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In early reports, the name Florida was used for the east coast in general; in fact few Swiss settled in the state of Florida.
Swiss were often confused with Germans. Mennonite settlers came from both countries, and many Swiss had emigrated originally to Alsace or the Palatinate in southern Germany, so did not come directly from their place of origin. Many colonies were founded by mixed groups of Swiss and Germans. The Pennsylvania Dutch are German speakers from both countries.
Swiss settlers, not necessarily Mennonites, had also moved into Alsace, Burgundy, Palatinate, Württemberg, Bavaria, Brandenburg to recolonize the lands after the destruction of the 30 years war (1618-48). This movement took place over nearly a century; those involved were mainly peasants and farm laborers from cantons Aargau, Bern, Lucerne and Zurich who usually gravitated to communities of the same religion or from the same home area.
Not all towns with Swiss names necessarily have a direct link with Swiss immigrants. Some were named after already existing towns in the US.
The names have in many instances been changed through the course of time. Where the name contains the word "new", the original form was usually in German (Neu) or French (Nouvelle/Nouveau). In some cases the original Helvetia or Schweizerland in a name has been changed to Switzerland. Others changed their spelling eg Vevay < Vevey.
Most immigrants quickly changed their original given names to an American version. (eg Johannes/Hans > John) If their family name had a meaning, some translated it into English: Zimmermann > Carpenter
Many villages even quite large ones have the same names as each other, sometimes even within the same canton.
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