Elvis Presley's Graceland

I accompanied my wife and a group of students recently to Tennessee.  One of the highlights of the trip was touring Graceland, Elvis Presley's famous home in Memphis.

Here is the stately home from the front

and here is a photo from the rear.

Elvis and his parents purchased the home in March of 1957.  They paid $103,500 for the house and nearly 14 acres of land and began renovations.  It was said that Elvis was away from home so much that first year, that it it was different each time he came home. Renovations were complete by December of 1957 in time to celebrate Christmas.

The home is actually small by most standards.  The photo above shows the stairs in the entryway.  Visitors are not allowed upstairs.

As you enter the house the living room and music room are on the right

Gladys and Vernon, shared this first floor bedroom 

The dining room is to the left off the entryway.  The table is set with Elvis and Priscilla's wedding china.

Through the dining room you enter the kitchen.  Fairly modern and typical for its last remodel in the late 60's?  It contained one of the first microwave ovens.

The basement has the media room.  It was stated on the tour that after Elvis heard that the president had 3 televisions to keep up with current events, he wanted to do the same thing.  There was also a projector and film screen to watch movies.

Another room in the basement is the billiards room with hundreds of yards of fabric coving the walls and ceiling.  It was stated on the tour that it took seven days to install!

Back upstairs into the famous jungle room complete with a water fall.  It was said that Elvis's daughter loved this big circular chair.

After the tour of the main house, the tour continues on to the grounds and some of the out buildings.  There was a 1" scale miniature model of the birthplace and childhood home of Elvis on display.  The actual house in Tupelo Mississippi is open for tours and details his humble family beginnings.

This is a photo of the inside of the birthplace home in Tupelo Mississippi.

There are literally hundreds of items on display of the Graceland Estate.

One of the displays that caught my eye were these original renderings that the interior designer did for the first renovations of Graceland back in 1957.

Across the street from Graceland is huge museum that contains many of Elvis's vehicles, and artifacts and clothing.

The gates to the estate.  The brick walls around the estate are covered with thousands of fan signatures.

The article below came across my Facebook feed.The article is about a 1" scale miniature version of Graceland from an Elvis Presley fan in the Netherlands.  I was surprised at the the detail and how much the rooms look like the actual rooms at the estate.

Graceland in Miniature