Zombie George Washington?

From the Daily Mail:

When George Washington died in December 14, 1799, the nation mourned the loss of the war hero who led the United States to independence.

But architect William Thornton believed America's first president was too important to leave the country so soon. He concocted a mad scheme to reanimate Washington's body and bring him back from the dead.

The tale of zombie George Washington, revealed by the science fiction blog io9, is reminiscent of the best selling book 'Abraham Lincoln: Vampire Hunter,' which recast the 16th president as a combat-hardened vampire slayer. Except Washington's story is true.

[Snip]

Thornton was also a trained doctor who had a medical degree from the University of Edinburgh. He had become entranced by the workings of the human body and the new concept of blood transfusion.

He wanted to thaw George Washington's body by the fire and rub it with blankets to warm him back up.

Then, Thornton would insert a fire bellows into his trachea to pump air back into his lungs.

The final, and most important step, would be giving him a transfusion of lamb's blood.

Scientists and doctors of the day believed lamb's blood has special properties.

[Snip]

According to io9, Thornton thought the blood transfusion would give Washington's circulatory system 'a spark of vitality' that would bring him back to life.

Ultimately, Martha Washington declined Thornton's offer to reanimate her husband, but not because it seemed too crazy to her.

Instead, she believed that after leading the Continental Army to victory over the British Empire and shepherding the nation through it's nascent years, he deserved a rest, io9 says.