the two earliest kashubian american settlements in the united states were in the winona, minnesota area, including the towns of fountain city, pine creek, dodge, and trempealeau across the mississippi river in wisconsin, and in portage county, wisconsin, including the towns of polonia, sharon, and hull. the winona settlement is traditionally dated to 1855, but actually began in 1859; the portage county settlement can definitely be traced back to 1858. winona is dubbed "kashubian capital of america", because of the largest population of kashubians there.