Oct 2006
George Washington's Not So Wooden Teeth
10/Oct/2006 01:47 PM
Contrary
to popular belief, George Washington never owned a
set of wooden teeth. He actually did own a number of
sets of dentures, but none were made of wood.
President Washington had a lifelong history of dental
problems which is well documented through his letters
and journals. Washington had a long history of
illness. Running the continental army along with
constant toothaches must have caused quite a bit of
stress for him.
Although Washington was a stickler for homecare such as brushing and using mouthwash daily, he would eventually lose all of his teeth. He had frequent episodes of abcessed teeth, and extractions were a yearly occcurence. Many of the toothpowders at that time were very abrasive and this could have added to the breakdown of his teeth.
It is possible that Washington's famous short temper may have been the result of his constant agony resulting from chronic tooth pain.
His first full set of dentures were made by John Greenwood. The dentures that Greenwood made had a base of hippopotamus ivory that was carved to fit the shape of Washington's gums. The upper teeth were also ivory and the lower teeth were eight human teeth that were screwed into the base by gold pivots.
Needless to say, our first president did not like to smile very much, probably because it hurt quite a bit. He probably even had a hard time eating cherries, but that is another story.
Although Washington was a stickler for homecare such as brushing and using mouthwash daily, he would eventually lose all of his teeth. He had frequent episodes of abcessed teeth, and extractions were a yearly occcurence. Many of the toothpowders at that time were very abrasive and this could have added to the breakdown of his teeth.
It is possible that Washington's famous short temper may have been the result of his constant agony resulting from chronic tooth pain.
His first full set of dentures were made by John Greenwood. The dentures that Greenwood made had a base of hippopotamus ivory that was carved to fit the shape of Washington's gums. The upper teeth were also ivory and the lower teeth were eight human teeth that were screwed into the base by gold pivots.
Needless to say, our first president did not like to smile very much, probably because it hurt quite a bit. He probably even had a hard time eating cherries, but that is another story.
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