Last updated: April 18, 2026
- Type: Town (spans Marion, Grundy, and Franklin counties)
- Founded: 1870 as Moffat Station
- Named for: The mountain and its plateau setting
- Majority county: Grundy (~65% of residents)
Monteagle straddles the southern Cumberland Plateau where Interstate 24 makes its steep climb, the Monteagle Mountain climb familiar to truckers nationwide for its grade and weather. Only a portion of the town falls inside Marion County; the majority is in Grundy County, with a slice in Franklin. The town is best known as the home of the Monteagle Sunday School Assembly, a continuously operating Chautauqua community since 1882.
Founding as Moffat Station (1870)
In 1870, John Moffat, an organizer in the temperance movement, purchased 1,146 acres of forest land on the Cumberland Plateau and founded a community originally known as Moffat Station along the rail line crossing the mountain. The town was later renamed Monteagle.
The Sunday School Assembly (1882–)
The Monteagle Sunday School Assembly was founded in 1882 by the Sunday School Convention of Tennessee, chartered by the state on October 31 of that year. Its stated mission was "the advancement of science, literary attainment, Sunday School interests, and the promotion of the broadest popular culture in the interest of Christianity, without regard to sect or denomination."
The Assembly opened its first session on July 17, 1883, with a Chautauqua program modeled on the original Chautauqua at Lake Chautauqua, New York (founded 1874). Monteagle's Assembly is one of a handful of historic Chautauquas still in continuous operation. It was placed on the National Register of Historic Places in 1982 on its centennial.
The Assembly grounds contain Victorian cottages, a central auditorium, and a program of summer lectures, concerts, and religious gatherings that continues today.
Modern Monteagle
Beyond the Assembly, Monteagle's identity is shaped by the I-24 services, gas stations, restaurants, and motels serving the mountain climb; the proximity to the University of the South in nearby Sewanee, Franklin County, with which Monteagle is closely linked culturally; and tourism around the surrounding plateau, including Fiery Gizzard, Foster Falls, and the Savage Gulf.
Landmarks
- Monteagle Sunday School Assembly (NRHP; active summer program)
- Monteagle Mountain I-24 climb