William Ransom Campbell Jr. (February 6, 1920 – July 27, 1996) was an American architect. He was a member of a group of modernist architects in

North Carolina North Carolina () is a state in the Southeastern region of the United States. The state is the 28th largest and 9th-most populous of the United States. It is bordered by Virginia to the north, the Atlantic Ocean to the east, Georgia and So ...

that had a major academic and architectural influence on the Modernism movement in the 1950s through 1970s. He is the architect of the William and Jean Winders' residence, as well as being a former member of the Association of University Architects.

Early life

Childhood

Campbell was born on February 6, 1920, in

Durham, North Carolina Durham ( ) is a city in the U.S. state of North Carolina and the county seat of Durham County, North Carolina, Durham County. Small portions of the city limits extend into Orange County, North Carolina, Orange County and Wake County, North Carol ...

, and graduated from Chapel Hill High School.

Education

After graduating from Chapel Hill High School, Campbell went to the

University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill A university () is an institution of higher (or tertiary) education and research which awards academic degrees in several academic disciplines. Universities typically offer both undergraduate and postgraduate programs. In the United States ...

for a few years before being interrupted by service in the Navy during WWII. After finishing his service, he and his wife, Ola Adelle Stearns, or "Jinx", decided to attend college in Ada, Oklahoma. In 1947, the two moved to

New Orleans New Orleans ( , ,New Orleans
Merriam-Webster. ; french: La Nouvelle-Orléans , es, Nuev ...

to be at

Tulane University Tulane University, officially the Tulane University of Louisiana, is a private university, private research university in New Orleans, Louisiana. Founded as the Medical College of Louisiana in 1834 by seven young medical doctors, it turned into ...

before moving again to

Raleigh, North Carolina Raleigh (; ) is the capital city of the state of North Carolina and the List of North Carolina county seats, seat of Wake County, North Carolina, Wake County in the United States. It is the List of municipalities in North Carolina, second-most ...

. In Raleigh, Bill finished his degree in Architecture at

North Carolina State University North Carolina State University (NC State) is a public land-grant research university in Raleigh, North Carolina. Founded in 1887 and part of the University of North Carolina system, it is the largest university in the Carolinas. The universit ...

's School of Design.

Career

Campbell's first part of his career was working for design firms in Charlotte, NC and Greensboro, NC. Following this, he spent a short time working for architect Jim Webb, and photographing his houses. Campbell then moved to

Fayetteville, Arkansas Fayetteville () is the second-largest city in Arkansas, the county seat of Washington County, and the biggest city in Northwest Arkansas. The city is on the outskirts of the Boston Mountains, deep within the Ozarks. Known as Washington until ...

, and served as the architect and facilities planner at the University of Arkansas at Fayetteville from 1959-1965. Campbell was a member of the Association of University Architects and served as the president of the Association. After adopting three children, the Campbells moved to Hawaii and Bill had the job of Director of Facilities Planning at the University of Hawaii for three years. In 1968, the well traveled family moved to Oklahoma, where he had many titles in university and medical facilities planning at the

University of Oklahoma The University of Oklahoma (OU) is a Public university, public research university in Norman, Oklahoma. Founded in 1890, it had existed in Oklahoma Territory near Indian Territory for 17 years before the two Territories became the state of Oklahom ...

. This was his last university job. They then moved to Morehead City, North Carolina where he worked for Carol Bivens.

Personal life

Campbell had two brothers and a sister. Their names were Charles Campbell, James Campbell, and Ouida Campbell Taylor. While in the Navy serving as a radioman, Bill met Ola Adelle Stearns, aka "Jinx", who was an air traffic controller. The two got married and never separated. The Campbells adopted three kids, though one of them (Mitchell Alden Campbell) died in his teens. Barclay William Campbell and Kelley Sue Campbell Hill are the two children that are still living.

Death

On July 27, 1996, Bill died from cancer in his home. A memorial service was held to honor Bill's life on July 31, 1996. At this event, he was called "a true Renaissance man." He was buried in Durham, North Carolina. enealogy Bank Obituaries, 1980-2015 "Genealogy Bank". Retrieved October 23rd, 2016

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Campbell, Bill Ransom 1920 births 1996 deaths 20th-century American architects Modernist architects from the United States North Carolina State University alumni People from Durham, North Carolina People from Morehead City, North Carolina Chapel Hill High School (Chapel Hill, North Carolina) alumni United States Navy personnel of World War II