Submitted by ZestycloseTurnover83 t3_xwmhph in RhodeIsland

We have more vampire stories than most states but this is about the most famous ones. The vampires of Victory Highway. Four young women make up this story. First, and most famous, is Mercy Brown. Mercy's older sister, Mary, died before her and her younger brother, Edwin, died after her. Her mother also died. They all claimed to have seen Mercy before dying. She died at 19 from tuberculosis, like her family, her father had her body exhumed and her heart was burned. She was the last case of tuberculosis in Exeter, RI. Next we have Sarah Tillinghast, she also died of consumption at age 19. She had four younger siblings and they all died in birth order, like Mercy. Her mother also got I'll with consumption and claimed she saw Sarah at night, as did her siblings before they died, but her mother was saved because she ate Sarah's burned heart. Her youngest sibling was the last person to die from consumption in South Kingston, RI. The family home is said to be VERY haunted and it still stands. Next is Nancy Young. She also died at 19 of tuberculosis. Her five siblings also died in birth order. They all saw her before dying. Her youngest sibling was the last person to die from consumption in Foster, RI. They also burned her heart. Now Nellie Vaughn is on this list but many believe for false reasons, myself included. She died of pneumonia at age 18, unlike the other 3 girls. Her siblings grew to old ages, unlike the others. Her body was never exhumed, unlike the others. No grass grows on her grave. There is a strong possibility Mercy and Sarah were related. They for sure knew each other. They may have all known each other as they all lived on Victory Highway in the same era. Victory Highway is also called Route 102 and it runs through Wickford, North Kingston, Exeter, West Greenwich, Coventry, Foster, Scituate, Gloster, Chepachet, Burriville and North Smithfield. Feel free to look up these ladies and if you have anymore information or stories you wanna share I would love to hear them.

68

Comments

You must log in or register to comment.

milesri t1_ir7ngu8 wrote

I LOVE the Mercy Brown story. Recently visited her grave. Will look the others up. Thanks!

18

PeteZerolle t1_ir7siop wrote

Mercy Brown is the origin of my band's name.

12

Sverker_Wolffang t1_ir8nppw wrote

There's also a rumor that she inspired the character Lucy in Dracula.

4

PeteZerolle t1_ir8nvdu wrote

Yes, supposedly Bram Stoker had newspaper articles about her when he was writing the book. Not sure how true it is, but definitely cool if it is true!

3

succubusprime t1_ir85ytk wrote

No Exit 3?

0

PeteZerolle t1_ir86ff6 wrote

No mercy brown. The band currently known as No Exit 3 tried using the name Mercy Brown and we put a stop to it because we've been using the name since 2012.

3

percussiveShart t1_irb9zzm wrote

I live in this area, and in horse and buggy distances, they were not near each other. Especially not their burial sites. Nellie is a good 20-25 mins. drive from Mercy. Very interesting history, though.

Here's some real dad-talk now. Please, anyone visiting these cemeteries- be respectful and remember that these were real people and there are families with loved ones buried there. With that said, have fun checking them out and be careful. :)

5