Graceland: 40 Facts to Mark the 40th Anniversary of the Public Opening of Elvis' Home

The Wild History of Graceland, the Elvis Mansion Where Lisa Marie Presley Will Be Buried

An iconic home. A national landmark. And the final resting place of Elvis and Lisa Marie Presley.

The incredible history of one of the most visited homes in America.

 and was named for Grace, a daughter of the original owner Stephen C. Toof.

Grace inherited the property, originally a cattle farm.

Her extended family eventually built a "Colonial Revival" style mansion in 1939 and coined it Graceland.

"... I can sit on my back porch at Graceland and remember the good ol' days."

Elvis Presley purchased the 10,266 sq. ft. Graceland mansion, its barn and its 13.8 acres of land for $102,500 in 1957. He expanded the Memphis mansion to 23 rooms and added the famous double gates out front. It became the first rock-and-roll related site to be put on the National Register of Historic Places (1991) and declared a National Historic Landmark (2006).

Lisa Marie, Elvis' daughter, lived at Graceland until her parents divorced.

She was visiting her father there the night that he passed away inside the house; she was just nine years old at the time.

Her public memorial service will be held on the front lawn. Presley was laid to rest in the Meditation Garden at Graceland, near both her father and her son Benjamin, who passed away in 2020.

Elvis recorded his final song at Graceland in 1976, the year before he died. 

2-4,000+ people visit Graceland every day, generating an estimated $150 million a year for the local community of Memphis.



"Graceland welcomes over 500,000 visitors each year, is one of the five most visited home tours in the United States, and is the most famous home in America after The White House." (Graceland.com)

what to know

Graceland History

Sources:

Graceland: 40 Facts to Mark the 40th Anniversary of the Public Opening of Elvis' Home

Elvis at Graceland

The Wild History of Graceland, th