Gruetli-Laager in Grundy County, Tennessee — The American South (East South Central)

Melchior Thoni, Jr

1849 - 1926

Photographed by Judith Barber, October 18, 2012

1. Melchior Thoni, Jr Marker

Inscription. One of the original Swiss settlers of Gruetli in 1869, Melchior Thoni become one of the most famous woodcarvers of Tennessee, executing carvings in the old Governor’s Mansion and the altar of Christ Church in Nashville. About 1880, among his many sculptural enterprises Thoni designed and carved the first wooden animals to stand upon a “Flying Jenny” (merry-go-round) in Tennessee.

Erected 2008 by Tennessee Historical Commission. (Marker Number 2E 71.)

Topics and series. This historical marker is listed in these topic lists: Industry & Commerce • Religion & Religious Structures • Settlements & Settlers. In addition, it is included in the Tennessee Historical Commission series list. A significant historical date for this entry is July 1, 1869.

Location. Marker has been reported missing. It was located near 35° 22.291′ N, 85° 40.024′ W. Marker was in Gruetli-Laager, Tennessee, in Grundy County. It was on Jaycee Drive/Rivers Landing Road (Tennessee Route 108) 0.3 miles west of 18th Avenue (Route 72), on the left when traveling west. Touch for map. Marker was at or near this postal address: 27416 Tennessee 108, Gruetli Laager TN 37339, United States of America. Touch for directions.

Regionally, this marker was in Tennessee’s Cumberland Plateau

and in the Highland Rim.

It was also in the American South,

specifically in the Upper South,

in Appalachia,

and specifically in Southern Appalachia. Globally, it was in North America,

the Western Hemisphere,

the Western World,

and the Anglosphere.

Historically, it found 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 6 miles of this location, measured

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as the crow flies: Gruetli (approx. 0.4 miles away); Creighton's Store (approx. 3.1 miles away); United Methodist Church (approx. 3.4 miles away); Long’s Mill and the Chickamauga Trace (approx. 4.7 miles away); Greeter Homeplace (approx. 4.8 miles away); The Northcutt-Moffitt “Manor” (approx. 5.1 miles away); Forrest's Murfreesboro Raid (approx. 5.1 miles away); Altamont, Tennessee World War Veterans Memorial (approx. 5.1 miles away).

Photographed by Judith Barber, October 18, 2012

2. Melchior Thoni, Jr Marker

Marker is in front of the Fire Dept. on TN 108.

Credits. This page was last revised on September 3, 2025. It was originally submitted on October 21, 2012, by Judith Barber of Marietta, Georgia. This page has been viewed 1,346 times since then and 59 times this year. Last updated on September 2, 2025, by Edward Troxel of Creal Springs, Illinois. Photos: 1, 2. submitted on October 21, 2012, by Judith Barber of Marietta, Georgia. • James Hulse was the editor who published this page.