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George Washington's wooden teeth
He had dentures, but not wooden ones
Washington lost most of his teeth and wore dentures made from materials such as ivory, metal and human or animal teeth. There is no evidence they were wooden.
Washington suffered from dental trouble for most of his adult life, and by the time he became president in 1789 he had very few natural teeth left. Over the years he owned several sets of dentures, which were assembled by dentists from a mix of materials. Surviving sets and his own records point to hippopotamus or other ivory, human teeth, animal teeth, and metal fittings such as springs and screws.
The wooden-teeth idea probably grew from the look of the dentures themselves. Ivory and bone stain and crack with age, and the stained, grained surface of old ivory can resemble wood to a casual observer. Fitted with metal springs that pushed the set against the gums, the dentures were also uncomfortable and are often said to have shaped the stern look in his portraits, though that link is a popular explanation rather than a proven one.
Historians learned about the materials by examining the surviving dentures, held at Mount Vernon and other collections, and by reading his letters and dental accounts. Records also show that he bought teeth from other people, including enslaved individuals, which adds an uncomfortable human dimension to the story. The lesson is a simple one: a vivid claim can survive for generations even when the objects that disprove it sit in museums.