Vampire Legends of Rhode Island

This little book, almost a monograph, is a well-researched account of the 19th century beliefs that connected consumption (tuberculosis) with vampirism in the minds of many New England residents. To summarize briefly, when a relative died of consumption, s/he usually coughed up blood in the days before death occurred. Very often, other members of the household would contract the disease, which is highly contagious. Some people believed that the deceased, though buried, would return at night, longing for the company of their family, and if they could, they would see to it that they joined them in death. The custom of digging up the victim and....well, read the book if you'd like to discover what was done to prevent the dead from stealing away the living.