[3] Watson received an Artium Baccalaureus degree from Amherst College in 1901 and read law in 1903 to enter the bar.
He was a Judge of the Court of Common Pleas for Lackawanna County, Pennsylvania from 1926 to 1928.
[3] On September 9, 1929, Watson was nominated by President Herbert Hoover to a new seat on the United States District Court for the Middle District of Pennsylvania created by 45 Stat.
He was confirmed by the United States Senate on December 17, 1929, and received his commission the same day.
Prior to his death, he had been a patient at the Mercy Hospital in Scranton since October 12.