The area was initially pioneered by Scottish settlers. An early settler and homesteader named Mr. Wallace referred to his land as "Campsie Maines". In 1909, the community officially took the name Campsie after the Campsie Hills near Glasgow, Scotland, which was the ancestral home of an early local postmaster. A local post office was established on June 15, 1909 to serve the growing agricultural community and remained in operation for decades until it closed in 1969.

Shortly after Alberta became a province in 1905, Campsie became notable as a block settlement for African American pioneers. Seeking to escape intensifying racial segregation, systemic discrimination, and the oppressive "Jim Crow" laws taking root in Oklahoma and Texas, several Black families chose to migrate north to Western Canada. Alongside other similar early Alberta Black settlements—such as Amber Valley, Wildwood (Junkins), and Breton—the settlers in Campsie faced the immense challenges of clearing dense bush, breaking raw wilderness land, and surviving harsh northern winters.

Around 1911, a group of roughly 40 Black settlers in the area quickly united to build the Bethel Baptist Church, which served as an important spiritual and social hub for the community. Though the original church building was unfortunately lost to a fire years later, gatherings later transitioned to locations like the local Benton School.