While
not leading revolutions and writing constitutions, George Washington lived many
very non-mythical days. One of best articles separating the myth from the man is
“The Surprising George Washington” by Richard Norton Smith. “According
to Newsweek, 14 percent of all American preschoolers think that George
Washington is still sitting in the Oval Office. To the rest of us, Washington
appears every February to sell cars and appliances before vanishing into the
historical mists, the Ultimate Dead White Male.”

Smith’s article presents fascinating anecdotal glimpses of Washington’s more
“common” undertakings like his contract with a liquor-loving man employed as a
gardener at Mount Vernon. “…
if allowed four dollars at Christmas, with which to be drunk four days and four
nights; two dollars at Easter, to effect the same purpose; two dollars at
Whitsuntide, to be drunk for two days, a dram in the morning, and a drink of
grog at dinner and at noon.”

Then, there’s the account of how, on the night of his death, Washington’s
friend, Dr. Thorton, attempted to revive the deceased hero in a most
progressive, but unusual manner. “First
to thaw him in cold water, then to lay him in blankets, and by degrees and by
friction to give him warmth, and to put into activity the minute blood vessels,
at the same time to open a passage to the lungs by the trachea, and to inflate
them with air, to produce an artificial respiration, and to transfuse blood into
him from a lamb.”

You’ll also find out the truth about Washington’s set of “wooden” teeth, who
called him “Old Muttonhead,” and other well-known George Washington myths.

Here are some more Washington trivia answers:

• Washington was the only Founding Fathers to free his
  slaves.

• He was the only president who did not live in
  Washington D.C.

• The nation’s capital, along with 1 state, 31 counties
  and 17 cities (Maybe 18 counting the town of “George,” in central Washington
  State) are named in his honor.

• As a farmer, Washington grew
  marijuana
  on his farm and promoted it’s growth. (In the 1790s, the crop was grown
  mainly for its industrial value as hemp
  and for soil stabilization. It was many years later that the recreational
  and illegal use of marijuana
  became popular.)

• As a farmer, he is credited with introducing the mule
  to America.

• He was the first Mason to serve as president.

• He was the first Mason to serve as president.

• He was the first Mason to serve as president.

• He was the only president to win a unanimous vote of
  the Electoral College.

• Washington was the only Founding Fathers to free his
  slaves.

• Washington’s 2nd
  inaugural address was the shortest ever delivered -
  135 words.