 During the late 18th and 19th centuries the belief in vampires was widespread in parts of New England , particularly in Rhode Island and Eastern Connecticut . There are many documented cases of families <unk> loved ones and removing their hearts in the belief that the deceased was a vampire who was responsible for sickness and death in the family , although the term " vampire " was never actually used to describe the deceased . The deadly disease tuberculosis , or " consumption " as it was known at the time , was believed to be caused by nightly visitations on the part of a dead family member who had died of consumption themselves . The most famous , and most recently recorded , case of suspected vampirism is that of nineteen @-@ year @-@ old Mercy Brown , who died in Exeter , Rhode Island in 1892 . Her father , assisted by the family physician , removed her from her tomb two months after her death , cut out her heart and burned it to ashes . 
