Andre W Brewster

Andre was born on the 9th of December 1862, in Hoboken, New Jersey. His mother was the great-great-great granddaughter of Benjamin Franklin, and his father was a US Navy midshipman from Louisiana. Andre’s parents were divorced not long after he was born, and he was adopted by his mother’s new husband in 1870. He grew up in Philadelphia and went to school in Washington, DC, before working as an attorney for three years.

Andre commissioned into the US Army’s 10th Infantry Regiment as a Second Lieutenant in January of 1885, and served in the American Indian Wars. He commanded Company B of the 9th Infantry during the Siege of Santiago and the Battle of San Juan Hill of the Spanish-American War. Andre and that company also deployed in support of the Philippine-American War in 1899, before being sent to China in support of the Boxer Rebellion. It was his actions as a Captain there on the 13th of July 1900, that would later earn him the Medal of Honor. The citation reads:

While under fire rescued two of his men from drowning.

Andre received the Medal on the 15th of September 1903, and remained in China until 1905, when he would return to the States and attend the Army War College. He later became the Inspector General of the Army until 1913 and was then assigned to command the 65th Infantry Regiment in Puerto Rico, in 1914.

When the US entered World War 1, Andre served in France as Inspector General of General Headquarters, American Expeditionary Forces. By this time, he was a Major General and received the Army Distinguished Service Medal for his organization and administration as IG. His assessments of commanders were valued to General Pershing and led to the relieving of several and the advancement of others that would ultimately aid in the success of the war.

Andre’s final command was at the First Corps Area in Boston, Massachusetts, and he retired from the Army at the rank of Major General in 1925, after forty years of service. He married Elizabeth Griffin in 1885 (around the time he joined the Army) and the couple had one daughter, who was named after his mother Mary Walker. On the 27th of March 1942, Andre Walker Brewster died at the age of 79 and he is buried with his wife in Arlington National Cemetery: Section 2, Grave 1130.