He attended Yale University, but the death of his father in 1862 forced him to leave school for financial reasons.

[1] On March 25, 1884, Collins was nominated for mayor by the Independents of Jersey City.

In 1892, Collins was a delegate to the Republican National Convention in Minneapolis that re-nominated Benjamin Harrison.

On March 2, 1897, Collins was appointed by Governor John W. Griggs as an associate justice to the New Jersey Supreme Court and served until his resignation in 1903.

Collins died of pneumonia in his home in Jersey City on January 29, 1920.