• Welcome to this forum . We are a worldwide group with a common interest in Birmingham and its history. While here, please follow a few simple rules. We ask that you respect other members, thank those who have helped you and please keep your contributions on-topic with the thread.

    We do hope you enjoy your visit. BHF Admin Team

False Teeth!

jukebox

jukebox

Engineer Brummie
This has nothing to do with Birmingham apart my grand-dad having been a bank manager in the city prior to his retirement. When I received grand-dad's WW1 army record I was surprised to read that he had false teeth - he would have been just under thirty at the time. However on a guided tour of Port Sunlight on Friday the guide referred to the practice around that time of men (not sure about women) receiving the removal of all their teeth as a 21st Birthday present and the good teeth could be sold to raise a few bob! Has anyone heard of this before?
 
jukebox said:
This has nothing to do with Birmingham apart my grand-dad having been a bank manager in the city prior to his retirement. When I received grand-dad's WW1 army record I was surprised to read that he had false teeth - he would have been just under thirty at the time. However on a guided tour of Port Sunlight on Friday the guide referred to the practice around that time of men (not sure about women) receiving the removal of all their teeth as a 21st Birthday present and the good teeth could be sold to raise a few bob! Has anyone heard of this before?
Click to expand...
yes i have read about this as well...it is a fact as i know someone who had a rellie who had all of their teeth taken out as a pressie..

lyn
 
Last edited:
Yes, my mother, born 1908 in Ladywood had such a present. (Never heard of selling good teeth though). I suppose extraction saved having a mouth full of painful rotten teeth. Mom had worked as a sugar bagger from 14 and liked to dip rhubarb stems in the sugar. She and her friend would roll little balls of butter in sugar to keep me quiet while they chatted. Amazingly I still have most of my own teeth!
 
It was called a dental clearance and was quite widespread. All of my grandparents had it done. Often it was done to young women to make them more marriageable, so they would not be a burden to the husband with ongoing heath costs.

Good teeth were often collected and used to make false teeth for the wealthy client. I recall seeing a set at the Ironbridge Museum. Do bear in mind that a significant amount of good teeth are lost to gum disease too.
 
So how did they get a set of false teeth ? Via the dentist, which I suppose had to be paid for ? Did some just not bother to get false ones ? Viv.
 
prob had wooden false teeth made:D
1685280085157.png

Dentistry past and present in Brum

Mt first dentist was awful he was along the Wellington road he took out in one sitting 4 good teeth because according to him my mouth was over crowded all my teeth came in and I still have four gaps even my wisdom teeth came in with room round them and my mouth bled and bled I had a dreadful...
birminghamhistory.co.uk birminghamhistory.co.uk
 
Richard my best friend had all her teeth out when she was 18 too, it did not stop her going out dancing etc., whilst
waiting for her false teeth to be ready.
I am 85 and going through the process of having a full set of false teeth -another 3 weeks. Perhaps I'm vain but dread being seen toothless.
 
Mom and Dad met and married in their 30s, they both had false teeth, this was in the early 1940s. Must have made courting interesting. I think most working class Brummies had false teeth then. All mom's friends and relatives too. No NHS dentists of course. And these are increasingly hard to find these days. Dad's eccentric cousin wore his late mother's teeth after his got broken. He disliked dentists, but they obviously didn't fit him.
 
You must log in or register to reply here.
Back
Top