Tulare County Biographies

F. D. CAMPBELL

Transcribed by: Craig A Hahn

This file is part of the California Genealogy & History Archives
http://www.rootsweb.ancestry.com/~cagha/index.htm


     It was in that old southern town, Yazoo City, Miss., that F. D. Campbell 
was born in 1861. But a child when his parents moved to Texas, it was in that 
state that he was reared and went to school, and there he became a cowboy, and 
lived the wild life of the plains and ranges in Texas, New Mexico, Missouri and 
Montana. He was for three years a Texas ranger, a sworn member of the 
long-famous organization so potent in the preservation of order in the country 
along the border. Then it comprised six companies, of twenty-one men each, all 
under command of General King, each company having a captain, a lieutenant, and 
a sergeant. The members were men of proven bravery, picked from among the 
boldest and truest spirits on the frontier. Much of their work was against 
smugglers along the Mexican border, and some interesting experiences were had in 
pursuit of cattle rustlers. One band of smugglers was pursued relentlessly by 
the rangers five years, and was captured at length by Mr. Campbell�s company at 
Persimmons Gap, Tex. The headquarters of the rangers was at Austin, Tex., and 
companies were stationed at Sunset Water, Aberdeen, Colorado City, and Fort 
Davis, all points of strategic importance on the frontier. Mr. Campbell, who was 
twice wounded in this arduous and exciting service, received his honorable 
discharge November, 1883.
     Going to Kansas City, Mo., after leaving the frontier service in Texas, Mr. 
Campbell shipped all kinds of livestock from that point, till in 1910, when he 
came to Tulare, to engage in the buying and selling of livestock. His business 
at once assumed important proportions and he was shipping $30,000 worth of 
cattle and hogs each month, as the months averaged. In no department has there 
been a falling off, and in some departments a wonderful growth has been 
recorded. He is also part owner of and a director in the Kern Street Market of 
Tulare, one of the conspicuous concerns of its kind in this part of the state. 
     In 1896 Mr. Campbell married Miss Alice Landers, a native of Mississippi, 
and they have the following children, mentioned in the order of their birth: 
Ethel, Gladys, Argyle, Blanche and Theodora. Since taking up his residence in 
Tulare he has in many ways demonstrated that he is a helpful and dependable 
citizen, patriotically devoted to the general interests of the community and 
ready and able at all times to respond to demands in behalf of measures under 
promotion, with a view to the advancement of the public welfare. 
SOURCE:  History of Tulare and Kings Counties, California with Biographical 
Sketches - Los Angeles, Calif., Historic Record Company, 1913  Pp 427, 428