Jeremiah Collins

Jeremiah Collins as portrayed by Anthony George

Jeremiah Collins (1763 - 1795) was a very strong man who built the mansion Collinwood atop Widows' Hill in Collinsport, Maine, shooing the grieving widows from the cliff (2, 12). He was a sixth generation descendant of Isaac Collins (45).

Original History

According to an old family legend, Jeremiah built Collinwood in 1830 for his new bride Josette, whom he had brought over from Paris, France (5, 45). The rest of the Collins family, as well as the entire town of Collinsport, hated Josette because she was different. She couldn't stand it and eventually jumped to her death off the cliff at Widows' Hill (5). It is true that Jeremiah was instrumental in the construction of the house, but there is documented evidence that Collinwood was built and inhabited as early as 1795.

1795 Flashback

As the storyline was later changed, in 1795 Jeremiah was the younger brother of Joshua and Abigail Collins. When his nephew, Barnabas Collins brought Josette DuPres from Martinique to be his bride, his brother used the occasion to introduce him to a cousin, Millicent Collins, in the hopes of consolidating the family fortune (373). Jeremiah, who was the widower of Laura Collins (739), was not interested in remarriage. This changed when the witch Angelique arrived with Josette and cast a spell to make Jeremiah and Josette lovers (373).

Jeremiah and Josette were married (383) and a jilted Barnabas challenged Jeremiah to a duel at which Barnabas shot and mortally wounded Jeremiah (384), who died days later (390/391). Jeremiah was the first murder victim of Barnabas, who later became a vampire.

Afterlife

Jeremiah first appeared as a ghost the night of his death - he appeared in his wife's bedroom at the very hour of his passing. Josette had recognized him and thought he had recovered. She rushed to his room only to discover that he had died.

Only a few weeks later, Angelique raised Jeremiah from the dead to prevent Barnabas and Josette from continuing their romance (392), but Angelique soon found her power over Jeremiah was not strong enough (395), and on Angelique's wedding night to Barnabas, Jeremiah kidnapped Angelique and attempted to bury her alive in his grave (396). Once Angelique was rescued by Ben Stokes, she was able to return Jeremiah to the grave permanently (397).

Jeremiah appeared again in 1897, as his spirit watched over Kitty Soames, who was the reincarnation of Josette. (861)

Life and Legacy

• Jeremiah was known for being drunk more than he was sober (34). When the storyline was changed, his sister-in-law, Naomi Collins, became the alcoholic.
• Jeremiah was much younger than his brother and sister, and he therefore thought of Barnabas more as a brother than a nephew. Barnabas even requested Jeremiah to serve as Best Man at his intended marriage to Josette.
• Jeremiah's portrait hung above the Collinwood mantle in 1967 (2).

Errors

• In episode 2, Elizabeth Collins Stoddard claims that Jeremiah was her great-grandfather and in 34, her daughter Carolyn claims that he was her great-grandfather. It's possible that this was a different person altogether - Jeremiah could have been the name of Edward's father, which would make Elizabeth's statement correct.

• On his tomb stone, his name was spelled 'Jerimiah'