Geography/History Question--Ukraine/Russia/Polan…

At the time your grandfather left Russia , that town was in the Russian Empire . Ukraine was never an independent nation before 1991 when the Soviet Union fell . Before World War II , Poland's borders were just west of that town , making it part of the Soviet Union . It has never changed hands , but in a way it has . Explanation : Until 1917 , It was part of the Russian Empire which was a monarchy , In 1917 or 1922 Russia became the Soviet Union which was a communist state , In 1991 the Soviet Union fell and 15 countries became independent , Ukraine being one of those countries .