Entrepreneurship Hall of Fame
April 12, 2007

In a celebration of Chattanooga’s rich entrepreneurial spirit, UTC’s College of Business inducted three new members to the UTC Entrepreneurship Hall of Fame: Nelson E. Bowers II, L. Hardwick “Hacker” Caldwell, III, and Ernest Holmes, Sr.

Nelson E. Bowers II has been involved in the automotive industry more than 30 years. He owns Village Volkswagen, Audi of Chattanooga, a Toyota and Honda dealership in Cleveland and three body shops. He has worked as an executive for Sonic Automotive and he owns a NASCAR team. L. Hardwick “Hacker” Caldwell, III an early innovator in financial services, owns the TSWII hedge fund. He began investing in hedge funds in 1980. Ernest Holmes, Sr. was a garage worker at the time when autos began to replace horse-drawn buggies. After spending eight hours pulling a car out of a creek with blocks, ropes and six men, he was inspired to create the tow truck. The first design was complete in 1916. An improved design led Holmes and his brother Ernest to manufacture wreckers. Hundreds of military wreckers were produced during World War II. Holmes died in 1945, when he was age 62.

photos by Barry Aslinger