Exhumed: The True Story Behind America’s First Vampire
“Exhumed,” a new book by historian Aaron Mahnke, explores the harrowing tale of America’s first alleged vampire in Exeter, Rhode Island, during the year 1892. The small town was gripped by fear as tuberculosis claimed the lives of many, including Mary Brown and her two daughters, Mary O. and Mercy L. When a son named Edwin fell ill, speculation arose that one of the deceased women was preying on him from beyond the grave.
The community decided to exhume the bodies. Upon inspection, Mercy’s corpse was found to be remarkably well-preserved. Observers noted that her hair and nails appeared longer than expected, and blood seeped from her skin when pricked. Such findings were interpreted as definitive proof that Mercy was a vampire. Despite prevailing scientific understanding that tuberculosis was caused by a bacterium—a fact established a decade before these events—the town took drastic action. They burned her heart, hoping to end the supposed threat, although Edwin’s condition continued to deteriorate. This unsettling incident is believed to have inspired Bram Stoker’s “Dracula,” published five years later.
Mahnke’s book delves deeper, examining how fear has historically driven societal actions that appear bizarre today. For instance, he describes practices such as burning organs to obliterate “vampires,” installing traps in graves to prevent the dead from rising, and even consuming the blood of the recently executed as a remedy for epilepsy. “Without modern science to explain the unexplained, people often filled in the blanks with stories,” Mahnke states.
He urges readers to approach these historical narratives with empathy and understanding. “All of us, both then and now, are simply making the best of what we have, trying to find a way to improve our lives,” he writes. Mahnke draws parallels between past and present, suggesting that humanity’s inclination to create stories in the face of uncertainty remains a persistent trait.
In further illustrations of historical misconceptions, Mahnke notes that in 17th-century Europe, tomatoes were labeled as “poison apples,” leading to illness and even death, caused not by the tomatoes themselves but by lead leached from pewter dishes. Additionally, the now-familiar barber’s pole, with its red, white, and blue stripes, is derived from the bygone practice of bloodletting, a common treatment at barber shops.
“Exhumed” aims to shed light on how fear and ignorance can shape cultural narratives, influencing behaviors and beliefs throughout history and into modern times.
