The neat little house belonged to a certain Brigid, no last name given. “In your inquiry you mentioned Einsiedeln. That is where my ancestors came from, I thought. And when I googled you I saw that you, too, are a Kaelin! Actually, the AirBnB listing is our primary residence, where David and I live with our son Graham. We usually rent it out on weekends and during the Kentucky Derby… but for you Einsiedler we simply have to make an exception and let you have the house.”
Brigid is a well-known singer, musician and performer, “the redhead with the accordion” (www.brigidkaelin.com); she leads the “Brigid Kaelin Band”, playing the piano, accordion, guitar and musical saw, she has degrees in both politics and jazz piano. Today, she is a versatile musician and plays many instruments. She is also a composer, songwriter, musical storyteller, and music teacher. She grew up in Louisville’s Highlands district, but her father grew up in the Germantown neighborhood. “My dad, Kenneth Martin Kaelin, has Catholic and Swiss roots; my mom, Patsy Speevack, has Jewish-Russian ones. I remember on Sundays when I was a kid, I’d go to Swiss Park with my cousins. There were picnics with Bluegrass bands playing… and also plenty of gambling and drinking for the grown-ups. That’s my only memory of any ‘Swissness’. But honestly, I don’t connect the Swiss Hall with my Swiss roots - the park was simply a cool place to go.”
Brigid Kaelin raves about her concert tour through Scotland that is just behind her, also about the English musician Elvis Costello, who has invited her to perform with him several times. “I have written many songs and put out several albums; I also play with other bands. Bluegrass, Country, Jazz, and more. I like Country music best though. I like that, it allows me to tell stories. Bluegrass is, of course, very Kentucky and I grew up with it. My mother loves Bluegrass and Country music and played that music around the house when I was little. And when I lived for some years in New York, I played in an Irish band. Old Irish music is a bit like Bluegrass - and it too tells stories, just in a different rhythm.
I am interested in the idea of ‘back to Einsiedeln’. Americans often forget that we have immigrant ancestors. And that you from the Old World are asking about us - I love that. I never thought about it that way, that I might actually have cousins living in Switzerland. Do I have relatives in Einsiedeln? No clue! Why did they leave? I have no details. As for ‘Swissness’, I don’t really have any. I just always knew that Kaelin is Swiss.
People often think that I am Irish, because of my red hair. And there is a word in Irish that sounds like Kaelin, a Gaelic word! But I know that I am Swiss and my family comes from Einsiedeln. My uncle recently told me that Johann Martin Kaelin and Katherina had left Einsiedeln for America as a married couple. They were the great-grandparents of my father and uncle, Anthony.
I am therefore the fifth generation of this Kaelin line in the United States. My great-grandfather was Anton Martin, and in Louisville he married Balbina Fuchs, also an immigrant from Einsiedeln. However, everything is quite complicated. And I’m so busy with the kids and work that I don’t have much time for genealogical research. The family is busy with so many different things. But what you’re pursuing here makes for a great story. Thank you!”
Seventeen years ago, Brigid and her parents were on their way to Einsiedeln. On September 11, 2001, they were supposed to fly to London via New York for a three-week European trip. “We had Switzerland and Einsiedeln on our itinerary. That morning we only made it to Newark. I still remember, my dad took a picture of the World Trade Center from afar because we thought at first that maybe there was a fire in the restaurant kitchen at the top.
Then we saw the second airplane speeding into the towers. I can still picture it. We were all in shock. After that, I couldn’t bring myself to fly for a while. Somehow, we managed to get back after 36 hours by train and bus via Washington, Baltimore, Pittsburgh, Columbus, Cincinnati, and finally home to Louisville… But when I turn forty I want to go to Vienna and Einsiedeln… I will get there eventually.”
Then Brigid plans to search for her roots, “but also to play music and to sing. I can yodel, cowboy yodeling however. Dad says: ‘Brigid, you could also learn Swiss yodeling’! I am curious what my relatives in Einsiedeln are doing. We are so far removed from the place we came from. Generations somehow seem to have vanished. Maybe we can find a bridge? Perhaps a Sister-City project Louisville-Einsiedeln? Or summer courses for students - both here and there. Yes, we should start a project. The task: not only to tell the stories of the past, but also the stories of today!”
