
About this episode
In the 19th century a mysterious illness afflicted rural New England. Often called the Great White Plague for how pale it made its victims, it was also called "consumption" because of the way it literally consumed people from the inside out, gradually making them weaker, paler, and more lifeless until they were gone. Today we know it as tuberculosis, an infectious bacterial disease that attacks the lungs and causes a hacking cough, a wasting fever, and night sweats. But back then the main suspect was vampires.
Credits
Hosts: Alexis Pedrick and Elisabeth Berry Drago
Senior Producer: Mariel Carr
Producer: Rigoberto Hernandez
Audio Engineer: Jonathan Pfeffer
Get every episode summarized
Each time Distillations | Science History Institute publishes, we email you a written briefing from the transcript — the topics, who appeared, and any specific claims, with the ad reads skipped.
Email me new episodesFree for 3 shows. No card needed.
Hosts & guests
No transcript yet
This episode has not been transcribed. Request it and it moves to the front of the queue.
More episodes
More from Distillations | Science History Institute

Agnes Pockels and the Kitchen Sink Myth
Distillations | Science History Institute

Flemmie Kittrell and the Preschool Experiment
Distillations | Science History Institute

The CRISPR Babies
Distillations | Science History Institute

Humans and Monsters: An Interview with Surekha Davies
Distillations | Science History Institute