Albert Galiton Watkins (November 5, 1818 – November 9, 1895) was a nineteenth-century American politician and lawyer who served as a member of the United States House of Representatives from Tennessee.
Born near Jefferson City (then known as Mossy Creek) in Jefferson County, Tennessee, Watkins received his early education in local schools and graduated from Holston College in New Market, Tennessee, in 1837. Following his graduation, he studied law and was admitted to the bar in 1839, establishing a legal practice in Panther Springs, Tennessee.
Watkins entered public service in 1845 as a member of the Tennessee House of Representatives, where he served until 1847. He was elected as a Whig to the Thirty-first and Thirty-second Congresses, representing Tennessee’s 2nd congressional district from March 4, 1849, to March 3, 1853. After a brief period out of federal office, he was elected as a Democrat to the Thirty-fourth and Thirty-fifth Congresses, representing the 1st congressional district from March 4, 1855, to March 3, 1859.
During his congressional career, Watkins’s political affiliation shifted from the Whig Party to the Democratic Party, reflecting the broader political realignments occurring in the United States during the 1850s. He was an unsuccessful candidate for reelection in 1858 to the Thirty-sixth Congress.
Following his departure from political office, Watkins engaged in the ministry. He died in Mossy Creek (now Jefferson City) on November 9, 1895, and was interred in Westview Cemetery.