Serving as a sailor in the U.S. Navy, Seaman Andrew Brinn received the Medal of Honor for his actions on March 14, 1863 in Port Hudson, Louisiana during the Civil War. At the time he was serving with U.S.S. Mississippi. Brinn was about 34 years old.
6 other service members also received the Medal of Honor for actions on the same day. The medal was presented on June 27, 1864. Received while serving aboard the U.S.S. Hollyhock.
Brinn was born in 1829 in Scotland — one of 41 recipients born in Scotland. His Medal of Honor is credited to New York, New York. Brinn died on June 2, 1886 in Sabine Pass, Louisiana, at the age of about 57. Records also list him as Andrew Brynn.
Brinn is one of 1,525 Medal of Honor recipients from the Civil War and one of 678 credited to New York.
Official Medal of Honor citation
Served on board the U.S.S. Mississippi during her abandonment and firing in the engagement at Port Hudson, 14 March 1863. Remaining under enemy fire for 2 and one half hours, Brinn remained on board the grounded vessel until all the abandoning crew had landed. After asking to be assigned some duty, he was finally ordered to save himself and to leave the Mississippi, which had been deliberately fired to prevent her falling into rebel hands.
Citation text: U.S. Government, public domain.
Places
- Born: Scotland — map
Veteran resources, cemeteries and meeting places in New York →
From the archives
Andrew Brinn's real birthplace appears to have been Norway and the true spelling of his name was Brynn. All of his military records show Norway as his place of birth and the spelling as Brynn, with the exception of one surviving muster roll for the U.S.S. Mississippi. Following his Navy service, Brinn/Brynn became a U.S. citizen. He served as a keeper for several lighthouses along the Gulf of Mexico. His last station was the Sabine Pass Lighthouse in Louisiana, where he died of an unknown illness while on duty. He was most likely buried in a local cemetery, but the area was hit with a strong hurricane in late 1886 and records were lost.
Timeline
- 1829Born in Scotland
- March 14, 1863Act of valor — Port Hudson, LouisianaAge about 34. U.S.S. Mississippi
- June 27, 1864Medal of Honor presentedReceived while serving aboard the U.S.S. Hollyhock .
- June 2, 1886Died in Sabine Pass, LouisianaAge about 57.
Biography
Seaman Andrew Brinn (born c. 1829) was a Scottish sailor who fought in the American Civil War. Brinn received the country's highest award for bravery during combat, the Medal of Honor, for his action aboard the USS Mississippi at Port Hudson on 14 March 1863. He was honored with the award on 10 July 1863.
From the Wikipedia article “Andrew Brinn”, licensed under CC BY-SA 4.0. Read the full article →
