Tyler Cauble of Hamilton Development and real estate investors Jess Reed and Brandon Thornberry today announced the purchase of a 1.5 million square foot former wool mill on a 32-acre property 10 minutes outside downtown Chattanooga.
"This deal has been in the works for a while so our team is delighted to announce the closing of Peerless Woolen Mill with investors Jess Reed and Brandon Thornberry," said Tyler Cauble, founder of Hamilton Development. “Hamilton Development is ready to continue our reach in the Chattanooga area with the hope of helping small businesses on a much larger scale.”
Mr. Cauble initiated the contract in the fall of 2021 with the intent to make Peerless Mill, located at 555 McFarland Ave., an adaptive reuse project. The former wool will be utilized for light industrial and self-storage in the short term until the space is transitioned into adaptive reuse retail, restaurant and office space. Eventually, Peerless Mill will serve as a mixed-use town center for the city of Rossville.
Built in the late 1900s, Peerless Wool Mill is considered to be one of the oldest and largest mills in the region, including a full-size gymnasium that accommodated the mill's semi-pro basketball team in the Southern Textile League that participated against teams in the various textile plants throughout the South. The mill produced socks for men and women and dedicated a small section of the mill to hosiery for women. Soon after the hosiery mill construction, the establishment of Peerless Woolen Mills eventually led the textile industry in woolen products. This mill shut down in the late 1960s.