Guy Gibson Campbell (August 6, 1890December 2, 1957) was an American medical doctor. He served as a medical officer on a US Army transport during the first part of

World War I World War I (28 July 1914 11 November 1918), often abbreviated as WWI, was one of the deadliest global conflicts in history. Belligerents included much of Europe, the Russian Empire, the United States, and the Ottoman Empire, with fightin ...

before becoming a medical officer in

British North Borneo (I persevere and I achieve) , national_anthem = , capital = Kudat (1881–1884);Sandakan (1884–1945); Jesselton (1946) , common_languages = English, Kadazan-Dusun, Bajau, Murut, Sabah Malay, Chinese etc. , gove ...

. In 1932 Campbell returned to the United States to practice privately and five years later was appointed medical director of the Firestone Plantations Company in Liberia. In Liberia he met banker

George Blowers George Blowers (March 5, 1906 – October 19, 1969) was an American banker. A Harvard graduate, he became governor of the state banks of Liberia, Ethiopia and Saudi Arabia. During his career he was responsible for introducing two new currencies ...

; Blowers was later appointed governor of the

National Bank of Ethiopia The National Bank of Ethiopia (NBE) is the central bank of Ethiopia. Its headquarters are in the capital city of Addis Ababa. Mamo Mihretu is the current governor of the bank. The bank is active in promoting financial inclusion policy and is a m ...

and secured Campbell a position working with the Ethiopian civil service. Campbell served as principal adviser to the Ethiopian Ministry of Health and as personal physician to emperor

Haile Selassie Haile Selassie I ( gez, ቀዳማዊ ኀይለ ሥላሴ, Qädamawi Häylä Səllasé, ; born Tafari Makonnen; 23 July 189227 August 1975) was Emperor of Ethiopia from 1930 to 1974. He rose to power as Regent Plenipotentiary of Ethiopia (' ...

and claimed to have greatly expanded medical provision in that country. Campbell left Ethiopia in 1948 and served in South America with the Institute of Inter-American Affairs. In later life he operated a private medical practice in Indiana.

Early life and career

Guy Gibson Campbell was born on August 6, 1890, in

Petersburg, Pennsylvania Petersburg is a borough in Huntingdon County, Pennsylvania, United States. It was a stop on the former Pennsylvania Railroad Main Line between Tyrone and Huntingdon and the junction point for the Petersburg Branch. The population was 480 at the 2 ...

. He graduated from

Jefferson Medical College Thomas Jefferson University is a private research university in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania. Established in its earliest form in 1824, the university officially combined with Philadelphia University in 2017. To signify its heritage, the univer ...

, Philadelphia, in 1913 and, during

, served as a medical officer on the US Army Transport ''Dix''. From 1916 to 1932 Campbell served as medical officer in

where he led campaigns on public health and nutrition and was cited by the colony's government for his work with aborigines. He returned to the United States in 1932 and went into private practice in

Wheeler Wheeler may refer to: Places United States * Wheeler, Alabama, an unincorporated community * Wheeler, Arkansas, an unincorporated community * Wheeler, California, an unincorporated community * Wheeler, Illinois, a village * Wheeler, Indiana, a ...

and East Gary, Indiana.

Africa

Campbell was appointed medical director for the Firestone Plantations Company in Liberia in 1937 and held this position until 1943. In 1947 he was decorated by the Liberian ambassador at the embassy in Washington, DC, for his service. Whilst in Liberia he met

who was then the general manager of the Bank of Monrovia. Blowers was afterwards appointed governor of the

and asked Campbell "If I get you a job when I go back to Ethiopia, will you come?". Campbell replied that he would and was appointed to the Ethiopian Ministry of the Interior. He transferred to become principal adviser to the Ethiopian Ministry of Health when it was founded in 1944 and also served as personal physician to the emperor,

. Campbell claimed to have greatly expanded medical provision in the country, increasing the number of hospitals from 15 to 36 by the end of his tenure in 1948. He claimed a similar increase in the number of beds from 1,200 to 4,000 and in doctors from 40 to 100, attracting recruits from the UK, Sweden, Italy, India and the US. He played a key role in the foundation of the Ethiopian Medical Association (https://www.ethiopianmedicalass.org/) and was its first president. For services to public health he was appointed a commander of the

Order of the Star of Ethiopia The Order of the Star of Ethiopia was established as an order of knighthood of the Ethiopian Empire, founded by the Negus of Shoa and later Emperor of Ethiopia Menelik II in 1884–1885. It is currently awarded as a house order by the Crown Cou ...

Return to the Americas

In 1948 Campbell was appointed to the staff of the Institute of Inter-American Affairs and served in La Paz, Bolivia; Bogota, Colombia and in Ecuador. He was decorated by Bolivia and Colombia for services to Public Health. Campbell later returned to private practice in Hammond, Dyer and

Munster Munster ( gle, an Mhumhain or ) is one of the provinces of Ireland, in the south of Ireland. In early Ireland, the Kingdom of Munster was one of the kingdoms of Gaelic Ireland ruled by a "king of over-kings" ( ga, rí ruirech). Following the ...

, Indiana. He lived on Hart Street, Dyer, and was married to Helen Breen Campbell of Dyer. They had two sons, Guy Gibson Jr. (who lived in Miami) and Charles Philip (who lived in Asmara, Eritrea), and one daughter, Mary Helen (who lived in Chicago). Campbell had six grandchildren. He was a member of the

American Medical Association The American Medical Association (AMA) is a professional association and lobbying group of physicians and medical students. Founded in 1847, it is headquartered in Chicago, Illinois. Membership was approximately 240,000 in 2016. The AMA's state ...

, Indiana Medical Society and the Lake County Medical Society. He was also a fellow of the

Royal Society of Tropical Medicine and Hygiene The Royal Society of Tropical Medicine and Hygiene, more commonly known by its acronym RSTMH, was founded in 1907 by Sir James Cantlie and George Carmichael Low. Sir Patrick Manson, the Society's first President (1907–1909), was recognised as "t ...

and of the

American Geriatrics Society The American Geriatrics Society (AGS) is a non-profit professional society founded on June 11, 1942, for health care professionals practicing geriatric medicine. Among the founding physicians were Dr. Ignatz Leo Nascher, who coined the term "ge ...

. In 1957 he became a member of the

Royal Society of Health Royal Society for Public Health (RSPH) is an independent, multi-disciplinary charity dedicated to the improvement of the public's health. RSPH helps inform policy and practice, working to educate, empower and support communities and individuals ...

. Campbell died at the Our Lady of Mercy Hospital in Dyer on December 2, 1957. After a

funeral mass A Requiem or Requiem Mass, also known as Mass for the dead ( la, Missa pro defunctis) or Mass of the dead ( la, Missa defunctorum), is a Mass of the Catholic Church offered for the repose of the soul or souls of one or more deceased persons, ...

at St Joseph Church he was buried in St Joseph Cemetery, Dyer.

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Campbell, Guy Gibson 1890 births 1957 deaths People from Huntingdon County, Pennsylvania People from Lake County, Indiana Jefferson Medical College alumni Physicians from Indiana Physicians from Pennsylvania Military personnel from Pennsylvania United States Army Medical Corps officers Recipients of orders, decorations, and medals of Ethiopia