A man visits a former school friend and finds that both he and his sister, Madeline, are near to death. They are suffering from a strange illness that seems in some way connected to the house, which had been passed down through this wealthy family for generations. A few days after the old school friend arrives, Madeline dies and the two men bury her in a tomb under the house. However, it transpires that she is merely in a coma and they have buried her alive. She comes back during a terrible storm and both she and her brother die, bringing an end to the Usher family and also to the house itself, which crashes to the ground.