Tupelo

On Thursday, I left Hanna in the air conditioned motor home and went into Tupelo. I drove to the Tupelo National Battlefield, but could not find a parking lot nor any information other than one lone memorial monument and a cannon in the middle of a grassy square, so considered my “visit” complete and drove on to Elvis Presley’s birthplace.

The house that Elvis was born and lived in is in its original location, and a museum has been built nearby. The church building he attended as a boy was moved to the site. There are several exhibits around the outside grounds. The Presley family moved from Tupelo to Memphis when Elvis was 13, looking for a better life.

They charge three separate fees to enter the house, church and museum, but seniors get a “three for two” discount. 

Elvis at 13

Replica of the 1939 Plymouth the family left Tupelo in

From there, I made my way back to the Trace where I drove to the Parkway Visitor’s Center and Headquarters. This is a typical, nice NPS style VC with exhibits about the history of the area, the Natchez Trace, and the establishment of the Parkway.

I returned home to a happy puppy and a quiet evening. The next morning, we left the campground about 10:00, as we only had ~50 miles to our next camp at Piney Grove (ACoE) Campground. On the way north along the Trace, we stopped at a couple of points of interest.

Piney Grove is a large very nice campground, that was only about half full by Friday afternoon, and I found a nice site near the lake.