Corporal Tinsman was a member of the 19th Infantry Regiment, 24th Infantry Division. He was seriously wounded by the enemy in South Korea on 19 September 1950 and died of those wounds later that day.

Tinsman was awarded the Purple Heart, the Combat Infantryman Badge, the Korean Service Medal, the United Nations Service Medal, the National Defense Service Medal, the Korean Presidential Unit Citation and the Republic of Korea War Service Medal.