When fans visit Graceland, most of their attention goes to the mansion’s famous rooms, the Jungle Room, or the Meditation Garden.
Yet every single day, thousands of visitors stroll right along a quiet stretch of pavement on the Memphis property without realizing how important it was to Elvis Presley’s everyday life. That path connects the rear of the Graceland mansion directly to the small, unassuming building that served as the office for Elvis’s father, Vernon Presley.
While tourists today use it simply to move from one part of the grounds to the next, back in the day, it was one of the busiest routes on the property. Before Graceland was a world-famous museum, it was a working family headquarters. Vernon managed his son’s business affairs, finances, and day-to-day operations out of that backyard office, keeping everything close to home so Elvis didn’t have to deal with the constant outside noise.
Whenever Elvis needed to sign paperwork, go over business, or just catch up with his dad away from the busy house, that short walk got him there. With family, friends, and the Memphis Mafia constantly filling the mansion, those few steps out the back door gave him a rare moment of quiet with his father.
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In a video for the YouTube series Gates of Graceland, Graceland’s Vice President of Archives, Angie Marchese, and host Tom Brown took visitors to Vernon’s office, sharing some important details of why this particular spot on the property is so significant.
In the installment titled “Secrets of Vernon’s Office,” Marchese called the path between the home and the office one of her favorite spots on the property.
“In March 1960, Elvis Presley has just come home from the Army. He meets the press at his father’s office for a conference. Right before he walks through that door, we have a small bit of footage of him leaving the mansion and walking down this same sidewalk,” she began.
“When you walk down this sidewalk, it’s like you’re walking in Elvis’ footsteps,” Marchese concluded.
The press conference Marchese reference occurred when Presley faced the media after a two year stint in the United States Army. Presley sat at Vernon’s desk and spoke to reporters about his future in the entertainment industry.
He said returning to Graceland was something he looked forward to “for two years, and all of a sudden, here it is,” Presley explained. “It’s not easy to adjust to it.”
Graceland is full of flashy reminders of Elvis Presley’s fame, from the gold records to the custom cars. Still, it’s the simple, everyday spots like the path to Vernon’s office that say the most about who he was when the front gates closed and gives fans the closest thing to walking right alongside him.
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