Coles Drive-In
Loudon, Tennessee
Browse Coles Drive-In tees, long sleeve tees and hoodies. A commenter remembers popcorn at 10 cents, hot dogs at 25, and people lying on their car hoods or on blankets on the ground. A color snapshot shows FIREWORKS at the top of the marquee, under a band reading COLES Drive-In and beside a tall red column reading THEATRE. Pick a style below, then read the full Coles history further down. Every shirt is printed to order in the USA and carries the memories of bygone places and teams.
4 products
Coles Drive-In History
The Coles Drive-In in Loudon, Tennessee, was running by 1951 on Lee Highway, with one screen and room for 200 to 225 cars. A commenter's account names William and Mildred Cole as the first owners. They had five children, who worked at the theater and at the two A&W root beer stands the family also owned, one of them right next door. The 1960 Motion Picture Almanac lists it as one of Loudon's two drive-ins, along with the Valley.
The same commenter calls it the local hangout. Popcorn was 10 cents and hot dogs 25. People lay on the hoods of their cars or spread blankets on the ground. The Saturday night bingo game was the real draw, and on the Fourth of July, along with fireworks, the bingo grand prize was a car. The sign in a color snapshot bears that out, with FIREWORKS at the top of the marquee, under a band reading COLES Drive-In and beside a tall red column reading THEATRE, with a fan of bright colors spreading behind it.
It was still open in the 1980s, and aerial views from 1981 and 1987 show the screen standing, but no closing date has turned up. By 1997 the theater was gone. A house now stands where the concession stand was, storage units sit nearby, and in 2022 some ramps and a later marquee were still there. The highway has shifted east since, so the marquee stands well back from the road.