Ligurians were the first inhabitants of the region. The Rhaetians succeeded them, who were subdued by the Romans in 15 BC. Their rule lasted for 400 years.
The origin of the name is the Latin word “mollis,” meaning soft. Around 400, the Romans had to cede the area to the Alemanni. In the 9th century, the Säckingen Monastery (Bad Säckingen, Germany) acquired extensive estates in the Glarus region, including Mollis.
Mollis (canton of Glarus) was first mentioned in 1288. The Reformation was adopted in 1529. Between 1714 and 1789, the production of cotton, particularly spinning and, from 1760, weaving, contributed to prosperity. Due to its strategically important location, the village suffered greatly from warfare by foreign troops from 1798 to 1803. In 1811, the heart of the correction, the “Molliser” Eschner canal, was completed.
(Source and further information: www.glarusnord-tourimus.ch).