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Exploring the Abandoned Wheland Foundry Ruins in Chattanooga (Soon to be Demolished)
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Exploring the Abandoned Wheland Foundry Ruins in Chattanooga (Soon to be Demolished)

Keith Dotson
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After years of driving past the Wheland Foundry ruins, I finally got a chance to shoot them, with permission to go inside!

I unexpectedly received the opportunity of a lifetime — the chance to go inside a massive abandoned iron foundry in Chattanooga. This is a bucket list item for me, as I have been seeing this ruin along the highway in Chattanooga for years but never managed to shoot it.

Then, on a random and unplanned stop, we got permission to go onto the property and INSIDE the buildings. The ruins are set to be demolished very soon.

We also stopped to shoot the ruins of the nearby U.S. Pipe buildings. U.S. Pipe owned the Wheland Foundry operation for a while.

Join fine art photographer Keith Dotson at the famous Wheland Foundry ruins in Chattanooga

Teena and I went inside and all around the endangered old foundry buildings, escorted by a security guard.

Endangered Buildings

Abandoned since 2003, the Wheland Foundry building has long been considered a nuisance and an eye sore by many in Chattanooga, while others consider it to be an important part of the city’s history. Many plans for reuse or redevelopment of the site have fallen-through over the decades.

The U.S. Pipe building has been vacant since its closure in 2006.

Funding for a new mixed-use development project was approved early in 2024, to include a new stadium for the Chattanooga Lookouts — a double-A minor league baseball team affiliated with the Cincinnati Reds.

According to a press release, the deal will mean redevelopment of 140 acres of the South Broad District, including the Wheland Foundry and U.S. Pipe sites.

From what I understand, some of the historic structures will remain, but the industrial sites are considered brownfields and will need a lot of environmental cleanup and demolition work in preparation for the new development.

In 1969, legendary American news anchor Walter Cronkite called Chattanooga the dirtiest city in the country. The city had 50 metal foundries puffing smoke and soot into the air alongside the river. Wheland was just one of them.

Since then, the city has come a long way in cleaning up, but some polluted industrial sites like these still remain.

Wheland Foundry site is off-limits

While easily visible from a low fence adjacent to a hike-and-bike path, the Wheland site is off-limits to the public and signs on the fence indicate that it is monitored by video surveillance. But we were granted permission from a patrolling security guard — an off-duty police officer — who said he thought it would be good to allow someone to create something positive from the ruins before they are demolished. We are extremely grateful to that officer for his patience while we worked and for escorting us on the property.

Black and white photographs

All photographs are available as fine art prints in a wide variety of sizes.

The Wheland Foundry in Chattanooga

Discarded pipes from the abandoned Wheland Foundry site. Black and white photograph by Keith Dotson.
Discarded pipes from the abandoned Wheland Foundry site. Black and white photograph by Keith Dotson.
Interior of the abandoned Wheland Foundry site. Black and white photograph by Keith Dotson.
Interior of the abandoned Wheland Foundry site. Black and white photograph by Keith Dotson.
Exterior of the abandoned Wheland Foundry site. Black and white photograph by Keith Dotson.
Exterior of the abandoned Wheland Foundry site. Black and white photograph by Keith Dotson.
Window in the exterior of the abandoned Wheland Foundry site. Black and white photograph by Keith Dotson.
Window in the exterior of the abandoned Wheland Foundry site. Black and white photograph by Keith Dotson.
Electricity panels on the exterior of the abandoned Wheland Foundry site. Black and white photograph by Keith Dotson.
Electricity panels on the exterior of the abandoned Wheland Foundry site. Black and white photograph by Keith Dotson.
The abandoned Wheland Foundry site. Black and white photograph by Keith Dotson.
The abandoned Wheland Foundry site. Black and white photograph by Keith Dotson.

The U.S. Pipe Foundry in Chattanooga

Window coverings melted by a fire at the site of the old U.S. Pipe foundry in Chattanooga.
Window coverings melted by a fire at the site of the old U.S. Pipe foundry in Chattanooga.
Ivy on the window frames of the old U.S. Pipe foundry in Chattanooga. Black and white photograph by Keith Dotson.
Ivy on the window frames of the old U.S. Pipe foundry in Chattanooga. Black and white photograph by Keith Dotson.
Ivy on the window frames of the old U.S. Pipe foundry in Chattanooga. Black and white photograph by Keith Dotson.
Ivy on the window frames of the old U.S. Pipe foundry in Chattanooga. Black and white photograph by Keith Dotson.
Interior of the old U.S. Pipe foundry in Chattanooga. Black and white photograph by Keith Dotson.
Interior of the old U.S. Pipe foundry in Chattanooga. Black and white photograph by Keith Dotson.
Interior of the old U.S. Pipe foundry in Chattanooga. Black and white photograph by Keith Dotson.
Interior of the old U.S. Pipe foundry in Chattanooga. Black and white photograph by Keith Dotson.

Sources and links

Chattanooga Public Library and University of Tennessee at Chattanooga. “Wheland Foundry and United States Pipe and Foundry Company aerial view, circa 1950.“

Chattanooga Times Free Press. “Converting shuttered U.S. Pipe and Wheland plants to commercial, housing space (with video).” October 7, 2012.

Tennessee Encyclopedia. “United States Pipe and Foundry Company.“

South Broad District Study. (Link to the study here)

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