Dr. John Edgar Campbell Jr.

Dr. John Edgar Campbell, Jr.

Knoxville, TN

Dr. John Edgar Campbell, Jr. – age 94, passed away on Tuesday, January 23, 2018. He was born in Kalamazoo, Michigan but resided in Knoxville, TN for most of his life.

Ed attended Knoxville High School where he played tennis and basketball and went to the University of Tennessee where he was a member of SAE fraternity and received his Bachelor of Science. He went on to UT Medical School where he was a member of the Phi Chi Medical fraternity and received his Doctorate of Medicine. He served his residency at Harvard Medical School and the University of Chicago where he specialized in Ophthalmology. Ed served on the staff at the latter until 1950 when he was called to MacDill Air Force Base in Florida to serve as a flight surgeon and Chief of Ophthalmology for the United States Air Force Medical Corp during the Korean War.

Upon completing his military service, he returned to Knoxville and established the practice of ophthalmology where he was joined by Dr. Reese Patterson, Dr. William McLoy, and later on, his son, Dr. Philip Campbell. During the earlier years of their practice, Ed founded the East Tennessee Eye Bank where they performed the first corneal transplant operation in Tennessee, east of Memphis. Ed was the founder and President of Opticare Corporation, an ophthalmic pharmaceutical firm in Nashville, which later merged with Skorn Corporation, an international pharmaceutical firm, where he served on the board for 25 years.

He served as President of the Knoxville Ophthalmology Society and was Vice President of Tennessee Ophthalmology Association. He was also a life time member of the American Academy of Ophthalmology.

Ed was a longtime member and served on the board at Church Street United Methodist Church, later becoming a member of Sequoyah Hills Presbyterian Church. He was also a co-founder of the Knoxville Racquet Club, member of the Sertoma Club, and a member of the Cherokee Country Club for 45 years. Ed was also an original board member of Club Leconte.

After 50 years of medical practice, Ed and his beloved wife, Bobbie, retired to Hilton Head, South Carolina. There, they became members of the Wexford Country Club and Providence Presbyterian Church. Bobbie and Ed also enjoyed many years traveling the world. Some of their trips include Eastern and Western Europe, Africa, South America, and China.

Ed was preceded in death by his parents, John Edgar Sr., and Hazel Campbell; sister, Jane Parker; and brother-in-law, Robert Parker.

He is survived by his wife of 68 years, Bobbie Darby Campbell; five children, John Edgar Campbell III and wife, Kim, Dr. Philip Campbell and wife, Debbie, Darby Campbell and wife, Amy, Marilyn Sollenberger and husband, Mark, and Paige Troutman and husband, Chris; fourteen grandchildren and two great-grandchildren.

A Celebration of Life will be held 3 pm, Sunday, January 28, at Sequoyah Hills Presbyterian Church in Knoxville. A Celebration of Life will also be held in Hilton Head, SC at a later date.

In lieu of flowers, donations may be made to Sequoyah Hills Presbyterian Church, 3700 Keowee Ave, Knoxville, TN, 37919 or Providence Presbyterian Church, 171 Cordillo Pkwy, Hilton Head, SC, 29928. Online condolences may be received at www.rosemortuary.com. Arrangements by Rose Mortuary Mann Heritage Chapel.