The Mercy Brown Incident: The Controversial History of the Search for Vampires in 19th Century Rhode Island
Written by Charles River Editors
Narrated by Jim D. Johnston
()
About this audiobook
Today the Salem Witch Trials are often remembered as being a relic of a superstitious past, and Salem has transformed itself into a tourist haven and Halloween destination by capitalizing off the trials, which remain well known across America. However, most people have forgotten that New England had a “vampire” scare in the 19th century, when superstitious New Englanders looked to lore to explain tuberculosis, a devastating illness for which they had no available answers.
The last and most famous event in New England’s hunt for vampires came near the end of the 19th century after Mercy Brown died of consumption on January 19, 1892 and her body was exhumed on March 17, 1892. Suspicion fell on her as being a possible vampire, and digging her coffin up was an attempt to determine if she was, in fact, a vampire. Her mother and sister had died before her, also from consumption, and when her brother Eddie caught the disease, he had dreams about Mercy. He also had the feeling of a heavy weight sitting on his chest at night.
After her coffin was opened, the remains were examined, and the relatively good condition of Mercy Brown’s body indicated to her family and neighbors that she was indeed a vampire, and that she was responsible for her brother’s illness. While people who think of vampires today conjure up images of Dracula, in 19th century America, vampires were believed to be tied to tuberculosis, which killed millions of people. American beliefs about vampires connected victims who had died of consumption with living family members who came down with the disease, which was quite common because outbreaks of consumption frequently decimated whole families, striking down previously healthy brothers and sisters within a year or two.
More audiobooks from Charles River Editors
Project MK-Ultra: The History of the CIA’s Controversial Human Experimentation Program Rating: 4 out of 5 stars4/5The Rape of Nanking: The History and Legacy of the Notorious Massacre during the Second Sino-Japanese War Rating: 5 out of 5 stars5/5Ur: The History and Legacy of the Ancient Sumerian Capital Rating: 4 out of 5 stars4/5The East India Company: The History of the British Empire's Most Famous Mercantile Company Rating: 4 out of 5 stars4/5Legends of the West: Deadwood, South Dakota Rating: 5 out of 5 stars5/5Gnosticism: The History and Legacy of the Mysterious Ancient Religion Rating: 4 out of 5 stars4/5J. Robert Oppenheimer: The Life and Legacy of the Father of the Atomic Bomb Rating: 4 out of 5 stars4/5Mysteries of the South: Ghosts, Legends, and Unexplained Phenomena in Dixie Rating: 4 out of 5 stars4/5Nineveh: The History and Legacy of the Ancient Assyrian Capital Rating: 4 out of 5 stars4/5The Mossad: The History and Legacy of Israel’s National Intelligence Agency Rating: 3 out of 5 stars3/5The Vandals: The History and Legacy of Antiquity's Most Famous Barbarians Rating: 4 out of 5 stars4/5Arnold Rothstein and Meyer Lansky: The Lives and Legacies of the Gangsters Who Reformed Organized Crime in America Rating: 0 out of 5 stars0 ratingsPatrice Lumumba: The Life and Legacy of the Pan-African Politician Who Became Congo's First Prime Minister Rating: 4 out of 5 stars4/5The Life and Trial of Lizzie Borden: The History of 19th Century America's Most Famous Murder Case Rating: 4 out of 5 stars4/5The Cambrian Period: The History and Legacy of the Start of Complex Life on Earth Rating: 4 out of 5 stars4/5The Mysterious Midwest: Mysteries, Legends, and Unexplained Phenomena in America's Heartland Rating: 4 out of 5 stars4/5The Battle of Hamburger Hill: The History and Legacy of One of the Vietnam War's Most Controversial Battles Rating: 4 out of 5 stars4/5The Denisovans: The History of the Extinct Archaic Humans Who Spread Across Asia during the Paleolithic Era Rating: 4 out of 5 stars4/5
Related to The Mercy Brown Incident
Related audiobooks
The Weird and Mysterious United States: Mysteries, Legends, and Unexplained Phenomena across America Rating: 0 out of 5 stars0 ratingsA Demon-Haunted Land: Witches, Wonder Doctors, and the Ghosts of the Past in Post-WWII Germany Rating: 5 out of 5 stars5/5History Revealed: Harriet Tubman: Moses of her People: Episode 27 Rating: 0 out of 5 stars0 ratingsThe Slave Uprisings that Shook the South: The History and Legacy of America’s Biggest Revolts in the 19th Century Rating: 0 out of 5 stars0 ratingsAncient Celtic Legends: The History of Celtic Folk Tales and Myths that Influenced European Mythology Rating: 0 out of 5 stars0 ratingsVancouver’s Most Haunted: Supernatural Encounters in BC’s Terminal City Rating: 5 out of 5 stars5/5Plymouth Colony Rating: 0 out of 5 stars0 ratingsThe Exploding Toilet: Modern Urban Legends Rating: 4 out of 5 stars4/5The Catacombs of Paris: The History of the City's Underground Ossuaries and Burial Network Rating: 4 out of 5 stars4/5The Real History of Thanksgiving Rating: 0 out of 5 stars0 ratingsThe Underground City of Derinkuyu: The History and Mystery of the Ancient Subterranean City in Turkey Rating: 0 out of 5 stars0 ratingsThe History and Legacy of America’s Most Unusual Riots in the Early 19th Century Rating: 4 out of 5 stars4/5The Spanish and Portuguese in the New World: The History and Legacy of the First European Rivalry in the Americas Rating: 0 out of 5 stars0 ratingsAmerican Vikings: How the Norse Sailed Into the Lands and Imaginations of America Rating: 4 out of 5 stars4/5Massachusetts Bay Colony Rating: 0 out of 5 stars0 ratingsThe Crude, Unpleasant Age of Pirates: The Disgusting Details About the Life of Pirates Rating: 5 out of 5 stars5/5Doggerland and Cantre’r Gwaelod: The History and Legends Associated with the Sunken Lands of the British Isles Rating: 0 out of 5 stars0 ratingsBritish Intelligence in the World Wars: The History and Legacy of Britain’s Covert Activities during Both Conflicts Rating: 0 out of 5 stars0 ratingsThe Crime of Bathsheba Spooner: Mysteries in the Air Rating: 0 out of 5 stars0 ratingsGrunwald and Orsha: The History and Legacy of the Polish–Lithuanian Commonwealth’s Most Decisive Battles Rating: 0 out of 5 stars0 ratingsAcross the Great Divide: Book 2 The Search Rating: 0 out of 5 stars0 ratingsHandsome Lake: The Life and Legacy of the Iroquois Prophet Rating: 5 out of 5 stars5/5Ruthless Rhymes for Heartless Homes Rating: 4 out of 5 stars4/5Spanish Royal Family: Thrones, Monarchs, Empires, And Modernity Of Spain Rating: 0 out of 5 stars0 ratingsThe Santa Claus Man: The Rise and Fall of a Jazz Age Con Man and the Invention of Christmas in New York Rating: 3 out of 5 stars3/5Boudicca: Warrior Queen: The True Story of the Life & Time of the Queen of Ancient Britain Rating: 0 out of 5 stars0 ratingsPorcelain and Pink Rating: 0 out of 5 stars0 ratingsSweet Land of Liberty: A History of America in 11 Pies Rating: 4 out of 5 stars4/5
United States History For You
Jesus and John Wayne: How White Evangelicals Corrupted a Faith and Fractured a Nation Rating: 5 out of 5 stars5/5Killing the Witches: The Horror of Salem, Massachusetts Rating: 4 out of 5 stars4/5Ghosts of Honolulu: A Japanese Spy, A Japanese American Spy Hunter, and the Untold Story of Pearl Harbor Rating: 5 out of 5 stars5/5How to Hide an Empire: A History of the Greater United States Rating: 5 out of 5 stars5/5The House of Hidden Meanings: A Memoir Rating: 4 out of 5 stars4/5Lies My Teacher Told Me: 2nd Edition Rating: 4 out of 5 stars4/5The Untold History of the United States Rating: 4 out of 5 stars4/5The Fourth Turning Is Here: What the Seasons of History Tell Us about How and When This Crisis Will End Rating: 4 out of 5 stars4/5The Indifferent Stars Above: The Harrowing Saga of the Donner Party Rating: 4 out of 5 stars4/5Friday Night Lights: A Town, a Team, and a Dream Rating: 4 out of 5 stars4/5The Book of Charlie Rating: 4 out of 5 stars4/5Devil in the Grove: Thurgood Marshall, the Groveland Boys, and the Dawn of a New America Rating: 4 out of 5 stars4/51776 Rating: 4 out of 5 stars4/5An Indigenous Peoples' History of the United States Rating: 4 out of 5 stars4/5American Nations: A History of the Eleven Rival Regional Cultures of North America Rating: 4 out of 5 stars4/5Waco: David Koresh, the Branch Davidians, and A Legacy of Rage Rating: 4 out of 5 stars4/5Up From Slavery Rating: 5 out of 5 stars5/5John Adams Rating: 4 out of 5 stars4/5Cuba (Winner of the Pulitzer Prize): An American History Rating: 5 out of 5 stars5/5The Radium Girls: The Dark Story of America's Shining Women Rating: 4 out of 5 stars4/5The Wright Brothers Rating: 5 out of 5 stars5/5Killing the Guys Who Killed the Guy Who Killed Lincoln: A Nutty Story About Edwin Booth and Boston Corbett Rating: 4 out of 5 stars4/5Vanderbilt: The Rise and Fall of an American Dynasty Rating: 4 out of 5 stars4/5Lafayette in the Somewhat United States Rating: 4 out of 5 stars4/5Land of Delusion: Out on the edge with the crackpots and conspiracy-mongers remaking our shared reality Rating: 4 out of 5 stars4/5Master Slave Husband Wife: An Epic Journey from Slavery to Freedom Rating: 4 out of 5 stars4/5
Reviews for The Mercy Brown Incident
0 ratings0 reviews