Mr. Campbell was a microbiologist by training but saw himself first as a Gullah, a descendant of West Africans brought to the Carolina islands by the British in the early 1700s as slave labor. The Gullahs’ physical isolation resulted in a unique culture, including a language known as Gullah-Geechee. When coastal resort development threatened the Gullah cultural heritage around Hilton Head Island, Campbell founded a for-profit ecotourism business to educate visitors about the indigenous way of life. Campbell realized that promoting the arts and crafts he had known since childhood could preserve them against encroaching modernization and development while also encouraging new skills. In 2002, when Campbell was 62, he and his family founded Gullah Heritage Trail Tours to educate tourists about the Gullah language and culture and promote indigenous crafts and artists.
In 2005, President Bush signed legislation designating the Gullah-Geechee Heritage Corridor between Wilmington, NC and Jacksonville, FL. The legislation created a 15-member commission, to which Campbell was appointed, to define strategies for promoting and preserving Gullah cultural assets. Campbell’s work has inspired restaurants, tours, and celebrations throughout the corridor, building pride among the Gullah-Geechee people. Campbell’s work to preserve the Gullah culture has led him to write several publications one of which is "Gullah Cultural Legacies." He also worked on a project to translate the New Testament of the Bible into the Gullah language. In 1988, he hosted In 2005, he received the Carter G. Woodson Memorial for outstanding work. He retired from the Penn Center in 2002 and is the President of Gullah Heritage Consulting Services. He collaborated with Carolyn Grant and Thomas C. Barnwell, Jr. and published “Gullah Days Hilton Head Islanders Before the Bridge 1861-1956” in 2020.
