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ODONYMES] LUBIN BRIN, SURVIVOR OF THE TRENCHES OF VERDUN
by V.A 09/02/2020
Joseph Gerville Brin dit Lubin, born in Gouverneur in 1896, emigrated to Saint-Thomas when Saint-Barth was not so successful as it is today, wounded in the trenches of Verdun, then a big-hearted postman in the hills of his native island.
As a child, Lubin Brin walked barefoot every day between Gouverneur and Gustavia to get to school. Then like many Saint-Barths at the time, he left his native land to earn a living in Saint-Thomas. War broke out in Europe, he was called up in 1916 to join the army in Fort-de-France. It’s the great crossing of the Atlantic to a whole new world: the hell of Verdun. It's hard to imagine what a child from Saint-Barth at the turn of the century might have felt when he arrived in eastern France in 1917. In the trenches, he survived the war and the Spanish flu. Wounded, he returned to the island with scars on his back from a burst of bush. Among the Poilus he meets a certain Luciani with whom he binds; he will later name his son Luciani in his memory. During the First World War he also discovered Tunisia for a few months.
Back in Saint-Barth with his metal soldier's helmet, he earns his living by doing odd jobs: farmer, shopkeeper, breeder ... Until he has enough money to buy land in the Lurin district, where he built his house to live there with Marie, who said yes to her in November 1926. The couple gave birth to twelve children, eight of whom survive, seven boys and a girl.
Lubin Brin cultivates the land, grows fruits and vegetables in the arid soil of Saint-Barth, fishing with his homemade traps. Then he joined the PTT, then the Post Office. Being a veteran and a civil servant makes life easier, but the job is still very tough: no cars or roads on the island. As when he was a child, he takes the footpaths to deliver the few letters to the inhabitants. Animal lover, he helps his fellow citizens take care of their animals, supports women whose husbands have emigrated by helping them with their daily chores.
Lubin Brin never missed a ceremony on November 11, the date of the signing of the Armistice, which allowed him to return home. He has been buried in Saint-Jean cemetery since November 17, 1986.
