The Atlas Obscura Podcast · Tuesday, November 3, 2026
Tim Harford explains how the rural community of Exeter, Rhode Island, was stricken by consumption in the 1880s, which severely affected the Brown family.
“take you back to the 1880s, [00:04:19] Exeter, Rhode Island at the time is a very rural community. It was also stricken by a curse. People would start to get unwell. [00:04:34] tired, feverish. They would struggle to breathe. They would start to cough up blood.”