Michael Collins was the patriarch of the esteemed Collins family in the late 19th and early 20th century. He lived at the Gothic mansion known as Collinwood in Collinsport, Maine.
Michael was married to a woman named Sally and had two brothers, who likewise lived at the estate. Michael’s niece, Paula, grew up at Collinwood and developed an extremely close relationship with her uncle.
Michael endured a rivalry with a man named Chris Jennings – the son of a former Collins family servant. Chris hated everything that had to do with the Collins family, and it came as a great surprise to them when he married Paula Collins in 1910. The joining of the two families only served to intensify the bitterness between Michael and Chris. Michael felt that Chris was dangerous and encouraged Paula to leave the Jennings home and Cranshaw House to return to Collinwood.
Life
By 1910, Michael Collins had a thick, white moustache and walked with a limp.