BIOGRAPHY OF RELATIVE
Sam Abrams, My Great Grandfather
Schmiel Isaac Abramovich, later changed to Sam Abrams, was born on July 28, 1901 in a peaceful little village in Zenesti, Romania. Most of the people were on friendly terms with the few Jewish families who lived there including Sam's family. However, in the early part of 1906, a group of peasants decided to try emulating the Pogroms in Russia and Poland against the Jews in Sam's village in Romania. One morning, Sam's father, Hyman Abramovich, was ready to leave for his place of business when a Christian neighbor told him to take the next train and leave town because some people were coming to kill him. Before he could act, an armed mob broke down the door and began kicking and beating Hyman. He was taken away from the family to be killed by this mob. Luckily, Hyman had some very good friends, and they rescued him and put him on a train to the city of Piatra Neamt where he was later reunited with the rest of his family. After all this horror, Hyman and Matilda decided to take the family to America. They made a great sacrifice to leave their extended families and undertake the journey to the United States of America with so many little children, seven at the time.
The trip to America was very eventful and adventurous. Each person had to carry a little bundle of personal belongings and it was often very difficult to get sufficient seating space for the large family since they had no reserved seats. Sam and his siblings often climbed through the windows of the trains to scramble for seats before the other passengers came in. Upon arriving in Hamburg, Germany to board the boat for America, social workers advised Hyman and Matilda to immigrate to Forth Worth, Texas because they had so many little children and there was a small Jewish community. At this time, Sam was about six years old with thick beautiful curly hair. He had a great curiosity about the water which kept his siblings on the lookout; there were large waves that would frequently splash onto the lowest deck and they were afraid he would be washed out to sea.
In 1907, the Abramovich family arrived in the port of Galveston, Texas with an impression of amazement. From Galveston they were transported to Forth Worth where they settled in with the Jewish community and given their American names. For his new livelihood, Hyman would have to be a peddler of some sort, selling fruits or vegetables until he learned to speak a little English. At this time, Sam was too young to attend school and do chores around the house. However, his older siblings had many chores to do and attended school every day to try to learn as many words as possible. Even in America, the Abrams family kept their Jewish roots. On Saturdays and Holidays, Matilda set up the table with her best linen and lit the candles for the Sabbath. They had a challah, traditional Jewish bread, and Hyman would say "Kiddish". When a new Rabbi arrived in Forth Worth, all the boys were enrolled in the Synagogue for their Hebrew education.
During the summer evenings, Sam and two siblings would canvas the neighborhood for blocks to sell gum and matches. Matilda would let them keep the money to buy school supplies. When Sam was older, he and his brother Joe sold newspapers to make more money. Sam was a quiet youngster, showing a desire to earn big money. After his day's sales, he would take all of his coins and change them into dollar bills. When Sam was 13 years old, he tried be a delivery boy on his bicycle. Sam was given the job of delivering special parcels and averaged a pay of 25 to 30 dollars per week. He loved making the money and working to help his family. Unfortunately, the delivery system was revised and the company purchased a truck to take the place of the delivery boys. Around 1915, Sam was beginning to get restless with different jobs. He was always anxious to make money and would leave home for two or three days to take shorts trips.
In February, 1920, Beth, Sam's sister, left for Los Angeles, California with her new husband Lew to start a new life. Sometime later, Sam wrote to his sister that he would like to come to California. Lew sent Sam the money to make the trip. Sam's first job was soliciting subscriptions of magazines and earned fair wages. One day, Lew heard of an opening for a clerk in a market and got the job for Sam. Sam bought a phonograph and dance records and would practice every evening with his sister. Later, Sam was working at another market as Assistant Manager and was earning good money. He made many friends and brought them to Beth's house often. When Lew started his own paper company, Sam applied for Lew's old job with the Pacific Paper Company and went to work as a paper salesman. Around the same time Sam's sister Fannie arrived in Los Angeles, Sam brought a lovely looking dark-haired girl named Doris Glantz to the house. Sam and Doris announced their engagement on the same night Fannie announced her own engagement to a man named Pete. On June 10, 1924, Sam and Doris married in Los Angeles. Sam dissolved himself from Lew's paper company and started his own paper business with his brothers Max and Ben. He and Doris had two children, Leslie Milton Abrams and Jack Rube Abrams, my grandfather.
Works Cited: All information from "The Abrams Family History"