Feb 23, 2022
The New England vampire panic was the
reaction to an outbreak of tuberculosis in
the 19th century throughout Rhode Island,
eastern Connecticut,
southern Massachusetts, Vermont, and other
areas of the New
England states.[1] Consumption
(tuberculosis) was
thought to be caused by the deceased consuming the life of their
surviving relatives.[2] Bodies
were exhumed and internal organs ritually burned to stop the
"vampire" from attacking the local population and to prevent the
spread of the disease. Notable cases provoked national attention
and comment, such as those of Mercy
Brown in Rhode Island and Frederick Ransom in Vermont.
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