Doug Campbell
| Date and Place of Birth: | July 1, 1921 Missoula, MT |
| Date and Place of Death: | November 20, 1943 Tarawa, Gilbert Islands |
| Baseball Experience: | Minor League |
| Position: | Second Base |
| Rank: | Private First Class |
| Military Unit: | 2nd Marine Regiment, 2nd Marine Division US Marine Corps |
| Area Served: | Pacific Theater of Operations |
“Douglas Campbell of Missoula [Montana], as fine an infielder
as ever spiked a diamond in this state, has an excellent opportunity to
advance in professional baseball now.”
The Missoulian, September 1, 1940
Douglas K. Campbell, the son of Senator John L. and Mary Campbell,
was born on July 1, 1921, in Missoula, Montana. Young Doug was around
baseball from an early age. His father played baseball around Montana
and later served as president of the Montana State League, a fiercely
competitive independent league that had been a minor league in the
1920s.
Campbell played three years on the Missoula American Legion junior team
and captained the team when they won the Montana state championship in
1938. He also captained the football and basketball teams at Missoula
High School and was all-state quarterback selection his senior year.
He played for the Bonner Lumberjacks of the Montana State League in
1939, then joined the Missoula Pirates in 1940. He batted .293 that year
and the 19-year-old was signed by Tom Downey, a Brooklyn Dodgers scout
in September. On October 9, 1940, Campbell played for the Montana State
League All-Stars against the American League All-Stars. As the lead-off
hitter and second baseman, he had two hits on the day in his team’s 10-3
loss to the big leaguers.
Campbell was originally assigned by the Dodgers to the Olean Oilers of
the Class D PONY League, but was sent to California on March 14, 1941,
to join the newly formed Santa Barbara Saints of the Class C California
League. Campbell was released by the Saints two days before the season
started and joined the Fargo-Moorhead Twins of the Class C Northern
League, where he got two hits in his first game but only played a
handful of games before returning to Missoula. He hit .331 with Missoula
for the remainder of the season and batted .364 in 1942, being named
outstanding shortstop of the league.
Campbell was just 21 years old when he enlisted in the Marine Corps on
December 12, 1942, and was with the 4th Recruit Battalion at Marine
Corps Base, San Diego, California, until February 1943. He was then at
Camp Elliott, San Diego, before joining the 26th Replacement Battalion,
1st Marine Amphibious Corps in October 1943. Later that month he arrived
in Wellington, New Zealand via New Caledonia, where he was assigned to
the 2nd Marine Regiment of the 2nd Marine Division.
The 2nd Marine Division was engaged in the Battle of Tarawa, the first
American offensive in the central Pacific region. Private First Class
Campbell was killed in action on the first day of the battle, November
20, 1943.
It was not until January 15, 1944, that Campbell was reported missing in
action. The following month, it was confirmed he had been killed and was
buried on Tarawa. His remains were later moved to the National Memorial
Cemetery of the Pacific in Honolulu, Hawaii.
Doug Campbell Field, home of the American Legion junior baseball team on
South Higgins Avenue in Missoula, was named in his honor shortly after
his death. The baseball field is no longer in existence and the area,
now known as Campbell Park, is the sports facility of the University of
Montana.
|
Year |
Team |
League |
Class |
G |
AB |
R |
H |
2B |
3B |
HR |
RBI |
AVG |
|
1941 |
Fargo-Moorhead |
Northern | C | - | - | - | - | - | - | - | - | - |
Doug
Campbell when he quarterbacked the Missoula Spartans high school
football team.
Doug Campbell's grave in Hawaii.
Date Added May 22, 2023
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