Background
Born in Trogen as the son of a butcher, he worked as Modelstecher (craftsman of artistic wooden Lebkuchen templates) in Speicher from 1792, from 1798 also as secretary to the local authorities.
Born in Trogen as the son of a butcher, he worked as Modelstecher (craftsman of artistic wooden Lebkuchen templates) in Speicher from 1792, from 1798 also as secretary to the local authorities.
He was a musical autodidact, and became known as composer and editor of song collections, as publicist and poet. He founded a literary association in 1820, which he presided 1825-1827 and 1835-1837, in 1824 he founded the cantonal choir (Sängerverein). In 1813, he also published a treatise of the early modern history of his home canton since partition from Appenzell Innerrhoden in 1597.