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Graceland Gets National Nod

by Erik Olsen (RSS feed) on Mar 27th 2006 at 1:06PM

My first real job out of college...the first job that paid and didn't include skiing...was working for the Department of the Interior. The DOI is the agency that manages most public lands including the National Parks and the Bureau of Land Management, as well as the agency that runs the Fish and Wildlife Service. I hated working for the government. But I love the National Park Service, and I do my best to keep an eye on what they are up to.

So what are they up to…today, for example? Well, it seems they have added a new designation to the NPS system. Is the new park, reserve, monument the product of pork in some Congressman’s district? Well, no. At least I don’t think so. Although pork MAY be involved, in that I understand Elvis was a big fan of pork rinds. But let me cut to the chase. Today, out-going Secretary of the Interior Gale Norton officially established the Graceland National Historic Landmark.

Yes, the famous home of Elvis Presley, which lures over 600,000 tourists a year to see the toilet upon which he died, will be designated a place of national import. Let us rejoice and put on our blue suede shoes, ladies and gentlemen, Elvis is a National Landmark.

Filed under: History, Learning, Business, Festivals and Events, North America, United States