Campbell was the son of John and Catherine Campbell. He married Mary Aloysius Hanley at what is referred to today as the Old St Stephen's Church in Brisbane on 11 January 1873. Research is ongoing as it relates to Campbell, particularly prior to his arrival in Australia, however, it appears, subject to confirmation, that he arrived in Maryborough, Queensland on the marine vessel Sultana in July 1864. His future wife, Mary, arrived in Brisbane with her parents, Edward and Mary Hanley on the marine vessel Golden Dream in May 1863. The Hanley family lived in Maryborough. After their marriage Thomas and Mary resided in South East Queensland. Campbell was headmaster at GympieCentral State School from May 1876 to December 1882 having taught initially under the Department of Public Instruction's pupil teacher system at Fortitude Valley in Brisbane, Maryborough and Spring Creek near Warwick, Queensland. In December 1882, Campbell made his transition to the legal profession.
Politics
In August 1883 at a public meeting in Mackay, Queensland, Campbell condemned the policies of the then Premier, Sir Thomas McIlwraith, and informed those present that he had great faith in Sir Samuel Griffith who was subsequently elected Premier of Queensland in November 1883. Following Campbell's election to the Queensland Legislative Assembly on 4 March 1884 in the Cook electorate, he continued his support of Griffith, which suggests that from an ideological standpoint that he was of liberal thought as opposed to conservative. Campbell was declared insolvent on 27 July 1885 and he tendered his resignation from the parliament. As had occurred on a previous occasion when a member was declared insolvent, it was thought proper for the Queensland Parliament to move that the seat be declared vacant by reason of the insolvency of the member. On 4 August 1885 the then Premier, Samuel Griffith, moved: "That the seat of Thomas Campbell hath become and is now vacant by reason of the insolvency of the said Thomas Campbell since his election and return to serve in this House as one of the members for the electoral district of Cook." The question was put and passed.
Later life
The oral history handed down through the generations was that the transition from teaching to the legal profession was a financial challenge for Campbell so much so that initially it was not successful and with his premature death, his future prospects in what was a new employment venture was not achieved. Campbell died in Townsville at the Imperial Hotel on 6 November 1885, aged 40 when he was visiting North Queensland on a court case and was buried in the West End Cemetery in Townsville. According to The Gympie Times, "he had been laid up at the Imperial Hotel for three days with an attack of asthma, but on Friday he was seized with convulsive fits, which continued until his death, the cause of which is said to have been Bright's disease" and that he was "a fine scholar and a man of great natural ability and application - as is shown by the fact that whilst fulfilling his responsible scholastic duties, he, quite unaided, managed to qualify himself for admission to the bar".
Family
Campbell was survived by his wife, Mary and their four young children. After Campbell's untimely death, Mary returned to Maryborough, and the latter part of her life was spent in Rockhampton, Mount Morgan, Queensland and Brisbane. Mary died at her residence, 26 Riverview Terrace, Auchenflower, Queensland, on 13 October 1927 aged 76. She was survived by their three daughters, Mary, Kathryn and Esther. Mary Angela, a teacher, was the eldest daughter, born Spring Creek in 1875 and died in Newcastle, New South Wales in 1967. She married Terence Lafferty who worked alongside TJ Ryan at their first respective postings in Queensland as teachers in 1899 at the then Maryborough Grammar School. Mary and Terence resided in Charters Towers and Townsville, and they relocated to Newcastle in retirement. Henry Joseph, a teacher, known as "Jack" was born in 1878. Jack enlisted with the First Australian Imperial Force, Tropical Force Unit on 15 December 1914 and died in the Victoria Barracks, Sydney, on 6 February 1915. Kathryn "Kate" Delia was born in 1880 and died in Brisbane in 1964. Kate was a teacher and did not marry. Esther "Essie" Mary was born in 1882 and died in Brisbane in 1967. Essie was also a teacher and did not marry. Kate and Essie resided in the Campbell family home "Maghery" in Auchenflower. Mary, Kate and Essie were buried in Brisbane's Toowong Cemetery.
