Founding year: Wikipedia. First post office: 1882.The full story ↓
History grade
What drives Abrams’ History grade
On its age, its old homes and the National Register, Abrams is more historic than 26% of U.S. towns. Its share of homes from before 1940 holds the grade up; its National Register listings pull it down.
C
HistoryA character grade: shown, never part of Abrams’ overall grade.
Wisconsin towns list more on the Register than most of the country (a typical Wisconsin town has 3.0 per 10,000 residents, the U.S. 2.4), so Abrams’ 0.0 sits below most of its state (28% of Wisconsin towns have fewer) while its 0 listings outnumber those of 23% of U.S. towns.
NoteThe founding year comes from Wikipedia alone; no second source gives 1854.
How sure. Graded on any two of the three inputs instead, the letter would range from C− to C. The pre-1940 share is a Census survey estimate (±3.0 points).
Founding year: Wikipedia (other dates in Quick answers). Homes: Census ACS 2020–24. National Register: National Park Service, May 2026 list; each listing counted once (boundary changes and added documentation belong to their listing), and a historic district counts its contributing buildings. How TownRatings grades history →
What stands out about Abrams’ past
Read from the archive, the National Register and the record. The page puts what stands out first.
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. By 1910, a bank and telephone service was added to the town. Fires nearly destroyed the town twice, one being the Peshtigo Fire 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.
In 1854, according to Wikipedia’s history of the town. Abrams’ post office opened in 1882.
How does Abrams rank for history?
Abrams is more historic than 26% of U.S. towns. The History grade combines the town’s founding era, the share of homes built before 1940 and its National Register listings. It’s a character grade, so it isn’t part of the overall grade. How it works.
How old are the homes in Abrams?
8% of Abrams’ homes were built before 1940 (Census estimate, ±3.0 points), against a typical 12% for a Wisconsin town; the median home was built in 1991.
Founding dates: Wikidata, Wikipedia, the U.S. post office records of Blevins & Helbock (CC0) and the Census. Homes by year built: Census ACS 2020–24. National Register of Historic Places: National Park Service (list of May 22, 2026). Old photos, postcards and papers: Wikimedia Commons, the Library of Congress and other public archives, credited on each item’s page. Maps: U.S. Geological Survey historical topographic maps (via Esri) and Sanborn fire-insurance maps (Library of Congress). History text and census tables: Wikipedia (CC BY-SA 4.0). Places that used to be: USGS Geographic Names Information System (2021).
From Wikipedia, U.S. Geological Survey historical maps, the US Post Offices dataset (Blevins & Helbock) and the USGS Geographic Names Information System. Archive images are copied here with their credits and licenses, shown on each photo’s page. Refreshed monthly.
