Saugai 1931

Today I'm posting another ex-Memelland cover. This one has been sent in 1931 from Saugai (former Saugen, Memelgebiet) to Frankfurt a.M, Germany. Saugai appears to be called Saugos in modern Lithuania. The name changed several times in the course of history, we see in old German documents the name Matz Mautrim or Matzmantrum (Mazmantrum) through out the 17th century and then suddenly turns out to Schugen from the 18th, but it's probably because it was always called Sauga by the local people.

Švenčionys 1938

Arrival cancel of Wilno on the back

This is a registered cover sent in 1938 from Święciany (now Švenčionys, Lithuania) to Wilno (now Vilnius) during the Polish occupation period. It has been addressed to urzędu wojewódzkiego (Voivodeship admistration office) which in this case, it is the Wilno voivodeship (Województwo Wileńskie in Polish). Wydział Społeczno Polityczny is the department of social policy. The sender's address is not in Święciany but in Ustroń, a village in Żukojnie municipality which is part of Powiat Święciański (Švenčionys county) but this part the former county is now in Belarus.

Skrandžiai 1931

A happy new year to all visitors!
I'm starting this year's first post with a cover sent from Skrandžiai (former Matzwöhlen, Memelgebiet) in 1931 to Frankfurt a. M., Germany. Skrandžiai sounds to me kinda strange because "Skrandis" means stomach in english, haha... Anyway, Not only Matzwöhlen is one of the "hard to get" Memel postmark but from my experience, I get the feeling that Skrandžiai during the first Lithuanian republic is even harder to get (or am I wrong?). The village does not seem to exist anymore, if my information is correct, there is a huge pond at the site where the Skrandžiai used to exist just few kilometers outside Klaipėda's modern city limit. I don't know if the site is still called Skrandžiai nowdays but it looks like it is part of the administration of  the village of Budelkiemis.