The surname ABRAMS, ABRAM, ABRAHAM OR ABRAHAMS is said to have been derived, in many cases, from the ancient baptismal name of Abraham, but in numerous other cases it was taken from the town of Abram (originally Adbergham) in Lancashire, England. It is stated the forms of Abram and Abraham are, for the most part, of English origin, and the forms of Abrahams and Abrams are, for the most part, of Hebrew origin; but it is impossible to draw definite lines of distinction, as all four forms appear interchangeably in ancient European and early American records. (extracted from a paper compiled by The Media Research Bureau, Washington, D.C.)
Oldest known ancestor:
My oldest known Abrams ancestor is James Abrams b. 1745 probably in County Antrim, Ireland. He first showed up in Newberry Co., SC in 1773
when he married Mary Tedford/Telford. She arrived in Charleston in Jan
1773 from Belfast and petitioned for 100 acres of land, the plat that
they settled on. I can find no record of his arrival but think he might
have come over with Rev. John Renwick who founded the first Associate Reformed Presbyterian Church in Newberry Co., SC. Rev. Renwick came from Ahoghill, County Antrim, Ireland with a group of his congregation in 1770. I know there was a close relationship because James' daughter married Rev. Renwick's son, but so far I have not been able to prove that James came with that group. James died in 1822. He and Mary are buried at King's Creek Cemetery, Newberry Co., SC. To see a copy of the estate sale of James Abrams' property click here. To find out more about James Abrams see the book "The Abrams Family Genealogy 1745-1979" by George Carter Abrams. The book is on Family Tree Maker's "Family History Collection: 217 Genealogy Books"; CD #113, also on-line at http://www.GenealogyLibrary.com.
My personal history:
I was born Feb 21, 1930 in Shawnee, Oklahoma. My father, O. M. "Mack" Abrams, was a locomotive engineer for the Santa Fe Railroad. In 1939 he was transfered to Purcell, Oklahoma, where we lived until I finished high school. After high school I attended the University of Oklahoma and received a degree in Mechanical Engineering. I spent 2 years in the army after graduation and then went to work for Douglas Aircraft in Tulsa, Oklahoma. I spent 37 years as an aircraft structures design engineer with 9 different companies, the last 17 years with Rockwell International in Southern California. I retired in 1992 and have been doing research on my family history since then. In the picture above is my wife Marilyn and only son Tom.
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