The Monteagle Sunday School Assembly was founded in 1882 by the Sunday School Convention of Tennessee. At the time, a number of states had these congresses, often called Assemblies, all of them modelled after the Chautauqua Institution in New York, which was the first of these Assemblies. They were meant not only as a place for religious activities, such as retreats, but also as places for higher learning at a time when there were few colleges and institutes available to people.

The MSSA opened for its first summer session on July 17, 1883. The summer courses offered on the grounds attracted many students and teachers, as most southern schools didn’t offer summer programs. The thousands of yearly visitors soon encouraged the Assembly to begin building projects which led to the creation of many cottages, public meeting halls and boarding rooms.

The World Wars and Great Depression severely hindered the revenues and popularity of the MSSA, forcing it to close many cottages and discontinue many of their programs; other Assemblies were forced to shut down during this period. It was nearly 30 years before interest returned to the MSSA, leading to the restoration and refurbishing of many cottages, as well as the introduction of new programs and guest speakers.

This reawakening of interest peaked in the 1980s, when the MSSA held its Centennial Celebration and was added to the National Register of Historical Places. The MSSA is one of only nine surviving Assemblies in the United States, and still receives thousands of visitors a year.