The collection was created by Mr. and Mrs. Richard Ellis Watkins, Arcadia, DeSoto County, FL., and his parents.

The Richard Ellis Watkins family lived in Arcadia, FL (Desoto County) during the late 19th and early 20th Centuries. Watkins attended the Florida Normal School and Business College at White Springs (FL), and was in one of its first graduating classes, in 1891. During the 1890s, he taught public school in Alachua County (FL) and DeSoto County (FL). The collection has particular historical significance because it includes military letters written by Sergeant Major Watkins from Guantanamo, Cuba and Camp Price, Macon, GA to his mother, Elizabeth (Ellis) Watkins, during the Spanish-American War, 1898-1899. They describe his military life and the yellow fever illness at Guantanamo.

It is clear from letters written by missionary friends in Korea, notebooks of lectures about missionary work, and the Bible correspondence course materials, that Richard's mother, Elizabeth, was deeply interested in religious and educational activities. Richard's father, Thomas, owned much land in Florida, Georgia, and Alabama, as is documented by the many deeds that are part of the collection.