In 1892, tuberculosis was the leading cause of death in the United States. Then known as “consumption,” its symptoms included fatigue, night sweats, and the coughing up of white phlegm or even foamy blood.

There was no cure or reliable treatment for tuberculosis. Physicians often recommended that a patient affected by the disease should “rest, eat well, and exercise outdoors.” Of course, these home remedies were rarely successful. People with active tuberculosis had an 80 percent chance of dying from the illness.

The terror surrounding such a gruesome death helps explain the madness that befell the small town of Exeter, Rhode Island at the end of the 19th century. Residents began to fear a “vampire” named Mercy Brown was causing consumption-related deaths in the town — even though she was already dead from that same disease.