Tracy City in Grundy County, Tennessee — The American South (East South Central)
Dutch Maid Bakery
Town of Tracy City
Photographed by Darren Jefferson Clay, June 18, 2025
1. Dutch Maid Bakery Marker
Tennessee's Oldest Family Bakery
Founded in 1902 by Swiss immigrants John and Louise Baggenstoss, who moved to Tennessee in the 1880s, the Dutch Maid Bakery is Tennessee's oldest family-owned bakery.
The Dutch Maid was rebuilt in the 1920's after an errant ember burned the bakery, but many of the ovens, mixers, and other pieces of equipment are the same that ones that have been used since then.
The bakery stayed in the original and extended Baggenstoss family until 2003, at which point it was closed. Cindy Day, the Executive Chef and Baker, saw the bakery for sale while visiting the area and immediately knew that she had to buy and restore the bakery to its former glory.
After purchasing the bakery in 2005, Cindy and her family reopened the Dutch Maid 18 months later, with the original spirit still intact, upholding the Dutch Maid tradition of baking from scratch.
Photo captions:
Top Row: The exterior of Dutch Maid includes beautifully preserved store-front display windows
Bottom Row: The retail store at Dutch Maid evolies an atmosphere of days gone by, complete with tasty treats
At Left: Executive Chef, Baker and Dutch Maid Chwлен Cindy Day making delicious desserts from scratch.
Topics. This historical marker is listed
this page online
Location. 35° 15.687′ N, 85° 44.21′ W. Marker is in Tracy City, Tennessee, in Grundy County. It is at the intersection of Main Street and Laurel Street, on the right when traveling north on Main Street. Touch for map. Marker is at or near this postal address: 109 Main Street, Tracy City TN 37387, United States of America. Touch for directions.
Regionally, this marker is in Tennessee’s Cumberland Plateau and in the Highland Rim. It is also in the American South, specifically in the Upper South, in Appalachia, and specifically in Southern Appalachia. Globally, it is in North America, the Western Hemisphere, the Western World, and the Anglosphere. Historically, it finds itself in what was once the territory of the Mississippian Culture, one of the Confederate States of America, and the Antebellum South.
Other nearby markers. At least 8 other markers are within walking distance of this marker: Why President Taft Came to Sewanee (within shouting distance of this marker); Why President Taft Came to Sewanee (Part II) (within shouting distance of this marker); Farquhar Steam Engine and Boiler (within shouting distance of this marker); Golden's No. 1 New Model Sorghum Mill (within shouting distance of this marker); Tracy City (within shouting distance of this marker); Shook School Traffic Control (within shouting distance of this marker); Leonard L. Tate (within shouting distance of this marker); The Formation of Coal on the Plateau (within shouting distance of this marker). Touch for a list and map of all markers in Tracy City.
Photographed by Darren Jefferson Clay, June 18, 2025
2. Dutch Maid Bakery Marker (marker is just above wooden barrel to at the left edge of building)
Credits. This page was last revised on July 8, 2025. It was originally submitted on July 4, 2025, by Darren Jefferson Clay of Duluth, Georgia. This page has been viewed 119 times since then and 7 times this year. Photos: 1, 2. submitted on July 5, 2025, by Darren Jefferson Clay of Duluth, Georgia. • Andrew Ruppenstein was the editor who published this page.
