They have a great sense for genealogy; and their long established yearly family festival is of long tradition and unites dozens of relatives of quite a few generations. Understandably, their family history has been most carefully arranged and points to strong roots back in Bennau and Einsiedeln.
Kathy/Mary Zehnder Monroe, Tom Zehnder, Joan Zehnder, Carol Fessler Zehnder, Rick Zehnder and Martin “Buzzy” Storch - we meet them all on a Sunday at the home of Kathy Zehnder Monroe in St. Matthews - they are all either siblings or cousins. And they all stem originally from the emigrant Joseph Dominik Zehnder from Bennau near Einsiedeln; they are descendants of children he had with his first wife Josephina Maria Benedicta Schaedler Zehnder from Einsiedeln or from his second wife Elisabetha Fuchs Zehnder.
In 1854, Joseph Dominik and his fiancée, Maria Anna Benedicta Schaedler Zehnder, traveled on the sailboat Challenge from Le Havre to New York, when a crossing took several weeks. How they got from New York to Louisville is not known. Over the years, also four of Dominik’s brothers set out for the New World, and once in Louisville, they married women with Einsiedeln background.
Tom, a High School teacher, remarks: “After seven years, the Dominik Zehnders returned home in 1861 where they had a child named Theresia (1863-1865) who died there. They went back to Louisville in 1865 when the Civil War had ended. Had Dominik perhaps left to avoid the draft? We don’t know!”
Great-great-grandfather Dominik had eleven children from his two marriages, eight with his first and three with his second wife. “That is why the Zehnder Clan - the milk dynasty of Louisville - is so large.” Carol, a retired office worker, adds: “There is a second Zehnder branch in Louisville with Einsiedeln roots; they were plumbers and sanitary workers; we have no contact with them however.”
It is a rather loud and noisy gathering, and during that afternoon there is much laughter in St. Matthews. Kathy and her husband Dennis - actually, he has roots in Einsiedeln too - are great hosts. Delicious snacks, wine, and Kentucky Bourbon make the rounds, accompanied by a host of family pictures and documents. Tom dryly observes: “It is wise, never to say anything bad about anyone in Louisville; it might well be that one is related without even knowing it!”
During the afternoon the name of Alfred Zehnder turns up again and again. He is the distant cousin in Einsiedeln who kept in constant touch with his Louisville relatives and studied and documented the family’s history way back to the 15th century. He also provided relatives in America with family trees, data, and books, as well as with numerous details: “An incredible amount of historical research for which we are truly grateful. After the death of Alfred (1927-2014) we now have even closer ties with Edith Zehnder Mettler in Einsiedeln. We are in frequent contact via e-mail, and we also visit her off and on in Switzerland. And she has, of course, also been with us in Louisville. She is the bridge to the original home of our forebears.”
The Zehnders with whom we chat are thoroughly American, but it is obvious that they are proud of their Swiss roots. Tom: “To know from where we originally hail is quite important to us, it gives us identity. ‘Heritage’ is being valued less and less here in America. And at present, our young find hardly any time to deal with their family history - we have documented everything and can hand it on.” And he adds with a wink: “By the way, my grandchild, of the seventh Zehnder generation, is again a Dominic - a Dominic Zehnder. Isn’t that wonderful?”
The first Zehnder immigrant from Einsiedeln, Joseph Dominik, was a farmer and started the milk business in Louisville. He was an expert, also in potato growing. Soon, the Zehnders came to be known in the environs of St. Matthews, with their milk farms and milk deliveries from house to house. For decades, they were on the way with horse and wagon. Tom: “The story goes that after the milk deliveries, the Zehnders on their wagon were so tired that they fell asleep on the trip home - but the horses knew the way back home so well that they got home by themselves!” Until the early 1960s the Zehnders dominated the city’s milk business; until milkmen became superfluous because pasteurized milk could be gotten from the shelves in a supermarket.
As many other families from Einsiedeln, over generations the Zehnders became fully part of Louisville, and some of them are living still today in the environs of St. Matthews. It is a pleasant area with numerous small businesses and nice restaurants. Joan, a painter and art therapist observes: “Nowhere in Louisville are there as many trees as here. There is still a kind of village atmosphere and the market is part of the tradition.”
Swiss traits have become secondary among the Zehnders. Today, none of them speak German anymore; Tom tries with some nuggets that he still remembers from his High School years. He has not been to Einsiedeln, in contrast to Joan, his sister. For her, arriving in Zurich-Kloten is always like a homecoming. “I love Einsiedeln, have been there several times already. Once, even for a full six weeks. Edith, my cousin, is very important to me. I truly hope that she and her brother will soon visit us again here in Louisville. I dream of organizing a large Zehnder festival in Einsiedeln with all relatives from here and there!”
