Working Abroad - Welsh Emigration: Place names
It was common for emigrants of all nationalities to name their new settlements after places in their home countries. This provided a sense of identity and a link with home.
It is possible to trace the origins of many place names around the world through the links of their founders.
In the slate areas of Pennsylvania, USA, the town of Bangor was named by Robert Jones, after his home town. He encouraged many others from north Wales to emigrate to the area and work in his slate quarries. In fact there are at least 15 Bangors in the USA, another 3 in Australia and 4 more in Canada.
The town of Bryn Mawr in Pennsylvania, home to a famous college, is not named for the town in Blaenau Gwent. Its founder Rowland Ellis came from Dolgellau and brought with him the name of his family farm.
Some places, such as Swansea in Ontario, Canada, take their names from the landscape being so similar to that around the original Welsh town.