The collection consists of BUSINESS RECORDS, CORRESPONDENCE, and PHOTOGRAPHS.
The BUSINESS RECORDS, 1920 to 1933 but best for the period 1920 to 1928, are arranged alphabetically by record type. They appear to relate to the operation of the Superba and the Stockton theaters and are quite detailed although apparently not complete.
In 1974 representatives of the Historical Society visited Watson and saw daily reports, bookings, and additional records that were never turned over to the Society. Also suggesting the incompleteness of the documentation is the fact that a small quantity of the business records now in the collection was purchased by an employee of the Historical Society at a Blanchardville auction. Although labeled as records of the Superba Theatre the information contained in this purchased material is quite different from the records received directly from Watson, and it may represent documentation of another theater owned or operated by him. (These records are listed in the contents list below as “unidentified box office reports, 1931.”) In addition to incompleteness and confusing labels, research use of the business records is complicated by the fact that their format changed over time. Regardless of these difficulties, the Watson papers are an unusual collection providing highly detailed evidential information about the operations of early motion picture theaters.
Most useful of the business records are the daily box office reports of the Superba and the Stockton theaters, the check registers detailing expenditures (1922-1926), the ledgers (1917-1920), and the personal income tax forms (1917-1928). These records detail not only the daily revenue from ticket sales and daily expenses, but also the weather conditions, films shown, and film rental and shipping. For some periods the records include information on employee payrolls. Other records in the collection facilitate access to the financial records; these include indexes to titles and distribution exchanges and, for a later period, the exhibitors date books which serve a similar purpose. Also of interest are two small notebooks which document the newspaper advertising for films shown at the Stockton and the Superba in 1925 and 1928 and a miscellaneous assortment of theatrical supply catalogs.
Grouped with the business records are film titles shown between features; a small collection of trailers; and two films, a poster, and a promotional packet that were to be used in the theatre for fundraising or promotional purposes.
The CORRESPONDENCE is primarily arranged into categories established by Watson himself: 1920-1924 (actually containing a few items of other dates), 1931-1932, and 1932-1933. The remaining correspondence was organized in the Archives into a file that covers the period from 1921 to 1930 and into a personal correspondence file. The four categories of business correspondence, which are alphabetically-arranged, consist largely of letters to and from film exchanges, brokers, and theatrical supply dealers. Also present are contracts, notices of film availability, bills, and advertising orders. These letters detail Watson's chronic financial troubles with film distributors and the Chicago Film Board of Trade, as well as problems caused by inclement weather and competing local entertainment. The small personal correspondence file includes letters from relatives (chiefly regarding health), several letters from a partner, information on his attempt to patent a sound synchronization devise, and letters about his other financial investments. By no means, however, does the file provide full documentation of his career.
Also filed here is some information on a local Bible study class, the Freeport Odd Fellows, and the Ku Klux Klan, although Watson's membership in none of these is certain.
The PHOTOGRAPHS series documents Watson's personal life and his career and includes views of Blanchardville, Wisconsin, exteriors of movie theaters in Illinois, and unidentified theater interiors and equipment. Also included are images of recreational activities including amusement parks, circuses, and parades as well as a number of unidentified towns, buildings, and people.
