The Ave Maria Grotto is the lifetime work of Brother Joseph Zoetti, a Benedictine monk. Brother Joseph was born in Landshut, Bavaria in 1878. He came to the United States at the age of 14. He was one of the first students of the newly-founded St. Bernard Abbey in 1892.
He later decided to become a monk in the Benedictine Order. His assignments have included Stonega, Virginia, Tuscumbia and Cullman, Alabama.
In Cullman, he was assigned kitchen duty, then in 1910 was placed in the power plant. While there, he developed his hobby of building miniature shrines.
One of the Fathers in charge of the gift shop at St. Bernard asked Brother Joseph to make miniature Grottoes for the store. These became popular items and the money made was used toward the construction of the Ave Maria Grotto.
The miniatures were first erected on the monastery recreation grounds. As the number of visitors increased to view the miniatures, the decision was made to move the replicas to another location.
In 1934, the site chosen was the bluff of Eight Mile Creek in front of the Administrative building. The abandoned rock quarry was landscaped and terraced. It is a beautiful, serene setting for the 125 miniature villages or "sermons in stone."
