Francis Joseph Campbell

Sir Francis Joseph Campbell (October 9, 1832 – June 30, 1914 ) was a British-American anti-slavery campaigner, teacher, and also the co-founder of the Royal National College for the Blind in the United Kingdom.

Early life and education Campbell was born near Winchester, Tennessee, USA, and lost his sight in 1836 following an accident , several sources indicate due to thorns on a tree or bush . In 1844, he became a student at Tennessee Institution for the Instruction of the Blind (now called the Tennessee School for the Blind), the same year the school was founded by Reverend James Champlin .

Career Campbell was appointed teacher of music at the Tennessee School for the Blind in 1850. The college continues to the present day, and is now known as the Royal National College for the Blind.

Campbell was also the first blind person to climb Mont Blanc. In his later years he became a naturalised Briton and in 1909 was knighted as a Knight Bachelor by King Edward VII. He retired as principal of RNC in 1912 and was succeeded by his son, Guy Marshall Campbell.