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Port Gdansk
INFORMATION DEVELOPED
from KATALOG SPECJALIZOWANY ZNAKOW POCZTOWYCH ZLEM POLSKICH
by WLADYSLAW DZIEMIANCZUK


The Polish Post Office existed in the Free City of Danzig by virtue of Article 104 of the Treaty of Versailles, sub article 29 and 30, signed on November 9, 1920 of the Paris Convention, and the treaty between Poland and the Free City was signed on October 24, 1921. Part III of Articles 149 and 162 describes the functioning of a Polish Post Office in the port of Danzig.

Following the above, the first Polish post office opened in the Free City was a postal expedition office in Danzig - New Port, which had the function of exchanging parcels between the port of Danzig and Poland, and vice versa. It was not available to the public. In spite of the official designation of Urzad Ekspeyeji Pocztowej Gdansk-Nowy Port, this office was never found in Danzig-Neufahrwasser (Gdansk-Nowy Port). However, at first this postal department was found in the temporary barrack on the island of HOLM, and in Weichelsmünde 27 Norderstrasse, which is now at Wislouljcie harbour in the area of the port.

Officially, it was opened on April 20, 1920, based on a provisional treaty between Poland and the Free City, but unofficially it started operations on March 10, 1920, taking parcels from the United States and Great Britain and forwarding them to recipients in Poland. No postal services to customers were provided. At the beginning, this office did not possess its own datestamp/postmark, and the parcel-cards sent from there were marked by a rubber stamp/cachet: “Urzd Pocztowy Gdaisk Nowy Port Z Ameryki przez Gdansk Nr...” (Post Office Gdansk New Port from America thru Gdansk No...). Later, two double-circle date stamps with bridges and GDANSK at the top and NOWY PORT at bottom, were used. Diameter of the outer circle was 27mm., and diameter of the inner circle was 17.5mm. 

From October 1, 1921. telegraph service in Gdanisk was performed by a Hughes-type station. It was housed, at first, in the general commisariat of the Polish Republic in Gdansk, and it was a branch of the Polish Post Office at Gdansk 1.

On January 11, 1922, the post office status was changed and the new name became “Polski Urzd Pocztowy Nr 1” Polish Post Office No. 1 in Danzig, where the old date stamps with NOWY PORT were used. Later, from the spring of 1922, date stamps with indication: “POLSKI URZAD Nr. 1 POCZTOWY Nr. 1 GDANSK” were used and, for parcels, labels with “Z Ameryki przez Polski Urzad Pocztowy Nr 1 w Gdansku” were used. Still, however, no postal service existed for residents.

On April 17, 1923, Polish Post Office #2 in Danzig was opened, at the main railway station. This office also did not provide service to resident customers. Its purpose was to mediate in transfer of parcels between Great Britain and Poland, Free City post office and Poland. and as a mail exchange office for train post offices on the following routes: Gdarsk - Kartuzy, train #427 (in operation from April 1. 1924), and Gdansk - Kocierzyna, train #431 (in operation from October 1, 1925). 

 

Danzig Report  Nr. 82 - January - February - March - 1994, Page 7.