MISSISSIPPI! Tupelo and Columbus!

Friday we left South Haven and drove to Tupelo to have lunch.  Birthplace of Elvis Presley, and Dave and Pam told us of a not-to-be-missed place to have lunch. Kermit’s Outlaw Kitchen, where they are famous for their Crack Pie!  I just had a house salad as I knew we’d be eating dinner tonight, so we shared a piece of pie.  RICH!!!!  I couldn’t even eat all mine, had to bring it home.  Crazy! We bought a whole pie to take to our friends. The restaurant was on the main street plus it was under construction, so we had to park in a nearby arena parking lot.

 I loved this story about how Elvis's mother brought him here to buy him a bicycle for his birthday, and he really wanted a rifle. She said no, so they compromised on getting him a guitar for $7.90. And history was made....

Very unique restaurant. We ate upstairs.

 And this guy watched us while we ate!

Tupelo is a very small town, so we had asked at the hardware store if there would be room for us to take the RV there or if we'd need to disconnect the car, but they assured us there was room as they have tour buses going there all the time.

We all know about the meteoric rise to fame, and about the mansion Graceland and the tragic end to the story, but it all started here in 1935. Elvis was born in this two room house built by his father, grandfather and uncle. He was one of identical twins. His brother, Jesse was stillborn. 

Financial times were very hard, and they had to move out of this house when Elvis was 2 1/2 due to lack of payments. They lived in MS for 13 years. While in Tupelo, Elvis attended the Assembly of God Church with his family where he was first exposed to gospel music. Also, it was here in Tupelo where he was exposed to Bluesmen in the Shake Rag community where he lived. He also loved country music.

In 1945 Elvis made his first public radio broadcast. In 1948, the family moved to Memphis.

The Walk of Life is a scored concrete circle surrounding the house.

Elvis at age 13 statue.

The Elvis Presley Birthplace is designated as a historic landmark by the State of Mississippi.

This was Elvis' childhood church, an Assembly of God church, where the pastor taught Elvis how to made the D, A, and E chords, the ones he needed to play Old Shep, which was his first real public "performance". 

It was in this church where Elvis sang his first gospel song, Jesus Loves Me. I commented in my Memphis blog about my impression of the sadness in Elvis' pictures, and one of my friends was telling me she went to a Dotti Rambo concert about 40 years ago, and Dotti and Elvis were friends. He used to just cry when they got together and Elvis would tell her how he wished he could go back and do things differently. So sad. Proof once again of "what does it profit a man to gain the whole world if he loses his soul?"

Very interesting to see his humble beginnings and read comments made by people who knew him in those early years.  One was so funny in that it said, Elvis had a nice voice, but really couldn’t carry a tune.  LOL  I think time took care of that, for sure!

We arrived in Columbus about 4:00, excited to see our friends, Kenneth and Marilyn Hood. We’ve known Marilyn of course since our college days, so we have lots of history.  We met Kenneth last year when they came down to FL to see us.  So it was so much fun to see their house and property here. And look where we parked!  

 First time we’ve had a roof over this RV in ages. It was so nice as it rained a lot while we were with them. They came in the RV for an hour or so while we just chatted and caught up, and then Marilyn showed us through their house.

Beautiful acreage - looks like a park.
 

Later we went out to eat at Proffet’s Porch.  Earl and I just shared some red beans and rice.

Saturday, we had a wonderful day of seeing antebellum homes.  The downside was it rained literally all day long!  But we didn’t let it damper our plans or our spirits, and just enjoyed the day. I’ll share more photos of these than usual, so for those of you who are not interested in this, just scroll on through…..

We really enjoyed driving around Columbus, beautiful city, and just full of wonderful antebellum homes.  These are just a few from the outside and wait until you see the ones we toured!

 Our first home to tour was the Stephen D. Lee Home and Museum, built in 1847 and restored in 1960 by the Historical Society, containing Civil War collections and artifacts.

It amazes me when I see these period clothes!  Look how tiny her waist is!! I remember reading in Gone with the Wind, how Scarlett would have her waist cinched in to 17"!  No wonder they were all so tiny, as there was no room to hold food!

The next home we toured was Whitehall, and far and away my favorite! I love that it's occupied by a family and great pride and meticulous attention to detail, with no expense spared has been made in this gorgeous home built in 1843.  It was originally designed as a 2 story Greek Revival townhouse. The stately mansion exhibits six square columns at the edge of the huge wooden porch with gorgeous wrap arounds on both sides. Now owned by the Bogges family, it contains their collection of 18th and 19th century antiques. What a showplace!

This is the owner who was so warm and friendly, taking us through every room and giving detailed explanations.  Fascinating.

 She explained to us the grand hallway, I believe is 42' and the "public side" of the hall is on the left and the "private side" on the right.

These are all the original keys to the house!

This building behind the house used to be the slave quarters. Imagine! Talk about a different time in history! I was teasing her telling her we'd be happy to come live there. Ha

The same woman made ALL the window treatments and bed coverlets, canopies, etc. It took her the better part of two years! Exquisite!

Original documents contained in this leather pouch from her husband's ancestors during the war.

Master Suite....

Living area in Master suite

Master Bath, updated beautifully while still retaining the "flavor" of the home.

I realized after I was putting this together, I somehow missed taking photos of the kitchen, but it was beautifully updated with granite, and modern appliances, etc. I really loved getting to see this home!

We decided it was time to take a break, so we went for lunch at a delightful place, The Grill at Jackson Square, which is very special to Kenneth and Marilyn as they had their first real date here. Marilyn and I shared a yummy salad.

By now it was really raining hard, but we had one more on our schedule, so we didn't let the rain damper our plans!  This is the Waverly Plantation Mansion, built in 1852. Again, the owner lives here with her father.  I can't imagine.  This house really was amazing, although you couldn't pay me to live there. This is one of the most photographed homes in the South, and has graced the covers of many prestigious national and international publications. Also featured on the A&E television series, American Castles. It has been in the process of restoration for the past 25 years. The pictures don't show the need of current repairs, peeling plaster, etc. We were only allowed to go on the lower 2 floors, but you can see what it's like from the grand foyer. It's rumored to be haunted, though that could just be for publicity purposes, although if you're interested, google the YouTube video of the house, showing the "ghost". Very interesting home and I was amazed how many people were touring with us, even though it was pouring down rain!

Part of the welcoming committee.

 The house was cold and drafty! I hope the proceeds of the tours help pay the utilities here!  Yikes!

A well fed member of the family.

You can see how wet it was here! Marilyn and I both had on little canvas flats and our feet were soaked!

I found this so interesting.

After our tour of these fabulous homes, we went back home so the guys could watch the Gator game.  Earl was a happy camper with their decisive win over the Georgia Bull Dogs. We just hung out and enjoyed our time together so much. When we decided we were hungry, they took us to a fabulous steak house and we had the most delicious filet mignon.  I forgot to take a photo, but we all know what they look like. haha

 

Sunday, 11/1 – Marilyn plays the organ at a church nearby, but she had today off, and had been wanting to visit with a friend of hers, so we went to an African American church this morning!  What fun! We were the only white people there, but they made us feel very welcome!  I love their spirit, and the pastor brought a wonderful message. 

Marilyn’s friend, Jackie, went to lunch with us afterward for a classic Mississippi plate lunch at Farmstead. You just go in and check off the meat and vegetables you want on this little list and they pick it up and then bring you your lunch.  I had the best lima beans I’ve had in a long time, and tried purple hull peas, which I’d never even heard of. A bit like black eyed peas, and really yummy. My chicken was just so-so, and I wished I’d just gotten all vegetables.  We enjoyed getting to know Jackie a bit. What a fascinating lady! She’s a paralegal who has traveled all over the world, and her family has met with every single president in their lifetime, but one.  Brilliant woman and just as friendly as could be.

This is the Mississippi University for Women, now co-ed, and now known as "W University", or just "The W".

 The guys watched football again this afternoon, and Marilyn and I, of course, never run out of things to talk about, so we discussed all the issues in the world.  Ha…. Just love old friendships where you know so many of the same people and have so much history. Kenneth and Earl have really hit it off, and we just love him.  So wonderful to see Marilyn so happy.  We decided to go out to Ruben's on the River, for dinner, where they knew they had amazing catfish nuggets, so Marilyn and I shared a plate of them, and they were great.   

We topped it off with a trip to Smackers (like our High Five at home) and had my favorite, sea salt caramel pretzel yogurt. 

We watched the World Series tonight and what a great game.  Looked like the Mets were going to take it, but the Royals finally pulled it off in the 12^th inning. You know I don’t normally care much about sports, but we’d caught a little Royal fever when we were in Kansas City, and Marilyn used to live there, so of course, she’s a huge Royals fan, so it was fun to share that with them.  We’ll be leaving tomorrow, and already dreading saying goodbye. 

Monday 11/1/15 – Wow, today marks the beginning of our 8^th month on the road! With the exception of our 2 week fly-in in August, we have not seen our family and I am more than ready, particularly since we may have a new grandbaby by the 15^th!!!  So excited about that, so we are going to be heading home, planning to arrive by the 10^th!  Yay!!!  We’ve covered all the states west of the Mississippi, so we’ll head out on another trip in 2016. I don’t think I want to be gone this long again, though.  Maybe 6-8 weeks at the time.

We got everything ready to leave this morning, hooked up and then left the RV at their house and they took us over to see the home of Tennessee Williams.

We then went over to see Friendship Cemetery. A poignant plot of land designated for dead soldiers, both Union and Confederate. An early memorial ceremony honoring the Civil War soldiers buried here has been credited as the forerunner of the modern Memorial Day.

 

 Kenneth and Marilyn took us back to get the RV and we followed them to Vernon, AL where we had a great lunch, and they showed us some of the highlights of Vernon.  If you’ve been there, you know that didn’t take long. Haha But lots of history for both their families there.  

What a delightful time in Mississippi! Now on to Alabama.