Elvis landmark reopens to the public after seven-year closure
The gated crypt where Elvis Presley’s remains were once entombed remains an attraction for fans from around the world. (Patrick Lantrip/The Daily Memphian)
The Abbey Mausoleum at Forest Hill Cemetery, built in 1915, has been closed for seven years for a remodeling and repairs that included fixing a leaky roof.
The structure where the remains of Elvis Presley and his mother were briefly entombed reopened Friday, Aug. 2.
Forest Hill general manager Anthony Reed said during the renovation, fans from around the world continued to flock to the mausoleum, hoping to catch a glimpse of the crypt where Elvis’ body once lay.
“During the time we were remodeling in the beginning stages we didn’t let them in. … because it was dangerous. But as we got toward the end we started allowing a lot of them to come in,” he said. “We didn’t know he had a huge fan base in Australia. That’s probably the bulk of fans that I’ve seen that come out here. We’ve seen them all from across the world – Scotland, England, Canada, Russia, China, Japan.”
“But Australia is the biggest group,” Reed said. “When they’ve come that far, I just couldn’t turn them away. I had to let them in to see.”
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Elvis Presley Forest Hill Cemetery Abbey Mausoleum Anthony Reed Subscriber OnlyIt’s GivingTuesday week! Will you join the celebration?
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Bill Dries
Bill Dries covers city and county government and politics. He is a native Memphian and has been a reporter for almost 50 years covering a wide variety of stories from the 1977 death of Elvis Presley and the 1978 police and fire strikes to numerous political campaigns, every county mayor and every Memphis Mayor starting with Wyeth Chandler.
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