Campbell, William Bowen, 1807-1867

Campbell was born on Mansker's Creek in Sumner County, Tennessee, to David and Catherine Bowen Campbell. He studied law at Abingdon, Virginia, with his father's cousin, Virginia Governor David Campbell, and attended lectures at Winchester Law School. He returned to Tennessee in 1829 in order to establish a law practice at Carthage, in Smith County. He was admitted to the bar in 1830. In 1831, he was appointed attorney general for a state circuit, and moved to Sparta, Tennessee.

In 1835, Campbell moved back to Carthage, and was elected to Smith County's seat in the Tennessee House of Representatives. He resigned his seat in 1836, however, in order to fight in the Second Seminole War. He served as a captain under Colonel William Trousdale.

...