BIOGRAPHY

Hedwig Zaugg was born in the Stampfe district in Walterswil, Canton of Bern, Switzerland, on 17 May 1915. At the age of three and a half, Hedwig lost her mother to the Spanish flu. She grew up as the youngest of four siblings—two sisters and a brother—with the support of her grandparents and under the care of her father, who later remarried. According to her daughter, the family had very little and had to be careful with every penny, yet Hedwig always looked back on her childhood with warmth and affection.

In 1941, at the age of 26, she married Andreas Zaugg. They welcomed their first daughter, Marianne, in 1944, followed by their second daughter, Katharina, in 1949. That same year, Andreas gave Hedwig a sewing machine and a knitting machine to use at home. Also in 1949, the couple took over the stamping mill previously run by Hedwig’s father.

She was widowed in 1992. In her later years, she developed a passion for baking Brätzeli. She made them in large quantities and delivered them by bicycle to people in hospitals, retirement homes, and to anyone who loved her Brätzeli. For her 80th birthday, she received a new bicycle. However, as she grew older, cycling became a bit too risky. When she no longer had a bike, she occasionally hitchhiked. She was also an avid gardener—tending to her garden with dedication for more than 100 years.

In March 2016, she fell in her kitchen at home and broke her hip, requiring surgery. After undergoing rehabilitation in Belp, she returned to the Stampfe. However, another fall in August led to her being hospitalized again, this time in Langenthal. In October 2020, she moved into the senior citizens’ home in Huttwil.

RECOGNITION

Her age has not been validated.

ATTRIBUTION

* “Seit bald 108 Jahren zufrieden mit dem Leben” – Der Unter-Emmentaler, 9 May 2023

* “Mit 110 Jahren: Hedwig Zaugg ist die älteste Person im Kanton Bern” – Berner Zeitung, 17 May 2025

GALLERY