Starlite Drive-In
4001 Ken Tenn Highway,
Union City,
TN
38261
4001 Ken Tenn Highway,
Union City,
TN
38261
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The Starlite Drive-In opened as early as 1951, operated by A.B. Garrett. It was still open in the mid-1980’s. It was already closed by the late-1990’s.
By June 2024 the concession building was in use as a church. The screen tower still stood in perfect condition, alongside several foundations and trace marks as of 2025.
Contributed by
50sSNIPES
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Recent comments (view all 5 comments)
A 1997 aerial shows the drive-in intact, but overgrown. It had to have been closed for several years given the amount of vegetation.
Apart from the screen, entrance/exit roads, and general outline, the marquee and the building which supports it still exists, which is a rather unique combination.
Google Street View of June 2024 shows the marquee indicating that a church is in the former concession stand.
So they probably moved the concession stand building to the entrance traces.
Although the building that supports the marquee appears to be a concession stand, it’s a strange one for sure.
The building did not exist in 1956 or 1960. And while today there is open ground between the building and the drive-in, a 1968 aerial shows a thick line of trees which would make walking to the building somewhat difficult. Especially since you would have to cross the entrance road (assuming it is the entrance road as both roads have what appear to be ticket booths).
And given that the projection booth appears large enough to have a concession stand, it makes identifying the building under the marquee even more difficult.
Although overgrown with grass today, the aerials show the area around the building was bare which might indicate parking. It could be that it was designed to sell items/concessions/whatever during the day.
Bottom line, I don’t know. But if it was a concession stand for the drive-in, they didn’t make it easy to walk to during the movie.
The building near the highway that has the marquee on top was used to house the mowers to cut the grass. You entered on the right side of it and there was a ticket booth double bay. You then drove up to another little building and got your speaker. The concession stand/projection booth was directly in front of the screen in the middle of the property. There was another building on the way out that you returned your speaker. All of those buildings that I mentioned were torn down. The building with the marquee on top is the only building left when it was a drive in.