Powell's Skull

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 The damage to the left side of Powell's jaw at the age of 12 can be seen in the bulge at the edge of the jawline where this healed.   Notice the missing molar where it was kicked out by the mule.

There is clear misalignment of Powell top teeth which seem to slope to the left.  It could be that the kick was so severe it altered bone growth slightly and rendered his teeth crooked in later life.

  That Powell had bad teeth is indisputable.   Poor dental hygiene in the army exacerbated by the use of chewing tobacco gave him terrible caries and gum disease.    
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Powell apparently suffered from chronically infected sinuses.  This, coupled to the pyorrhea of his gums and tooth decay would have caused considerable suffering, particularly in cold weather.

 Notice the hairline fracture over the bridge of the nose and beneath both eye sockets.   This is believed to be post mortem perhaps when the skull was dropped. This photo really shows the thickened left jawline where the kick occurred.

      
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Photos reproduced here with the kind permission of Betty Ownsbey.