https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Free_City_of_Danzig
When researching Jackson Polish genealogy you will find that there are many variations of places that family members were born. It can get real confusing. The same individual can carry a "Germany", "Poland", and or "Russia" birthplace label depending on the document you find it in. This is because depending on the year, parts of Poland were declared parts of other countries. Plus the Ports of call emigrants left from actually changed hands which would not seem a problem unless they were born in the Port before sailing. Add to that the laboriously confusing Polish surnames, lazy record keepers, and horrible handwriting. Pretty muddled mess for sure.
There is one thing that I can say with certainty. Jackson County was a "Polish Settlement". It was settled overwhelmingly with families from Suwalki and its surrounding area. Someone knew someone who knew someone to help them get to the Port of New York and to Jackson. Those Poles created a community here that is just as much of our heart and soul as any other.
