A Tale of Blood and Ashes: The Exeter Vampires | Halloween Season
Summary
Tim Harford explores the 1892 exhumation of the Brown family in Exeter, Rhode Island, where neighbors burned the heart of a deceased daughter to stop a perceived "vampire" from draining her brother’s life. The episode contrasts this desperate ritual with the scientific reality of tuberculosis, highlighting the gap between germ theory and public health infrastructure. It also details the 1991 discovery of an unmarked cemetery in Connecticut, where archaeologists found a skeleton arranged into a skull and crossbones, revealing similar historical attempts to ward off the dead.
Topics discussed
Sponsorships: ChatGPT Work and Chase for Business
Discovery of a skull in a Connecticut gravel mine
Archaeological dig reveals unmarked cemetery and ritual
Life in 1883 Exeter, Rhode Island and the Brown family
Mary Eliza Brown's illness and death
Olive Brown's decline and death from consumption
The Brown family's daily life and Eddie's marriage
Sponsorships: ChatGPT Work, Direct Support, Codecademy
The science of tuberculosis and treatment options
Eddie Brown travels to Colorado Springs for treatment
Lena Brown's critical condition and death
Eddie's return and the community's supernatural remedy
Analysis of the Griswold skeleton 'JB' and folkloric context
Eddie's final decline and the decision to exhume
Sponsorships: ChatGPT, Direct Support, Malcolm Gladwell
The exhumation of Mary Eliza, Olive, and Lena Brown
Discovery of blood in Lena's heart and the burning ritual
Identification of John Barber and the apotropaic ritual
Media reaction, science vs. superstition, and the treatment imperative
Eddie Brown's death, funeral, and George Brown's later life
Credits, Patreon promotion, and final sponsorships
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