general as the Second World War commander of the 80th Infantry Division.

Born at Fort Huachuca and the son of an army officer who later became a railroad executive, Patch was raised primarily in Lebanon, Pennsylvania.

During World War I, he served in combat in France, during which he was wounded and received the Distinguished Service Cross and French Croix de guerre for heroism, as well as the Purple Heart.

[a][2][3] Patch's mother was the daughter of William S. Moore, the U.S. congressman who appointed his father to the United States Military Academy.

[7][8] In 1902, Patch received an alternate appointment to the United States Military Academy (West Point).

[9] In June 1909, he enlisted as a private in the United States Army and was assigned to the 9th Infantry Regiment, first at Fort Sam Houston, Texas and later in the Philippines.

[13] By April 1911, Patch was a corporal in the regiment's Company D and he was among several 9th Infantry soldiers selected to take the competitive examination for an officer's commission.

[13][17][b] He was wounded during this attack, and convalesced at the base hospital in Bordeaux; news articles from September 1918 indicated that he was shot in the right shoulder, with the bullet passing down his right side and through his lung.

[19] From December 1918 to June 1919, Patch commanded 1st Battalion, 805th Pioneer Infantry as it conducted post-war duty in France that included identifying and stockpiling ammunition and other materiel so it could be destroyed or transported back to the United States.

[24][27] In 1935, he was appointed professor of military science and tactics at the University of Maryland, College Park and commander of the school's ROTC program.

[32] In July 1944, Patch was assigned to command the Army Service Forces Training Center at Fort Lewis, Washington.

[37] In addition to the Distinguished Service Cross for his First World War heroism, Patch was a recipient of the Purple Heart and the French Croix de guerre.

[13] The President of the United States of America, authorized by Act of Congress, July 9, 1918, takes pleasure in presenting the Distinguished Service Cross to Major (Infantry) Joseph D. Patch, United States Army, for extraordinary heroism in action while serving with 18th Infantry Regiment, 1st Division, A.E.F., near Chaudun, France, 18 July 1918.