‘York, England’ Phil becomes 50th Phil Campbell to erect hometown sign in Phil Campbell

4,200 miles.

That's how far a York, England resident traveled to visit the small northwest town that bears his name—Phil Campbell.

On Wednesday, April 3rd, 'England' Phil Campbell became the 50th Phil Campbell to post his hometown's sign at the Phil Campbell Memorial Park.

They've traveled from all over the countr and the world. Australia, Scotland, England and beyond.

After 'Brooklyn' Phil Campbell visited the town many years ago, he  organized a June 2011 event where Phil Campbells from other states and/or countries would visit the town and celebrate its 100th anniversary.

But after the April 27, 2011 EF-5 tornado ravaged Phil Campbell, 'Brooklyn' Phil pivoted to organize the Phil Campbell event into a cleanup of the town and  a fundraising campaign to benefit Phil Campbell's recovery.

It wasn't until recently that 'England' Phil Campbell learned there was a town that shared a name with him. When he found the 'Phil Campbells & Phil Campbell, Alabama' Facebook page, he and his wife thought they would one day visit the small community. When he learned that his York, England sign would be the 50th sign to be posted at the downtown park, 'England' Phil, along with his wife Andrea and son Jacob, planned an April 3rd visit where he would erect his sign personally. The fourth member of the family, Abigail, who is Jacob's twin, stayed home to take care of the family's beloved cats.

So 'Brooklyn' Phil sent 'England' Phil his sign, rather than sending it to town officials as is normally done. And 'England' Phil had a smile on his face as he proudly hung up sign number 50.

“When 'Brooklyn' Phil let Andrea know we would have the 50th sign, it made this trip even more special,” Campbell said. “'Brooklyn' Phil made the sign with a beautiful heart design which symbolizes the (Great West) window at York Minster.”

York Minster, located in 'England' Phil's home town, is considered one of the world's most magnificent and historic cathedrals. And it's highlighted by the stunning 'Heart of Yorkshire' design in the Great West Window that was inserted almost seven centuries ago.

'England' Phil and his family flew into New York last Friday and spent four days there before flying to Birmingham on April 2nd. The family is staying at a rental property on the shores of Pickwick Lake in Waterloo.

'England' Phil, who was born in Manchester, chose education as his career. After many years as a history teacher, he now trains new teachers who are just starting their own teaching careers.

Phil Campbell City Councilmen Phillip King and Eddie Marbutt met 'England' Phil and his family to offer them an official welcome from the town. King presented the family with t-shirts from the Phil Campbell Festival.

“We're very happy y'all are here and we want to welcome you to our town,” King said. “We appreciate you and all of our Phils and your families. You've brought a lot of attention to our town and our Phil Campbells were very involved in helping the town rebuild after the tornado.”

Marbutt said he never envisioned how popular the Phil Campbells visiting Phil Campbell scenario would become. Like King, Marbutt said it has brought favorable attention on their  town.

“I really think this has turned into something special and we try to get as many Phil Campbells as we can come to the festival each June,” Marbutt said. “It's hard with everyone's schedule to get them all together. But we have Phil Campbells from all over the world coming here and 'Brooklyn' Phil is the center cog in organizing this.

“He takes time to make all the signs and today, we'll see the 50th Phil Campbell sign going up. That's really cool,” Marbutt added.