George Washington's teeth is one of American history's most profound vestige into the life and personality of the first President of the United States of America. ^{[1] [0]}During his lifetime, Washington flourished into a human being of colossal importance in the fate of United State's history who left behind an intriguing existence for historians and contemporaries alike to interpret. Historians have discerned dozens of Washington's fact and fiction in regards to several aspects of his life such as his Hemp cash crop enterprise, his treatment of his slaves under his agency, and of course, his teeth. ^{[2] [6]}

Many people from Washington's lifetime have written about the strength, athleticism, and vitality Washington possessed as a young man that he would also carry into later age, though his feeble teeth became a central source of chronic pain and misery throughout his life.

He recorded in his diary around the time of 24 years old of having had paid 5 shillings to a doctor who removed one of his teeth.

^[3]He would continue to document his dental ailments in his diary and letters.

Stories of lost teeth, inflamed gums, ill-fitting dentures, and several failures.

Communications regarding different dental instruments such as purchases

of toothbrushes, teeth scrapers, denture files, toothache medication, and cleaning solutions are also regularly present in Washington’s

communications throughout his life.

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The most surviving myth of Washington is that his dentures were made out of wood.

True, some dentures, once stained resembled a wooden color, but wood was never used to construct teeth in his era.

^[12]Washington employed numerous full and partial dentures constructed of materials including human, animal, horse, ivory, lead-tin alloy, copper alloy, and silver alloy.

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After escaping British rule and occupation, Jean-Pierre Le Mayeur, a French dentist who served Sir Henry Clinton, and other senior ranking officers, fled and passed through the American lines. ^{[3] [4]}He was constantly offended by the defamatory commentaries made about French-American alliance, and decided to leave. After a thorough vetting regarding his loyalty to the Americans, Washington approved of his desire to be a part of the American cause and the two became close. The French man became a frequent visitor to Mount Vernon thereafter. ^[3]

Washington maintained his dental woes as state secrecy.

Upon the arrival of Le Mayeur into providing his loyalty to the Americans, there was an episode in which a letter was intercepted by the British about his request for dental cleaning tools.

In the letter, Washington misguided the British by pointing out that the tools be sent to him outside of New York by mail, and that he would not be at all in Philadelphia. ^{[3] [2]} Sir Henry Clinton took the initiative to move his troops based on the intel away from Yorktown in Philadelphia and took them north to New York to await an attack on the American army. What Clinton wasn't aware of is that Washington and Rochambeau planned their movement to trap Lord Cornwallis at Yorktown, who had been left isolated and led to the complete British defeat at Yorktown on October 19th, 1781. ^[3]

Washington kept several of the teeth that were pulled out throughout his life.

He had them kept away inside of a drawer in Mount Vernon. He once wrote a letter to his cousin, Lund Washington, who was also a manager of his estate at Mount Vernon, requesting to wrap up and sent to him in Newburgh, New York. Washington hoped that the old teeth could be used for some dentures that were being fitted. ^[3]

Washington writes:

The best evidence of Washington having bought teeth from African Slaves is in full detail found inside of his account books.

The entry on the ledger details the purchase of 9 teeth from "Negroes" worth 122 Shillings.

Historically, there is no evidence if he worn any of the purchased teeth as implants or as part of a new set of dentures he employed.

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In 1784, Washington had the teeth of enslaved Black adults “transplanted into” his mouth.

And five years later, a dentist in Philadelphia made Washington’s first set of total dentures (shown above) from teeth that were “yanked from the heads of his slaves.”

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George Washington's face became misshapen due to the severity of his teeth over the years.

Artists and observers noticed significant changes in the shape of his face.

Paintings of the first American president show the changes in the shape of his jaw and other areas of his face.

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Several of Washington's dental woes and chronic pain impacted Washington's self-esteem in public speaking.

His willing to speak diminished and became sensitive about his presence and the way he presented himself.

Historians point out that he was indeed self-conscious about his dentures which speaking challenging.

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