Phil Campbell, Alabama

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Phil Campbell is a town in Franklin County, Alabama, United States. At the 2010 census the population was 1,148.

In the 1880s, a railroad work crew leader and engineer by the name of Phillip Campbell (originally from England) established a work camp near the location of modern Phil Campbell. Mel Allen, a prominent local businessman, told Campbell if he would construct a railroad depot and add a side track to the stretch of railroad going through the area, he would name the subsequent town after Campbell. Campbell built both the depot and siding, which led to Phil Campbell being the only town in Alabama to have both the first and last names of an individual.

In June 1995 the writer Phil Campbell organized and wrote about a convention of people who shared their name with the town of Phil Campbell, Alabama. Twenty-two Phil Campbells and one Phyllis Campbell, hailing from all over America, attended. The story of the Phil Campbell convention was published in Might Magazine, a San-Francisco-based publication founded by Dave Eggers. The essay was later included in Might’s anthology, Shiny Adidas Tracksuits and the Death of Camp, and the convention itself was mentioned by Ripley's Believe it or Not! A second “Phil Campbell Day” was organized the following year, but it was not as well attended. Phil Campbell’s city hall, however, still maintains a file of all the Phil Campbells who visit.

On April 27, 2011, an EF-5 tornado (approx. 210 mph) devastated the town and damaged several buildings. 27 people lost their lives. The town had also been affected by an F5 tornado on April 3, 1974RM.

Find out more at
www.philcampbellal.com/
www.franklincountytimes.com/2011/04/27/tornado-destroys...