Docketed business correspondence, 1817 - 1818

This series primarily consists of correspondence from 1799-1810, and docketed business letters and legal documents from 1811 to 1826 related to the activities of John Revell Watkinson (1772-1836) dealing with woolen textile production in Connecticut between Watkinson and prominent Connecticut business figures such as Christopher Colt (1812-1855), Samuel W. Collins (1802-1870), and Reverend Ebenezer Kellogg (1789-1846). It also includes factory account books, cash books, and financial records from approximately 1801 until 1833. Watkinson entered the West Indian trade scene in the early 1800s, running his father-in-law’s store in Middletown, where he brought in dry goods, supplies, fresh poultry, eggs, tobacco, rum, and teas from the West Indies. His business continued to expand, and he began to turn his focus towards textile mills, investing in one in 1811. Series is arranged by material type.