The Classic Stamps Of Danzig

Fascinating reading BeeSee, thanks for posting.

Great thread and info, thanks for starting it off jkjblue. Great stamps and stories everyone. Oh and I love the postcards.

Dianne

Excellent display here everyone.

This is the best map I could find of Danzig during the Free State era. Hopefully the reduce resolution can be read to help identify post office locations.

Great map!

Yes excellent city map Bayern. I needed that one!

Now can we locate the Polish Post Office in the city centre where the famous WWII battle was fought?

That being where the Polish Port Gdansk stamps were used, along with in Westerplatte in the north port area, which I found on my map.

Danzig is such an interesting area for history and philately.

Here is the flag of the Free State of Danzig:

Thanks for the info Bayern.

I see that Heveliusplatz is now called Obroncow Poczty Polskiej (Polish Post Office Avenue).

I found it on Google maps:



This places it here on Bayern's map:



And some stamps I have that were used in the Polish areas:

Elaborating on the theme of Polish "Offices in Danzig" stamp issues...

Bee See uploaded a very informative note from Scott's Monthly Journal February 1925. In the note was a report of an appeal by the Danzig Senate to the International Tribunal requesting that they reaffirm that Poland only had the right to supervise the mail at the Polish Post office. Meanwhile, (Polish) Postal boxes had been put up all over town for mail being sent to Poland.

Here is an example of the first overprinted issue (January 5, 1925) from Poland...


Scott 1K2 2g dark brown (1924 "Arms of Poland")

How successful was the appeal, or did the Polish mail boxes stay up?
As Danzig was 95% ethnically German, how much demand was there for Polish issues? Apparently enough, as Poland continued to produce "Port Gdansk" overprints.

Here is a 1926 Scott 1K11A 5g yellow green (1925 'Poznan Town Hall")..


This stamp issue must be scarcer, as it has a higher value in Scott.

Finally, here is a 1929-30 series...


5g dark violet, 10g green, 15g red brown (Polish 1928-29 "Eagle Arms" issue)

Bee See's note says the Danzigers were nervous because of the recent invasion of Memel by the Lithuanians. Well here is a 1930 map of Poland, and the Danzig area (port) look to be part of it.



Facinating,facinating history.

Thanks for the Port Gdansk update Jkjblue .

Now can anyone confirm if the Port Gdansk stamps were also used in the Polish port and base at Westerplatte? Was there a post office there too? I thought I read that there was, but cannot find the source.

All interested in Danzig Free City subjects, I recommend a site dedicated to DFC's collectibles and even more useful information about: http://www.danzig-online.pl/index3.html (link to english version).

Jkjblue wrote: "As Danzig was 95% ethnically German"

As former statistical clerk I can told you that, who counts is right. Many of FCD citizens wasn't just Germans. They was a germanized Poles and Cassubians. But even ethnic Germans speak Plattdütsch very popular local language based on german, dutch and more.

BAYERN1kreuzer wrote: "I am not absolutely sure, but I think there was only the post office in the city center."

There were three polish post offices:

Gdansk 1 - at Old Town's Hevelius square (WWII started here)
Gdansk 2 - Central Station
Gdansk 3 - at harbor (Port Gdansk)


Gdansk 1, original picture taken in early 60'. Now regular post office and war museum.


Postcard issued by Polish Post in 2000 on the occasion of 75. Anniv of establishing 3rd Polish Post Office in FCD commemorative stamp canceled.

Excellent information and images Kwidzin - thank you for sharing, especially the location of the post offices.

Thanks kwidzin for the more realistic breakdown of the "German speaking" population in Danzig.

No problem. I'm glad I could help. And one more:

BeeSee wrote: "I see that Heveliusplatz is now called Obroncow Poczty Polskiej (Polish Post Office Avenue)."

I think it should be: Polish Post Office Defenders Square

Thanks for the correction. It is great that you have joined us Kwidzin! I am just learning about Danzig.

More detailed information about Polish Post Offices:

1.) The first facility in Danzig was founded in Neufahrwasser district (Gdansk-Nowy Port) March 10, 1920 as Gdansk 1 office, then renamed to Gdansk 3 in 1930:



2.) Gdansk 2 building at the Central Station:



3.) Opening January 5, 1925, the Polish Post and Telegraph Office No. 3, then renamed to Gdansk 1 in 1930:



Later picture of the Gdansk 1 building (formerly Gdansk 3 from picture above):



4.) Offices at the station and the port did not support individual customers. Polish Post in Gdansk has 10 mailboxes with the Polish national emblem like this:



This one scratched/destroyed during the war.