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What’s in a Name?
Periodically airing during Thursday's All Things Considered

If you've ever wondered how towns, villages, streets and other landmarks around the Lehigh Valley got their names, then this short feature is for you!

Mike Flynn digs into local history, presenting maps, documents, photos and more about each featured location and answering the question: what's in a name?

Latest Stories
  • On this episode of What's in a Name?, Mike Flynn is back with another exploration of Lehigh Valley history, this time travelling to Bath, a borough in western Northampton County.
  • On this episode of What's in a Name?, Mike Flynn is back with another exploration of Lehigh Valley history, this time in Wind Gap, along the Northampton-Monroe border.
  • On this episode of What's in a Name?, Mike Flynn is back with another exploration of Lehigh Valley history, this time traveling to the village of Laurys Station in North Whitehall Township.
  • On this episode of What's in a Name?, Mike Flynn is back with another exploration of Lehigh Valley history as he visits the Lehigh County borough of Coopersburg. To gain more insight, Mike speaks with Doris Clegg and Anna Ellenberger from the Coopersburg Historical Society.
  • On this episode of What's In a Name?, Mike Flynn takes another dive into Lehigh Valley history with an exploration of Emmaus, in southern Lehigh County. As part of his investigation, Mike speaks with Jeanne Harakal, president of the Emmaus Historical Society about the roots of the borough's name in the Bible and the Moravian Church, as well as why there are two spellings of Emmaus...or is it "Emaus?"
  • On this episode of What’s in a Name?, Mike Flynn takes another dive into Lehigh Valley history as he visits the Northampton County borough of Roseto, founded by Italian immigrants in the late 19th century.
  • On this episode of What's in a Name?, Mike Flynn takes another dive into Lehigh Valley history, this time visiting the borough of Hellertown. He sits down with members of the Hellertown Historical Society and explores the borough’s origins, a story intertwined with the Heller family.
  • On this episode of What's in a Name?, Mike Flynn returns with another exploration of Lehigh Valley history, this time looking at the origins of the name Bake Oven Knob — one of the area's most amazing vista points overlooking the Blue Mountain Ridge near Germansville, just off of the Appalachian Trail.
  • On this episode of What's in a Name?, Mike Flynn returns with another exploration of Lehigh Valley history, tracing the origin of the name Tatamy, and its indigenous roots in the Delaware nation.
  • On this episode of What's in a Name?, Mike Flynn speaks with local Whitehall historian Karen Gensey and investigates the historical namesake behind one of the Lehigh Valley's major highways - MacArthur Road.