Abrams is a town in Oconto County,

Wisconsin Wisconsin ( ) is a U.S. state, state in the Great Lakes region, Great Lakes region of the Upper Midwest of the United States. It borders Minnesota to the west, Iowa to the southwest, Illinois to the south, Lake Michigan to the east, Michig ...

, United States. The population was 1,960 at the 2020 Census. The

census-designated place A census-designated place (CDP) is a Place (United States Census Bureau), concentration of population defined by the United States Census Bureau for statistical purposes only. CDPs have been used in each decennial census since 1980 as the counte ...

of Abrams is located in the town. It is located near

U.S. Route 41 U.S. Route 41, also U.S. Highway 41 (US 41), is a major north–south United States Numbered Highway that runs from Miami, Florida, to the Upper Peninsula of Michigan. Until 1949, the part in southern Florida, from Naples to Miam ...

and U.S. Route 141 south-southeast of Oconto Falls. Abrams has a

post office A post office is a public facility and a retailer that provides mail services, such as accepting letter (message), letters and parcel (package), parcels, providing post office boxes, and selling postage stamps, packaging, and stationery. Post o ...

that has been operating since 1882 with ZIP code 54101. As of the 2020 census, the census-designated place had a population of 358.

History

Abrams was first settled in 1854 when Richard B. Yeaton built a sawmill on the Pensaukee River. A community formed and he called the place West Pensaukee. The town was planned to be named Pumpkin Pine. It was renamed Abrams in the 1880s after W. J. Abrams, a former state representative and former mayor of Green Bay. Abrams owned land where a railroad depot was built. The town of Abrams was platted and established in 1917. By the 1890s, there were nearly 30 homes, multiple hotels, 3 general stores, a train depot, and multiple sawmills. Most of the earliest white settlers were from

New England New England is a region consisting of six states in the Northeastern United States: Connecticut, Maine, Massachusetts, New Hampshire, Rhode Island, and Vermont. It is bordered by the state of New York (state), New York to the west and by the ...

. By 1910, a bank and telephone service was added to the town. Fires nearly destroyed the town twice, one being the

Peshtigo Fire The Peshtigo fire was a large forest fire on October 8, 1871, in northeastern Wisconsin, United States, including much of the southern half of the Door Peninsula and adjacent parts of the Upper Peninsula of Michigan. The largest community in ...

and the other being a fire in 1923. The mystery of a murder of a local tavern keeper still haunts the town as it has never been solved.

Geography

According to the

United States Census Bureau The United States Census Bureau, officially the Bureau of the Census, is a principal agency of the Federal statistical system, U.S. federal statistical system, responsible for producing data about the American people and American economy, econ ...

, the town has a total area of , of which (99.71%) is land, and of which (0.29%) is water.

Demographics

As of the

census A census (from Latin ''censere'', 'to assess') is the procedure of systematically acquiring, recording, and calculating population information about the members of a given Statistical population, population, usually displayed in the form of stati ...

of 2020, there were 1,960 people. The racial makeup of the town was 95.8%

White White is the lightest color and is achromatic (having no chroma). It is the color of objects such as snow, chalk, and milk, and is the opposite of black. White objects fully (or almost fully) reflect and scatter all the visible wa ...

, 0.2% Black or African American, 0.80% Native American, 0.3% Asian, 0.1% Native Hawaiian or Pacific Islander, 0.3% other race, and 2.6% from two or more races.

Hispanic The term Hispanic () are people, Spanish culture, cultures, or countries related to Spain, the Spanish language, or broadly. In some contexts, Hispanic and Latino Americans, especially within the United States, "Hispanic" is used as an Ethnici ...

or Latino of any race were 0.9% of the population.

Notable people

* C. J. Greaves, professional American off-road racing driver, was born in the town * Johnny Greaves, professional American off-road racing driver, was born in the town *

Pee Wee King Julius Frank Anthony Kuczynski (February 18, 1914 – March 7, 2000), known professionally as Pee Wee King, was an American country music songwriter and recording artist best known for co-writing "Tennessee Waltz". Pee Wee King is credited with ...

, pioneer in the country and western music industry; wrote "Tennessee Waltz" and was inducted into the

Country Music Hall of Fame The Country Music Hall of Fame and Museum in Nashville, Tennessee, is one of the world's largest museums and research centers dedicated to the preservation and interpretation of American vernacular music. Chartered in 1964, the museum has amass ...

in 1974 * Lyle Lahey, cartoonist * Arthur J. Whitcomb, Wisconsin State Representative and lawyer, was born in the town'Wisconsin Blue Book 1915,' Biographical Sketch of Arthur J. Whitcomb, pg. 527 * Bob Wickman, Major League Baseball player, relief pitcher

References

External links

Town of Abrams Official Website
{{Coord, 44, 46, 45, N, 88, 03, 35, W, type:city_region:US-WI, display=title Towns in Oconto County, Wisconsin Green Bay metropolitan area Towns in Wisconsin