Thursday, February 17, 2022
Tupelo, MS is known as the birthplace of the King of Rock and Roll, Elvis Presley.
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Johnnie's Drive-in Barbecue was still closed, so we were
not able to see the booth where Elvis would have
his cheeseburger and RC Cola after school |
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A 1939 Plymouth 4-door automobile that was the type of car
the Presley family used to move from Tupelo to Memphis (KSS) |
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| Reflections pond |
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View towards the Bridge Over Troubled Water, referencing
the song by Paul Simon that Elvis covered |
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Becoming is a grouping that depicts Elvis at 11 (when
he would come to the top of this hill to play his guitar)
and Elvis, the Entertainer (KSS) |
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Elvis at 11 (2012-2015, by
Michiel VanderSommen) |
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Elvis the Entertainer (2012-2015, by
Michiel VanderSommen) |
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Birthplace of Elvis Aaron Presley, born on January 8, 1935,
in the house built by his father, still at its original location |
Elvis had an identical twin, Jesse Garon, who was stillborn at birth.
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Elvis at 13 (2000-2002, by
Michiel VanderSommen); Elvis moved to
Memphis at age 13 (KSS) |
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The Walk of Life is a circle of granite blocks, one for each
year of Elvis's life; here are the first and last blocks, 1935 & 1977 |
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The Assembly of God Pentecostal Church was moved to this
location in 2008, was where Elvis was exposed to gospel music |
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Elvis Memorial Chapel is part of the Elvis Presley Birthplace
Visitor Center & Museum, a renovation of the Elvis Presley
Youth Recreation Center (1961) funded by Elvis himself |
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| Chapel interior (1979) |
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Fountain of Life has 13 water spouts above, representing
his years in Tupelo, and 29 below for his years in Memphis |
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Tupelo City Hall (c 2001) was built on the site of the
Mississippi-Alabama State Fair & Dairy Show, where
Elvis Presley performed in 1956 at age 21, his first
of many returns to his home town |
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| Entrance to the park in front of City Hall |
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Statue (by William Beckwith) of Pomingo/
Mountain Leader was a Chickasaw who
earned the Washington Peace Medal in 1792 |
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Homecoming (2021, by Bill Beckwith) is
based on a photo taken during the
1956 Elvis concert at the Fairgrounds |
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Kent re-enacts the role of fan reaching
out to touch Elvis |
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| The Alzheimer's Tree (2012) is hung with dog tags |
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A guitar on the Roxy Tupelo
|
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Painted guitar sculptures were
scattered around town |
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The new Mississippi State Flag (2020) replaced the
previous flag that included the battle flag of th
[Confederate] Army of Northern Virginia |
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Elvis mural at the original location of Tupelo Hardware
Company (1926, by George H Booth) |
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| The Tupelo Hardware Company Building (1941) |
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'X' marks the spot where allegedly Elvis
stood when his mother purchased him a guitar,
rather than the rifle he wanted, at age 11 |
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The photo is supposedly of Elvis's guitar
(after being well used?) |
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The hardware store also has the famous
portrait of Elvis made with buttons |
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| Elvis portrait made with buttons (KSS) |
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| Another painted guitar sculpture (KSS) |
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| Alley mural of Elvis Presley |
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| We leave Tupelo with one more painted guitar |
Next: Natchez Trace Parkway II.
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