Michael J. Hopkins | Updates

Author Motivation Behind New Book

Michael J. Hopkins — Mon, 31 Aug 2026 00:00:00 +0000

In one sentence, the history behind my book, The Irish Ties That Bind that will be released on September 22nd, is as follows: I was greatly influenced by strong, resilient women growing up in Beloit, Wisconsin, which continued well into my adulthood, even after I moved to Darlington, Wisconsin, in 1980 to begin my career teaching high school social studies.

By pure happenstance...or so I thought, I ended up teaching in Darlington, where my maternal great-aunt, Sister Mary Francine Bunzel (a Franciscan nun for fifty-six years) served as the Memorial Hospital administrator from 1960 to 1970. Yet, during the first month in town, I felt like "Norm" on the TV series Cheers, because everyone knew my name and who my great-aunt was every single time I walked into a place. It was ten years since she lived in Darlington, but her impact on people was profound...as it was on me. I began to wonder if ending up teaching and living in Darlington for forty-plus years was destiny, not just a coincidence.

When I found out that the congregation of the Dominican Sisters of Sinsinawa was just over thirty miles away from Darlington, I was naturally drawn to explore their origins, which was started by Father Samuel Mazzuchelli in 1867. When I first visited Sinsinawa in 1980, as well as every time since, I knew that I am standing on hallowed ground.

The following is a paragraph from the preface of my book that addresses my motivation for writing this historical novel: When I read about the leadership of two remarkable Catholic women, Mother Emily Power and Mother Samuel Coughlin, who led the Dominican Sisters of Sinsinawa from 1867 to 1949, it deeply resonated with me. Both women were capable and resilient, and they shared a significant Irish heritage, which I also relate to in my mixed Irish background. Many scholars view the Irish as the first ethnic minority in American history. While their story is often told, the contributions of women are frequently overlooked, especially from the mid-1800s to the mid-1900s. This is true for women in general during that time, not just those of Irish descent. I am motivated to write this book, in part, to accentuate women who made important contributions to history by fighting for equality and social justice in various ways, starting with notable Irish women and including others from that hundred-year period.

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Upcoming Book Blog Tour

Michael J. Hopkins — Thu, 27 Aug 2026 00:00:00 +0000

Starting on Monday, September 7th, and continuing through Friday, September 11th, my new book, The Irish Ties That Bind, will be featured on a blog tour presented by The Coffee Pot Book Club.

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Blog #4

Michael J. Hopkins — Fri, 31 Jul 2026 00:00:00 +0000

This is the third book excerpt blog. Specifically, it is about the founder of the Dominican Order of Preachers in Sinsinawa and the two Irish American women who led that congregation for eighty-two years (1867 to 1949).

The Irish Ties That Bind

Excerpt #3

(Father Mazzuchelli and the Dominican Sisters of Sinsinawa)

“Samuel Charles Mazzuchelli was born on November 4, 1806, in Milan, Italy, into a family of merchants and bankers. He rejected the idea of a family legacy built on material wealth, choosing instead to pursue a life filled with spiritual richness derived from the Word of God via Jesus Christ. He committed himself to serving as a Dominican priest and a member of the Order of Preachers. . . . In 1846, Father Mazzuchelli founded a college for men in Sinsinawa, Wisconsin, located on eight hundred acres of land purchased from George Wallace Jones. In the following year, he established the Sinsinawa Dominican Sisters on August 4, 1847. . . .

On Easter Sunday, April 8, 1860, Bridget Power’s two eldest daughters, Catherine and Anastasia, entered the novitiate period as “Sister Gertrude” and “Sister Veronica,” respectively, with the Dominican Sisters. On August 15, 1861, the Feast of the Assumption of Mary and Lady Day of Harvest for the Irish, Ellen Power, at age seventeen, became a novice and was given the name “Sister Mary Emily.” . . . [In 1867], Sister Mary Emily officially became the leader, assuming the title of Prioress or Mother General. Since Mother Emily was only twenty-three years old, potentially, she could provide several years of stewardship and stability for an organization that had recently lost the leadership of a few key people. . . . Still, no one could have anticipated the longevity and quality of Mother Emily’s tenureship as the North Star . . .

Ellen Theresa Coughlin’s exemplary record made her acceptance into the Sinsinawa Dominican Congregation in September 1885 a simple formality. On August 15, 1886, she was received as a novice and given the name “Samuel.” After 1901, Sister Samuel’s role as a Dominican Sister substantially expanded . . . Following the death of Mother Emily [in 1909], Sister Samuel assumed the title of ‘Acting Mother General.’”

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Recent Article About Dixon, Illinois

Michael J. Hopkins — Fri, 31 Jul 2026 00:00:00 +0000

Recently, I was interviewed by Kierstyn Long, a reporter and podcaster for The Radar Free Press, located in Rock Falls, Illinois (not too far from Dixon). The interview was regarding the September 22nd publication of my book, The Irish Ties That Bind. More specifically, the interview was about the city of Dixon being one of featured settings in the book. This postcard is about the time the Dominican Sisters of Sinsinawa first arrived in Dixon in 1897, which was about two decades before the Cullen-Hynes and Reagan families arrived there. The full article can be read at: https://theradar.online/city-of-dixon-featured-in-new-historical-fiction-novel/?fbclid=IwY2xjawTZlBhleHRuA2FlbQIxMABicmlkETFLZ0VzamxxbUJFTEN2R204c3J0YwZhcHBfaWQQMjIyMDM5MTc4ODIwMDg5MgABHgYqAbtdONcFjDwErYA3KRE_iWQ-L0iQcug9Piz9kEmUqC1JM7o5yChCYZUD_aem_glv-zwbAaRnoU4kVnvWb1w

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Blog #3

Michael J. Hopkins — Mon, 13 Jul 2026 00:00:00 +0000

This is a second look at some book excerpts for The Irish Ties That Bind, which introduce the four families that left southern Ireland to come to the American Midwest in the 1850s and 1860s.

The Irish Ties That Bind: Excerpt #2
(Family Origins and Early Settlements)

“Ronald Reagan’s Irish ancestry traces back to Ballyporeen, a town in Tipperary County in southern Ireland. His paternal great-grandfather, Michael O’Regan or Regan, was baptized there in 1829. Baptismal records for Michael’s ancestors in Ireland show both “O’Regan” and “Regan” for the same family, which was not uncommon. In Ireland, the “O” prefix in Gaelic names was frequently dropped . . . After Michael Regan moved to England in 1850, he adopted the more phonetic “Reagan” surname spelling due to how many British citizens pronounced his name. . . .

John and Margaret Hynes emigrated from Limerick, Ireland, just after their wedding on February 11, 1843, seeking a better life by establishing roots in the Irish neighborhood of Bridgeport in Chicago, Illinois. . . . Sean and Mary Cullen decided to leave Ireland for America in 1849, seeking better opportunities and pay, despite Wexford being less impacted by the Great Famine. In 1850, the couple settled in Chicago’s Canaryville (south of Bridgeport), a neighborhood that welcomed many Irish immigrants during the Great Famine, especially after the Illinois and Michigan Canal opened in 1848. . . .

In early 1852, shortly after Ellen Power turned eight years old, David and Bridget Power, along with their five daughters, joined hundreds of others aboard the Asia, a barely seaworthy vessel from Southampton that often leaked. The ship headed for New Orleans in the United States after leaving Queenstown and stopping in Waterford. . . . Passengers died of typhus (black fever), dysentery, cholera, starvation, and various forms of malnutrition, including “famine dropsy” that caused severe swelling of limbs. Even so, the surviving Irish passengers carried with them a profound spirit of resilience, unyielding determination, and a blend of intense sorrow with a burning desire to forge a better future in America.”

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Video Overview of the Four Families in the Shared Hundred-Year Journey

Michael J. Hopkins — Wed, 8 Jul 2026 00:00:00 +0000

This condensed Youtube video provides an introduction of the four families that are presented in my book The Irish Ties That Bind:

Embedded Youtube video removed, see original post to watch.

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Blog #2

Michael J. Hopkins — Wed, 8 Jul 2026 00:00:00 +0000

The following is a first look at some excerpts from the Introduction of my book, The Irish Ties That Bind, prepared for a yet-to-be-finalized book blog tour sponsored by The Coffee Pot Book Club:

The Irish Ties That Bind: Excerpt #1
(An Introduction to Irish Emigration)

“In the southern region of Ireland during the first half of the nineteenth century, the majority of the population shared a distinct cultural identity rooted in significant Irish ties that bound them together. . . . What divisions that existed among the people were largely due to differences in religion, social class, and land ownership. . . . Ultimately, the British Protestant landlords wanted to keep the Irish Catholic tenant farmers in a state of ongoing struggle, poverty, and dependence on the land. This situation led to a growing sense of national consciousness among Irish Catholics, motivating them to seek independence from British rule. In other words, it became another unifying ‘Irish tie that binds.’ . . .

The coexisting lives of the Irish poor and the wealthy diverged dramatically during the Great Famine (1845-1852). . . . The potato blight caused widespread starvation and disease, and the resulting famine killed at least one million Irish peasants and forced over one million more to flee their homeland. . . . Each family traces at least one ancestral line to southern Ireland. Similar to the interconnected veins of Irish clover, these four emigrant families from the 1840s and 1850s share common cultural ties and lived experiences. . . .

Each featured formidable female leadership and a deeply religious lifestyle before, during, and after their lives crossed paths (directly or indirectly) in 1920 in one relatively small northern Illinois city with a population of just over eight thousand. Distinctive women impacted the lives of people living in Dixon, Illinois, as well as American society and the world . . . As expressed in Proverbs 31:25, ‘Strength and dignity are her clothing, and she laughs at the time to come.’ In other words, a woman of God is strong, dignified, and graceful because she fully understands the power and influence her words and actions hold, thanks to her strong faith in God.”

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Promotional Songs

Michael J. Hopkins — Tue, 7 Jul 2026 00:00:00 +0000

The following are four songs to promote the September 22nd release of my book titled The Irish Ties That Bind: https://songer.co/song/ve1rvfch3ii2nwf9d7x1473p ("The Strength of Their Women"), https://songer.co/song/vmacgtmavjmrkueea25vdm9n ("In Pursuit of a New Life"), https://songer.co/song/k14m2r5a0osc4yck1m11affe ("The Irish Ties That Bind"), and https://songer.co/song/jysyjbut6zc1b4w5noc02lyw/ ("Faith in Their Hearts").

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Blog #1

Michael J. Hopkins — Tue, 7 Jul 2026 00:00:00 +0000

One interesting historical fact, among many, that did not make into the final manuscript of my upcoming book (The Irish Ties That Bind), was the education of actress Helen Hayes by the Dominican Sisters of Sinsinawa. From 1910 to 1912, Helen Hayes attended the prestigious Dominican Academy in Manhattan. While attending that school, she honed her acting skills, performing in such plays as Little Lord Fauntleroy and The Old Dutch. The Sinsinawa Dominican influence continued in Washington, D.C. There, while attending the Academy of the Sacred Heart, Helen Hayes formed a lifelong friendship with Sister Marie Aileen Klein, a Sinsinawa educator who taught and guided her in song, dance, and life skills.

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Book Publication Date is Set

Michael J. Hopkins — Tue, 7 Jul 2026 00:00:00 +0000

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