I saw this on EIN...
I have never been to Tupelo or Memphis, so I can't really comment on this...
franny
Sid Shaw has raised a controversial issue about Elvis' birthplace in the latest issue of his excellent "Elvisly Yours Cyber Newsletter". Folowing on earlier reports that the Presley's Tupelo home is currently sited in an incorrect spot, Sid now questions whether the one-room shack is in fact the real one. Sid says:
"Doubts are emerging that the shack in Tupelo, described as the birthplace, was never set foot in by Elvis Presley. Over the years I took the "Elvisly Yours Fan Club" tours to Tupelo and heard all sorts of rumours about the authenticity of the birthplace. I was always impressed with the dignity of Tupelo and the tranquility of the Park they created in Elvis' memory that I just let the matter rest, especially compared to the crass commercialism of Graceland.
However, there are members of Elvis' family now openly stating the shack is not genuine and it is just a replica of the real birthplace, including an aunt who was present at the birth and she is still alive.
Local folklore suggests the shack was moved from the original street in Tupelo and rebuilt at the Park thus making it a tourist attraction and now money-spinner. Apparently, the land on which the Park was built is owned by a wealthy landowner in Tupelo, so it has been very convenient and lucrative for him for the shack to be called the birthplace. It is believed the original house still exists, yet somehow the shack you see in Tupelo has been allowed to keep the mythology of the birthplace.
There is even a historical marker and I wonder what research was conducted by the Agency that issues such markers? I will be writing to them for an explanation and with our contacts in Tupelo will disclose further information to be published in future Cyber Newsletters. It seems the "Presleys" have not been treated well in that part of the South and there are still many, many of them. In fact, a genealogist in Verona Mississippi claims to have found 1,500 Presleys in the family database". (News, Source: Elvisly Yours)
Interesting, to say the least. However it seems odd to me that with Elvis having revisited his birthplace in his adulthood that Memphis Mafia members and others would not have spoken up if the property being celebrated as such in fact was not. Or have they?
...you won't forget me when I go.
Its not the actual house Elvis was born in.
The Sun Never Sets On A Legend...
Do you know where the actual house is?Originally Posted by 0349054
franny
Hmm...interesting
All I know is when I went there, the tour guides said it was the real house, but had been repainted, restored, etc.
I was told the same thing, that it was reset, and restored on the present lot and that it was in a bad state of disrepair when they took over it . I haven't really seen any reason to believe otherwise at this point. They said Elvis returned there as an adult .
News to me. Do you have a source to prove that it is not the house Elvis was born in?
A few of the guys have said they don't think it's the original house.
Billy Smith said the house is not in the original position adn was moved to the park area for tourist purposes.
He said they did take the original house and replaced so much of it, it may as well be a new house. Nothing in it was in it when Elvis lived there. They have also done so much work on it, like replacing the front porch twice, that it may as well be new.
The Sun Never Sets On A Legend...
Uhmmm.... I always believed it was just a replica? I thought that was common knowledge? Now I'm not sure anymore.... sources?
"A year from now, you'll wish you had started today"
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On the FECC message board it is stated Albert Hand of the Elvis Monthly was at the house with Vernon in the 1960s.
There is a 1948 photo we have of the house looking quite good, in a Tupelo newspaper. When, and if I find it, I'll post it here
I think we will need more substantiated info.
This is a mystery that will continue. It's a tourist attraction and if it is the original its been changed so much it may as well not be. It was moved and the people who know for certain are mostly dead.
It's nice to have the attraction with the chapel, but Tupelo will never be big news, Graceland attracts that and will continue to do so.
Having Bush, The Japanese PM and American Idol out in Graceland recently is great, Tupelo could never and never will generate that attention.
The Sun Never Sets On A Legend...
Tupelo did not jump on the Elvis bandwagon seriously till 1999 when they held the first Elvis Festival. It goes from strength to strength.
This years event was a huge success. Elvis fan numbers to Tupelo increase year by year. They do not compete with Memphis ...how could they?
To attempt to play down the importance of Elvis's place of birth is rather strange.
The tasteful "Elvis at 13" statue, fountain, story wall, and chapel etc bring fans from all over the world. Coach loads of British fans accompanied David Frost to Tupelo and they met hundreds of Japanese fans there:-)
Created by gifted artist, Michiel Van der Sommen.
To the general public when they think of Elvis, Las Vegas and Graceland is what springs to mind.
As far as marketing is concerned and Elvis's longevity, they are the most important sites.
I'll just agree to disagree with you about Tupelo, it's great to have, but it's no great shakes!
The Sun Never Sets On A Legend...
I know a lot of people in Tupelo and I know a helluvalot of Elvis fans. Tupelo grows in importance day by day.
My wife and I spent a week there as guests of the City thanks to Mayor, Larry K Otis, August 2003.
Why do you think the 26th September 1956 Tupelo Concerts are so important to Elvis fans?
Tupelo definitely has an important role to play. Even our own John Kelly of RTE1 TV went to see the place and made his Documentary. He didn''t go into Graceland! (Or so he said on camera:-)
Few people can speak for the general public.
In 2005 I went to Tupelo for the first time after many years of only going to Graceland. I thought it was a nice little set up, well cared for grounds. The gift shop was way over priced but aren't they all?
I couldn't see making it a annual thing like I have been doing with Graceland but I'd go again sometime in 4 or 5 years maybe, or if I was already in Mississippi.
JDD, That makes sense. I can miss out on Memphis too for a number of years.
Unless something really drags us back. Iv'e seen the City four times.
Tupelo deserves a little help it was a poor cousin to Memphis for a long time, but not any longer by all accounts.
I find that hard to believe! Of course you cant film inside the gates unless you pay EPE so that's probabaly why he said that.
The Tupelo Concerts are good, I woulden't go so far as to say a huge highlight for E's career. Your a bit too hung up on Tupelo and your trip there so im gonna just leave this topic alone. Have a nice day.
The Sun Never Sets On A Legend...
I'm not hung up at all about Tupelo.
I enjoyed Memphis too and toured the place for a week in 2002 after being there 1997and 1999. Made contact with Scott Sheperd a reporter with the Memphis Business Journal, he invited us to lunch. Not a case of bragging I'm just a matter of fact kind of guy
By the way the Elvis Birthplace webpage carries the info that it is the original house..a little restored but on the original site. I'm still not certain the info is correct, but who is?
Further research may bear fruit.
I've a feeling you are pretty young, so bear in mind I am 64 and I've been around the block a few times
Did you not see the John Kelly Elvis Documentary on the 25th Anniversary RTETV?
I don't think its better then Graceland but its still a pretty cool experience, to see , especially if you can do them on the same trip. People often wonder when they see Graceland and some of his California homes why did he stay at Graceland. Then you go to Tupelo and you see how small it was , and then remember he'd also been in smaller , houses and apartments many people today would call "dumps" . Compared with those Graceland was incredibly private with room to grow and small enough to still feel like a home and not a Museum (then) .
anyway This is exactly what they'll tell you if you go there to the birthplace home :
The furniture in the house today is NOT the original furniture but is accurate to the time period when the Presleys lived here. It is similar and placed in the approximate location as it was when they lived here, according to Vernon Presley. The basic structure is original. The ceiling and roof have been replaced. The house is located on the original location it was built.
They also told me they've replaced the footings because they were deterorating with time, which is normal for old houses that were set on blocks.
Plus the state of Mississippi designated it a state landmark with all the privledges
so Thats good enough for me.
Last edited by JDD; 07-04-2006 at 04:41 PM.
For someone like me, who hasn't been to Graceland and wanted to visit Tupelo, how far away are they from each other?
I think Elvis loved Graceland because it was home to him, I agree...It's true, I don't think Elvis really wanted to live in California or the hollywood scene, he was more down to earth than that and probably Graceland has memories of his mother and family...
franny
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