The next three generations provided doctors for the Town of Hannibal. First, there was Dr. William J. Acker, then Dr. Dillon F. Acker and finally Dr. William B. Acker. 

Joseph Carter is another early settler of Hannibal who established his farm near Bethel in the southwest corner of the Hannibal Township.  He arrived shortly after the Sprague
family, whose genealogy is already on the website.  He generously gave a portion of his land so that a schoolhouse could be built to educate the local children.  As a result, the rural school district was named after him, becoming known as the Carter District. 

Warner Miller, US Senator from 1881 to 1887, was born in a log cabin across the road from the schoolhouse.  The Carter school finally closed its doors in 1944 with Dolly Barrett as the last teacher.

Benjamin was an early settler of the Town of Hannibal and is buried in the Hannibal Village Cemetery.  Later, a number of his descendants moved to Michigan. Parts 1 - 3.

*Graphics Intensive

The first Draper to arrive in the Town of Hannibal was John Draper, born 1790 in London, England.  He emigrated from England with his wife and children settled in the Town of Hannibal about 1835.  His grandson, Alfred Draper, served with the 184th NY Vol. Inf. Regiment during the Civil War and was Mayor of the Village of Hannbal for 1876-77.  This genealogical report actually begins with John's father, who also happened to be named John Draper.

The family was originally from Scotland and the family name was MacGillis before the "Mac" was dropped.  Hector and two of his brothers served in the War of 1812.  Hector also was a sea captain sailing on the Great Lakes.  About 1818, he settled in Hannibal, NY, where his descendants lived for many years.

According to his death record at the Hannibal Town & Village Hall, Eugene was born in 1816 in Lisbon, Portugal, but was a 
resident of Ireland when his son Dennis was born in 1846.
Some time after, Eugene brought his family to the United States eventually settling in North Hannibal.  His son Dennis served in Company D of the 9th Heavy Artillery during the Civil War.  Several family members are buried in the Old Irish 
Cemetery  on the Rathburn Road near North Hannibal in the
Town of Oswego. 

There are still descendants located in the area.

Benjamin's grandfather came to America from England in 1645.  Benjamin was a Revolutionary War veteran and was the father of 15 children, one of whom was David Peckham. 

The son came to Hannibal, NY, as a young man and carved out a new home in the northwestern part of the township.  David Peckham was one of the founders of the Methodist Church in Hannibal and was instrumental in the construction of the first church building in 1841.  He also saw another large building effort in the church in 1864.  David's son, Isaac H. Peckham, was an officer with Company F, 110th NY Vol. Infantry in the Civil War.

Asa Rice first settled in Fruit Valley, three miles west of the City of Oswego, NY, in 1797.  At the time, that area was included in the Town of Hannibal, but later was set apart to create the current Town of Oswego.

The Rice surname was originally spelled "Royce".  Asa Rice's
ancestry has been traced back to Thomas Royce of England during the early 1500's.  Much of the early Royce/Rice family genealogy included in this file was researched by Lindsey DiCosola, who is the great-great-great-great-granddaughter
of Asa Rice.

Asa's son, Arvin Rice, Sr., was one of the first people to settle within the present boundaries of the Village of Hannibal.  Included in this file is his first-hand account of his parents' trip to what would be their new home west of Oswego and the various hardships the family endured as they carved out a life in the wilderness.

Arvin Rice, Jr., became an attorney in Fulton, NY, and was President of Fulton Savings Bank.  Another son of Arvin Rice, Sr., was Dr. Alfred Rice, a medical doctor in Hannibal, NY, and Surgeon with the 110th NY Vol. Infantry Regiment during the Civil War.

John Sturgis (Note the name evolved from Sturgis to Sturge.) came to America with his parents from England in the 1600's. 
Gordon W. Sturge was the Hannibal Village & Town Historian for several years and once served as Village Mayor.  He also wrote "Hannibal's Historical Highlights"  published in 1949, which was recently reprinted by the Higginson Book Company (details on the main Society Page). 

Gordon was the adopted son of Frank G. and Jennie A. Wise
Sturge of Hannibal.  In later years, he traced the family line back to John Sturgis.

The present Town Historian, Lowell Newvine, says, "I took Gordon's research which was in the form of rough notes (He died before he had them all formally organized.), and along with my own research compiled this computer file.
Dorris, Gordon's wife, took over as Hannibal Historian after Gordon's death and served until I took the reins.  She was assisting me as a consultant for the book, "Hannibal History in Pictures and Prose" until her death at the age of 90."