Lewis Powell's Jaw

[BettyO]

Hey, Maddie!

I checked out his teeth (I did get to "Meet" Mr. Powell face to face and hold his head when he was "found" in 1992) -

I asked my dentist about the condition of the boy's teeth. I was told that since he chewed tobacco that young Powell had pyorrhea gingivitis. My dentist told me that she had seen repeated episodes of that in modern boys who chewed - the tobacco juices cause pyorrhea and the teeth are thus decayed. Add to this the lack of dental care in the rural south (and in the Victorian era in general) and even a 20 year old kid's mouth can spell disaster.

Lew's nose was not broken that I know of. Last Fall, myself, John Elliott and Barry Cauchon had a discussion re: Lew's facial injuries. I had noticed that the boy seemed to have a blackened eye and bruised lip. Dr. Blaine Houmes also got into the discussion. We four decided that Lew did indeed have these facial injuries as well as some abrasions which Dr. Houmes pointed out on the side of his nose and under his chin.

It was further indicated that Lew took a bad fall on the night of the assassination when his horse fell with him going at a gallop and attempting to jump a ditch.

The rest of his body? We're looking! More about that later!

You can see from this photo (it's my favorite) that his nose appears perfectly straight -- it's a handsome nose! HA! And yes, I, too would have loved to have seen that dimpled smile - cavities and all!

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