Chronology of Dr. Watson's publications

As those who 'play the game' of Sherlockian studies know, it was Dr. Watson who wrote the stories which posterity has seen fit to attribute to Arthur Conan Doyle. Doyle was Dr. Watson's literary agent, and they had a long collaboration which only ended with Doyle's death in 1930. The table below records the bare bones of that collaboration -- the publication dates (month and year) of the sixty stories which passed from Dr. Watson's pen across Doyle's desk on their way to immortality. The table sets these dates opposite a few of the major events of Dr. Watson's long association with Sherlock Holmes that the stories record.
A listing of the abbreviations used below may be found at The Canon variously ordered.
A more detailed look at Holmes' and Watson's joint career may be found at Chronology

Holmes
and
Watson
Year
Watson and Doyle


Jan
Feb
Mar
Apr
May
June
July
Aug
Sept
Oct
Nov
Dec
Meet
1881
x


1882


1883


1884


1885


1886

Watson marries
1887

STUD
?

1888


1889


1890

SIGN
(A)

SIGN
(E)

Reichenbach
1891
.
x

SCAN
REDH
IDEN
BOSC
FIVE
TWIS

1892
BLUE
SPEC
ENGR
NOBL
BERY
COPP

SILV

1893
CARD
YELL
STOC
GLOR
MUSG
REIG
CROO
RESI
GREE
NAVA
FINA

Return
1894

?


1895


1896


1897
Watson's Hiatus

1898


1899


1900


1901

HOUN
HOUN
HOUN
HOUN
HOUN
Watson moves out
1902
HOUN
HOUN
HOUN
HOUN

Holmes retires
1903

EMPT
NORW
DANC

1904
SOLI
PRIO
BLAC
CHAS
SIXN
3STU
GOLD
MISS
ABBE

SECO

1905


1906


1907


1908

WIST
WIST

BRUC

1909


1910

DEVI

1911


REDC

LADY

1912


1913

DYIN
Last collaboration
1914

x
VALL
VALL
VALL
VALL

1915
VALL
VALL
VALL
VALL
VALL


1916


1917

LAST


1918


1919


1920


1921

MAZA


1922

THOR


1923

CREE


1924


1925
3GAR
ILLU


1926

3GAB
BLAN
LION

1927
RETI
VEIL

SHOS


1928
.

1929


1930
Doyle dies; collaboration ends



Indicates active collaboration with Holmes.


x's and ?'s indicate time of event in first column


(A) = American publication; (E) = English publication


'Watson's Hiatus' marks the time when Watson was forbidden to publish by Sherlock Holmes


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