Abram Lanterman was born on December 22, 1812, in Kentucky. He eventually moved to Sangamon County, Illinois, and he took part in the Black Hawk War in the early 1830s. He married Catherine Cabanis in Sangamon County on April 16, 1840, and they had at least nine children: John, born around 1842; Charles, born around 1846; Mary Jane, born around 1849; Abraham, born around 1850; Josephine, born around 1854; Cyrus, born around 1855; Laura, born around 1858; Georgetta, born around 1860; and Kittie, born around 1865.
They moved to Grant County, Wisconsin, in the late 1840s, and he worked as a farmer there. They moved to Menard County, Illinois, and by 1860, he owned $500 of personal property. By 1870, they were living in Newton, Missouri, and they owned $600 of real estate and $400 of personal property. They moved to Blanco County, Texas, in the 1870s. He died in Texas on May 14, 1896.