Campbell AME Church is significant for its ties to the Bluffton African American community during and after Reconstruction. Nine freedmen purchased the building in 1874. Several of the founders were farmers who prospered in the years following the war. Once purchased, the new congregation altered the building and made improvements that made the building distinctly their own. During Reconstruction, the church served as a church, school, and outreach for the greater community. The church stands as a reminder of the way Bluffton’s freedmen formed a new society in the aftermath of the Civil War. Their changes to the church reflect the booming local economy and the desire to update the building to keep up with new construction in the area.

According to the 2018 National Register of Historic Places application, “The building represents the history of a people anxious to start a new life of freedom and demonstrate a successful start to that new life through the purchase and modification of this church building. Through the safe environment that this church provided, African Americans in late 19th century Bluffton were educated, formed a community structure, and assumed their place in American society.”