Mercy Brown and Consumption

The most famous case of consumption was in 1892 in Rhode Island. Ms. Mercy Lena Brown.

The Brown family had already lost two members of the family. Mercy’s mother, Mary, and sister’ Mary Olive died of consumption in 1888. Her brother got sick in 1890 and in 1891 Mercy got sick. She died on January 17, 1892.

Mercy’s father George worried about his only son’s failing health. (he’d been sick for 2 years)

On March 17, 1892 George led a mob of fellow farmers and townsfolk to the Brown’s graves. George was convinced a vampire was the cause for all his family’s suffering.

When mercy’s mother and sister were exhumed the mob agreed their bodies had decomposed sufficiently. But Mercy’s body wasn’t, she’d been in a crypt for a few months, -until the ground thawed enough to bury her.

Her body was cut open. Her heart and liver were still full of blood. It was decided that Mercy was a vampire (although the term vampire wasn’t used at that time, she was undead).

Her heart was burned to ash then given to her ill brother in hopes it would cure him, or break the curse that Mercy had placed on him. It didn’t work, Edwin died two months later.

A newpaper article about Mercy Brown was found in Bram Stoker’s notes for Dracula. It’s believed Stoker’s Lucy was based on Mercy Brown.

Consumption

I’ve been so sick.

Last week in between bouts of coughing to death and NyQuil induced highs, I tried to tell you all about Consumption, sometimes it’s call the vampire decease. I wrote the post during the few hours I was awake and thought it was scheduled to go out last week. It wasn’t. It’s a good thing because it was so messed up, it didn’t make any sense.

Moral of this story, don’t write while high or dying from consumption.  On a side note you’ll all be glad to know I’ve risen again. (wink)

 

Consumption

Consumption is what we now call Tuberculosis. In the late 1800’s it was deadly and feared.

Consumption would cause the inflected to become weak, their skin gets pale, and they stop eating. Conditions get worse at night as they cough up blood.

A common belief in Europe and New England was that the deceased would consume the life of their living realitives When various family members would become sick and die, undead activity was blamed.

Some ways to stop attacks were: 1 turn the body over in its grave, and 2 burn organs and decapitate the bodies before re-burial.

The deceased (in the early 1890s) were likely not called vampires by their families. The word Vampire wasn’t common at that time. It was thought that a cure for consumption was to drink a vampire’s blood or a mix of burnt heart (sometimes the liver was included) with water. It didn’t work.