1906 – 1967
Dave Campbell was born in Indiana, in 1906, moved to Bartlett, Nebraska in 1920 with his parents and younger brother, Bill. They lived 7 miles north and 4 miles west of Bartlett. Then in 1935, he moved to Las Vegas, Nevada, where he worked at the Old Boulderado Ranch, where he worked and trained horses. David Campbell passed away in 1967 in Las Vegas, Nevada, and at that time he was survived by his wife, Ann, a brother Bill and several nephews and a niece.
While traveling the rodeo circuit, Dave Campbell would keep his horse, Laddie, at Melvin Mignery’s place.
In 1936, cowboys finally took control and organized at the Boston Garden Rodeo, where Colonel Johnson, premier rodeo producer, was holding his 6th Annual World’s Championship Rodeo. The cowboys knew they were right in their demands, especially when they would win money and struggle financially to get from one rodeo to the next. They considered it too unjust in 1936 so a petition was circulated at the Chicago Stadium not to go to Boston Show unless demands of cowboys were met, and Dave Campbell was one of those who signed the petition thus the beginnings of Cowboy Turtle Association.
At the second Turtle Meeting, where qualified judges was discussed and Dave Campbell’s name was added to the qualified list to judge CTA (1937).
At the 1938 CTA meeting in Ogden, Utah, there discussion about judges not being qualified to judge and being paid off, Dave Campbell was quoted “I’ve been told that it has been said in public that I bought the cattle I dogged at the Chicago Rodeo. The man who said this is a “LIAR.” Evert Bowman, President CTA “If all men are as good as Dave Campbell, we would be good men.”
During 1941-1944, Dave was elected as spokesman for the Cowboy’s Turtle Association.
In 1942 Dave was second place winner in Steer Wrestling for World Champion Cowboys.
After the merger of Rodeo Cowboy Association and Cowboy’s Turtle Association in 1945, the RCA meeting was held in Phoenix, Arizona. Dave was elected as Director and also named one of 34 spokesmen for RCA.