The history of the ancient farming village Ragaz is closely tied up with that of the Benedictine abbey of Pfäfers, which was the largest landowner in Ragaz and possessed the most rights there. The "Hof Ragaz", the prince-abbot's palace was the administrative centre of the abbey.
In the course of centuries Ragaz had a certain significance as an important north-south axis between Germany and Italy. After the abolition of the abbey in 1838 the canton St Gallen took over the monastic property as well as the Tamina Gorge.
With the construction of the road to the spa of Pfäfers (1838/39) and the piping of the 36.5° warm thermal waters into the Hof Ragaz, Ragaz itself became a spa resort. Its international importance, however, was due to Bernhard Simon (1816-1900) of Niederurnen who, in 1868, purchased from the canton the Ragaz domain, that is, the lordship's territory of the Pfäfers princely abbey. There followed the building boom of numerous hotels and guest-houses and many and various trades were established in the future-oriented resort.
