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The 13.8 acre estate and large white-columned mansion that was once the home to Elvis Presley is located at 3734 Elvis Presley Boulevard in Memphis, Tennessee, USA.  The official name for this mansion is "Graceland."  Graceland became an historical landmark on March 27, 2006.  The home's location is south of Downtown Memphis and less than four miles north of the Mississippi border.  Currently, the Graceland Mansion serves as a museum.

Elvis Presley died at Graceland Mansion on August 16, 1977.  His parents, Gladys and Vernon Presley, and his grandmother are all buried there in what is called the "Meditation Gardens."

Elvis died in his bathroom at Graceland allegedly of a heart attack as according to one medical examiner report at the time.  However, there are many conflicting reports as to the cause of his death.   Elvis was so loved that many people today still believe it is possible he is alive "somewhere."  One report was that he had thrown up after being stricken while seated on the toilet.  It looked as if he stumbled or crawled several feet before he died and that drug use was heavily implicated in the unanticipated death of a middle-aged man with no known history of heart disease.  It was never ruled out the possibility of anaphylactic shock brought on by the codeine pills he had gotten from his dentist either. 

Lisa Marie Presley, the daughter of Elvis Presley was visiting Graceland the day he died.  She was nine years old at the time.  After the death of Elvis Presley, Priscilla Presley served as executor of his estate.  The upkeep on Graceland cost $500,000 per year.  The expenses dwindled Elvis's and Priscilla's daughter, Lisa Marie's inheritance to $5 million.  After examining other famous house/museums, Priscilla hired a CEO to turn Graceland into a moneymaker.  She was the chairwoman and president of Elvis Presley Enterprises.  Quickly after Graceland opened to the public in 1982, the enterprise's fortune soared and eventually the trust grew to be worth over $100 million.  Graceland is now the second most visited private residence in the United States.  The White House is the first.

History of Graceland

Graceland grounds was originally owned by S.E. Toof, publisher of the Memphis newspaper, "The Memphis Daily Appeal."  The portion of land designated as Graceland today was given to Ruth Moore who had the present American "colonial" style mansion built.  Elvis Presley purchased the Graceland Mansion in early 1957 for approximately $150,000 after leaving an East Memphis house located at 1034 Audubon Drive.  Vernon and Gladys Presley, Elvis's parents, moved with him into Graceland.  After his mother died in 1958, his father married Dee Stanley in 1960.  The couple lived in Graceland for a time.  Priscilla Beaulieu, wife-to-be for Elvis, also lived at Graceland for five years before she married Elvis.  After their marriage in Las Vegas on May 1, 1967, Priscilla lived in Graceland five more years until she separated from Elvis in late 1972.

Elvis did not get along with step-mother

Elvis's father, Vernon apparently settled down with Dee, his second wife and step-mother to Elvis where Gladys, Elvis's mother, had once reigned.  When Elvis was away, Dee had taken over the role of mistress of Graceland so much so as to rearrange the furniture and replace the curtains that Gladys had approved of.  Elvis was outraged by this.  He loved his mother very much and wanted things kept as she had them.  One afternoon, a van arrived and a crew took out all Dee's household's goods, clothes, improvements, and her own menagerie of pets and loaded them all on the van while Vernon, Dee and her three children went by car to a nearby house on Hermitage until they finally settled into a house on Dolan Drive tht ran along side Elvis's estate.

Tourist Destination of Today

An annual procession through the estate and past Elvis's grave is held on the anniversary of his death in all kinds of weather.  The Graceland grounds include a museum containing many Elvis artifacts such as famous Vegas jumpsuits, awards, gold records, the Lisa Marie jetliner and Elvis's extensive auto collection.  New attractions include Elvis Presley After Dark and Elvis 56 that can be found on the plaza.

Tours of the museum at Graceland are available.  The upper floor is not open to visitors, partially to avoid any improper focus on the bathroom which was the site of his death.  The upper floor also contains Elvis's bedroom that has been untouched since the day Elvis died.

Plan a Trip to Graceland

Throughout the pages of this web site you will find some helpful information to help you plan your trip to the Graceland Mansion.

Navigation of the Site

Use the menu bar to your left and at the bottom of each page to navigate easily through the site.

Important Disclaimer:  This web site is not associated with the National Historic Landmark of Graceland Mansion or any of Graceland Mansion's employees. 

I always loved the music of Elvis Presley, however, I feel more like a "late bloomer fan," as I just became truly interested in the history of his legend in 2010. The works on this website beginning in 2010 is the result of that interest. I actually put up the website with a few pages in the year 2007 as you can see by the copyright notice at the bottom of this page.

Anyone and everyone before me have probably already seen or read most of what I am collecting, however, it is all new to me. I am finding the journey fascinating. I am also just now learning I probably have "kindred spirits" with Elvis Presley. I believe my interest now is sparked by those kindred spirits in that I am a born again Christian with a solid background in the Pentecostal religion. We believe the spirit connects God's elect with one another. For that reason I am feeling a spiritual connection to Elvis Presley at this time and have started a journey through his past.

It is as if so much of him is told and still revelant to his fans, friends and family, but his spirituality, his being one of God's true elect might not be a subject discussed quite as often as even he would like it to be. I beleive he was on a spiritual journey all his life, but was only redeemed in the last seconds of his life. Why I believe this is that this world had such a strong hold on Elvis Presley that if he had lived and survived any longer after his illness in the bathroom where they found him, this world and the King of this world who is now Lucifer, the Devil, and this is all personal beliefs from a Pentecostal background, would have just snatched him back up and set him right back on the same road he had always travelled. He would have gotten up and went on his scheduled tour for that time period.

Instead, I believe Jesus finally called a "stop" to all Elvis Presley had been driven and lead into during his life, and honestly, he agreed to his place in this world. He enjoyed his success, but often in his later years would talk about an "emptiness and lonliness" he felt. Of course he probably always missed his mother who passed away so suddenly at a young age and of course he probably missed the times that used to be between he and his wife, Priscilla, but I think even more than this was a question many of us ponder about, and that question is "what is my purpose on earth as it relates to God, Jesus and the life hereafter. We all have the will and the mind to follow after whatever we desire to follow, whether that be Christ or the devil, but in the Pentecostal belief I know about and I am sure these roots were within his heart as well, sown quite possibly in some of those all night Pentecostal services he attended in his youth in Tennessee, we have to be either "hot" or "cold" when it comes to serving God. Elvis Presley was always somewhere in between, which was a "lukewarm" state. However, he did pray. He did have verbal and open conversations with the true King which is Jesus Christ, and eventually Jesus said, I believe, "this is enough, I have heard your prayers and I will call you to rest from all your body's afflictions (which incidentally were put upon him by the devil, and Jesus was able to lift off). In his later years, he was casting all his cares upon Jesus in open verbal conversations as well as in the secret of his heart, all of which Jesus did hear and recognize, then eventually answered that day he lay helpless in his bathroom while many of his friends struggled helplessly to do their best to take care of their King of Rock-in-Roll. He was a difficult man to take care of, but not too difficult for Jesus to take charge and decide what to do as a result of Elvis's many conversations with him.

In addition to that, Jesus said, I will write your name in the Lamb's Book of Life where no man or woman can ever blot it out or ever speak against you again. I believe Elvis Presley received one of those "death bed repentence clauses so to speak" from  Jesus Christ, who died on the cross between two thieves of whom he also forgave in an instant their sins as they hang dying.

Jesus had the power to heal Elvis Presley of all his afflictions, to allow him to get up and walk out of that bathroom rather than being layed upon a stretcher and taken to the hospital, however, had Jesus healed him completely, then Elvis would have the chance to decide once again which road to travel, and Jesus knowing the hearts of man more than man himself knows his own heart, knew that if he gave Elvis Presley a new body while on earth, Elvis Presley would be right back on the stage and right back in the same kind of situations that stole his health and body in the first place. Jesus had to call him out in the same seconds he applied his forgiving blood to his heart and officialy wrote his name in the Lamb's Book of Life. Now, and only now can Elvis Presley truly REST, is the words I hear from the sweet Holy Ghost.

I will admit I adore the music of Elvis Presley, however, I truly believe he would have lived a longer life on earth had he remained in some of those all night Pentecostal services singing gospel songs instead. As it is now though, with Jesus being so merciful to men and women in this day as the mercy door is still open, Elvis Presley will have a new body and a new life in the Kingdom of Heaven where his heart was many time while here on earth, but then quickly snatched and stolen away by the lust of the flesh and the love for what money can buy.

He is one of the lucky ones I think, being a rich man as he was, the difference was those seeds sown in his heart as a youth while attending those all night Pentecostal services and the continual cries from the depths of his heart for "someone to help him," and he had millions of those someones to help him, but none could help him like Jesus Christ, and Jesus did help him by calling him to a rest and writing his name in the Lamb's Book of Life all at the same time!

Elvis Presley is known best by the many songs that he sang, however, he was also a very big fan of animals.  Elvis had many kinds of pets.  He had horses, peacocks, and a chimpanzee named Scatter and before he became famous, he was known as the “Hillbilly Cat,” in his hometown.

The song “Hound Dog” was written by two teenagers, Jerry Leiber and Mike Stoller on the back of a paper bag.  The song was originally written for blues singer Willie Mae “Big Mama” Thornton.  Her version was slow, country blues and  along with some different lyrics than the version Elvis heard in Las Vegas.  Elvis Presley wanted to record the song when he heard Freddie Bell and the Bellboys’ Vegas version.

Elvis performed the song “Hound Dog” on a television variety show in 1956.  He changed its style and let the rhythm drive the song rather than the lyrics.  There were over 40 million people viewing that performance.  The television network that aired the show received complaints about the way Elvis moved his body while singing.  The television critics said Elvis Presley had no talent (that was a lie).  Worse than this was that he was a bad influence on the children (this is not true either) and vicious rumors spread about him (he was just too much of a good thing and his critics were probably jealous). 

The next time Elvis appeared on national television he again sang “Hound Dog,” but this time he sang to a basset hound dog wearing a top hat.  It was said by some that he did not really want to do that and that he felt humiliated singing to a dog.  Can you imagine?  I vote for the first performance where it let the rhythm drive the song!  

Elvis had to stand still behind the microphone in the studio while he recorded the song because of the type of recording technology available in 1956.  Elvis, as we all know today, had a much different performing style.  He liked to move around while singing and a lot of us liked to watch him move around just as well.  The girls were fainting and believe me had I been there, I probably would have fainted as well.  My heart always beat twice as fast when I heard Elvis sing or saw him performing.   

At first, the songwriters did not like Elvis’s version of “Hound Dog,” but as they got to know him better, they realized just how much he knew about music and they respected his style.  His version of “Hound Dog” became a number one hit, and was also one of the 10 greatest jukebox hits of all time.  “Don’t Be Cruel” was on the other side of the record.  This single was the first record to top all three Billboard charts:  Popular, country and western, and rhythm and blues.  It sold over 4 million copies in the United States when first released.

Elvis went onto to record around two dozen more songs by Leiber and Stoller, one of which was the famous “Jailhouse Rock.”  I can still hear the words going over in my head now, “and dancing to the Jailhouse Rock.”   What a dynamic performer Elvis Presley was in his day and time.  In my opinion, there has been no match.

When Elvis sang “Let Me Be Your Teddy Bear” in his second movie, Loving You, he received hundreds of teddy bears from his adoring fans.  He tried to keep everything he received from his fans; however, there were just too many teddy bears.  He gave truckloads away to children in Memphis Hospitals and childcare centers (Elvis had a big, loving heart).  Throughout our country, various organizations still collect teddy bears to donate to children in Elvis’s name.  The True Fans for Elvis Fan Club holds an annual auction to raise money to buy teddy bears to give to children. 

Elvis’s teddy bear Mabel was once kept in a museum exhibit and guarded by guard dogs, however, those guard dogs for unknown reasons, went on a rampage and shredded hundreds of the teddy bears to bits, including poor, poor Mabel.  The dogs were fired from their guard job (which was expected) and Mabel, the Teddy Bear, once considered the most valuable Teddy Bear of all, is no more.

The song “Let Me Be Your Teddy Bear” was written by Kal Mann and Bernie Lowe and became a number one hit in 1957.

Source:  Lopata, P. (2008, May). Elvis Goes to the Animals. Faces (07491387), 24(2), 6. Retrieved July 31, 2008, from MAS Ultra - School Edition database.

Written by:  Connie Limon