Thomas Mitchell Campbell (April 22, 1856April 1, 1923) was the 24th Governor of Texas, serving two terms from 1907 to 1911. He was an attorney and businessman, working as a manager for the International-Great Northern Railroad before entering politics from

Palestine, Texas Palestine ( ) is a city in and the seat of Anderson County in the U.S. state of Texas. It was named for Palestine, Illinois, by preacher Daniel Parker, who had migrated from that town. The city had a 2020 U.S. census population of 18,544, mak ...

Life

Campbell was born in

Rusk A rusk is a hard, dry biscuit or a twice-baked bread. It is sometimes used as a teether for babies. In some cultures, rusk is made of cake, rather than bread: this is sometimes referred to as cake rusk. In the UK, the name also refers to a whea ...

Cherokee County Cherokee County is the name of eight counties in the United States: * Cherokee County, Alabama * Cherokee County, Georgia * Cherokee County, Iowa * Cherokee County, Kansas * Cherokee County, North Carolina * Cherokee County, Oklahoma * Cherokee Co ...

East Texas East Texas is a broadly defined cultural, geographic, and ecological region in the eastern part of the U.S. state of Texas that comprises most of 41 counties. It is primarily divided into Northeast and Southeast Texas. Most of the region consi ...

, the son of Thomas Duncan and Rachel (Moore) Campbell. He attended school at Rusk and entered Trinity University in 1873 to study law. He was unable to support himself and withdrew after a year. Campbell went to work in the Gregg County clerk's office and continued his studies at night. In 1878, he was admitted to the Texas bar. In the same year, he married Fannie Irene Bruner of

Shreveport Shreveport ( ) is a city in the U.S. state of Louisiana. It is the third most populous city in Louisiana after New Orleans and Baton Rouge, Louisiana, Baton Rouge, respectively. The Shreveport–Bossier City metropolitan area, with a population o ...

Louisiana Louisiana , group=pronunciation (French: ''La Louisiane'') is a state in the Deep South and South Central regions of the United States. It is the 20th-smallest by area and the 25th most populous of the 50 U.S. states. Louisiana is borde ...

. Her father, William Bruner, had served as a captain from

Mississippi Mississippi () is a state in the Southeastern region of the United States, bordered to the north by Tennessee; to the east by Alabama; to the south by the Gulf of Mexico; to the southwest by Louisiana; and to the northwest by Arkansas. Miss ...

in the

Confederate States Army The Confederate States Army, also called the Confederate Army or the Southern Army, was the military land force of the Confederate States of America (commonly referred to as the Confederacy) during the American Civil War (1861–1865), fighting ...

. After the war, he settled in Shreveport. There he became a landholder and was elected as city comptroller in Shreveport. Campbell practiced law in Longview until he became involved with the troubled International-Great Northern Railroad in 1889. He became its court-appointed receiver in 1891 and moved his family to

Palestine __NOTOC__ Palestine may refer to: * State of Palestine, a state in Western Asia * Palestine (region), a geographic region in Western Asia * Palestinian territories, territories occupied by Israel since 1967, namely the West Bank (including East ...

. The next year, after lifting the line from

bankruptcy Bankruptcy is a legal process through which people or other entities who cannot repay debts to creditors may seek relief from some or all of their debts. In most jurisdictions, bankruptcy is imposed by a court order, often initiated by the debtor ...

, he remained in Palestine as the general manager of the

railroad Rail transport (also known as train transport) is a means of transport that transfers passengers and goods on wheeled vehicles running on rails, which are incorporated in tracks. In contrast to road transport, where the vehicles run on a pre ...

Political career

Campbell distrusted

monopolistic A monopoly (from Greek el, μόνος, mónos, single, alone, label=none and el, πωλεῖν, pōleîn, to sell, label=none), as described by Irving Fisher, is a market with the "absence of competition", creating a situation where a spec ...

big business and sympathized with

trade union A trade union (labor union in American English), often simply referred to as a union, is an organization of workers intent on "maintaining or improving the conditions of their employment", ch. I such as attaining better wages and benefits ( ...

s. He shared many of the reformist political views of former Texas governor

James Stephen Hogg James Stephen "Jim" Hogg (March 24, 1851March 3, 1906) was an American lawyer and statesman, and the 20th Governor of Texas. He was born near Rusk, Texas. Hogg was a follower of the conservative New South Creed which became popular following ...

. In 1897, Campbell resigned from the railroad and became active in

Democratic Party Democratic Party most often refers to: *Democratic Party (United States) Democratic Party and similar terms may also refer to: Active parties Africa *Botswana Democratic Party *Democratic Party of Equatorial Guinea *Gabonese Democratic Party *Demo ...

politics. At Hogg's urging, he decided to run for governor. Campbell was elected governor in 1906. In his two terms in office, 1907–1911, Campbell initiated a number of reforms involving railroad regulation, equitable taxation, and lobbying restrictions. Shocked when the

Slocum Massacre The Slocum Massacre occurred on July 29–30, 1910, in Slocum, Texas, an unincorporated community in Anderson County near Palestine in East Texas. Only six deaths were officially confirmed, but some 22 were reported by major newspapers. This is ...

broke out on July 29, 1910, when a large mob of whites attacked blacks in and around Slocum in his home Anderson County, Campbell ordered the state militia to the area to suppress the violence. Twenty-two unarmed blacks were documented as killed in the white riot, but the death toll was said to be much higher. Many black families fled the area, losing all their property. Campbell's most significant legislation centered on

prison A prison, also known as a jail, gaol (dated, standard English, Australian, and historically in Canada), penitentiary (American English and Canadian English), detention center (or detention centre outside the US), correction center, correc ...

reform, as Campbell's administration ended the

convict lease Convict leasing was a system of forced penal labor which was practiced historically in the Southern United States, the laborers being mainly African-American men; it was ended during the 20th century. (Convict labor in general continues; f ...

system for inmates and implemented more humane treatment of prisoners. Under Campbell, many state agencies were established, including the Department of Insurance and Banking, the Bureau of Labor Statistics, the State Board of Health, and the Texas State Library. Campbell returned to private law practice in Palestine, but remained active in Democratic politics. In 1916, he ran unsuccessfully against his fellow Democrat Charles Culberson for the

United States Senate The United States Senate is the upper chamber of the United States Congress, with the House of Representatives being the lower chamber. Together they compose the national bicameral legislature of the United States. The composition and pow ...

. Well into the 1960s, Texas was essentially a one-party state, with the only competitive contests taking place in the Democratic primaries. He died in

Galveston Galveston ( ) is a coastal resort city and port off the Southeast Texas coast on Galveston Island and Pelican Island in the U.S. state of Texas. The community of , with a population of 47,743 in 2010, is the county seat of surrounding Galvesto ...

and is interred in Palestine, Texas. His grave is marked with a tall white

obelisk An obelisk (; from grc, ὀβελίσκος ; diminutive of ''obelos'', " spit, nail, pointed pillar") is a tall, four-sided, narrow tapering monument which ends in a pyramid-like shape or pyramidion at the top. Originally constructed by Anc ...

.CAMPBELL, THOMAS MITCHELL
''The Handbook of Texas Online''
Retrieved Apr. 11, 2005.

References

External links

''Message of Governor T.M. Campbell to the thirtieth legislature of Texas, to which is appended the State Democratic Platform adopted at Dallas, Texas, August 13, 1906.''
hosted by the Portal to Texas History
''Message of Governor T.M. Campbell to the first called session of the thirtieth legislature of Texas: together with the proclamation of the Governor convening the legislature in extra-ordinary session.''
hosted by the Portal to Texas History {{DEFAULTSORT:Campbell, Thomas Mitchell 1856 births 1923 deaths Democratic Party governors of Texas People from Rusk, Texas