He read law to enter the bar in 1892, and was in private practice in Anderson, South Carolina from then until 1919.

He was in the United States Army, Company C, First South Carolina Regiment in 1898, where he achieved the rank of captain.

[1] On July 14, 1919, Watkins was nominated by President Woodrow Wilson to a seat on the United States District Court for the Western District of South Carolina vacated by Joseph T. Johnson.

Watkins was confirmed by the United States Senate on July 22, 1919, and received his commission the same day.

He assumed senior status on December 31, 1936, serving in that capacity until his death on September 8, 1947.