He was a local religious and political leader and helped organize a number of churches.

His maternal grandfather, Aaron, and maternal great-grandparents, Tobias and Mato, lived nearby and all were emancipated before their deaths, Aaron purchasing his freedom and Tobias and Mato being emancipated in their old age.

Campbell joined the Baptist church on September 16, 1841, under the influence of Edmund Martin in Richmond, Kentucky, but his master, who was a Methodist, required him to hold that denomination.

[3] His master died in 1851 and he joined the Baptist church and in 1856 Campbell was baptized by Rev.

In August 1857, he was ordained in Lincoln County, Kentucky, by a council of the Tates Creek Association of (white) Baptists which included Rev.

He learned to read and write later in life with the aid of his father and white children in the neighborhood.

[5] In 1863, during the American Civil War (1861 to 1865), Campbell purchased his freedom for $233 and hired his wife.

when he died it was reported that during his career he ordained 125 ministers and deacons, baptized 5,000, traveled 33,900 miles, and raised thousands of dollars.