Person:Peter Peterson (44)

At the age of 20 Peter Peterson went to California during the Gold Rush of 1849 and opened a general store to sell miners things they neede

He arrived in Butte des Morts, WI, in 1850. in 1859 he purchased the Grignon Hotel and turned it into a trading post and general store. He spoke six languages: English, Norwegian, German, and French plus Fox and Winnebago Indian. These languages were needed to run a trading post at this time. During the Civil War he paid a fee to not be be drafted so he could continue to expand his business. By the time of his death in 1900, he had become a wealthy man. Besides the general store, he owned much property in Butte des Morts including the farm East of the junction where one enters the town coming from Oshkosh on Route 110.

His son Percival became Administrator of the estate and settlement of the property in 1901 gave it to him and his sister Frances. His mother had no knowledge or interest in business. As a German Hausfrau, her interests were "Kuchen, Kirke, and Kinder". Percival sold the store to John J. Boe, a 31 year old Norwegian who had been Peter Peterson's clerk. John Boe married Peter's 53 year old widow, Bertha, as sort of marriage of convenience in 1902. He was a kindly, soft-spoken man who continued the business, although on a lesser scale, until his death in August 1952.

The playground in the center of Butte des Morts was given to the community by Percival. The Trading Post is on the corner where Main St. turns North. The Donkle summer home is a single story house with pillars in front overlooking the Fox River. It is just Southeast of the Trading Post.

Peter is buried with his wife, Bertha Bogk, and John Boe in Plumber's Cemetery, which is located about half way from Butte des Morts to Oshkosh on the South side of Route 110. Bertha's parents, and their other children, are buried in an adjacent lot on the North.

His tombstone says he was born in Christiansand, Norway. Church records in Kristiansand, Norway, show he was born there on 31 December 1829. A September 1998 visit to the Riksarkivet in Oslo showed this. It also revealed the following about his birth. ( Statsarkivet, Church Books, Kristiansand, Book 26, 1830, Page 36, Line 25, Microfilm 1456. It was written by the bell ringer, secretary, and sexton at the Lutheran Church in Kristiansand. Microfilm 1453-1454 also shows births, marriages, and deaths. No record of Karen and Peter's marriage was found up to 1836, "vigde", Microfilm HF 1457. Family records indicate Peter was born on December 29, 1829, instead of the 31 st date shown in the church records. The last name Nes, pronounced "Nays", was added to Peter Larson's name later.( This was apparently not an unusual practice in Norway at that time.) :

    Born:31 Dec 1829
    Baptized: 17 Jan 1830
    Full Name of Child:  Peter Cornelius  (Born out of  wedlock)
    Parents Name and Where They Lived : Peter Larson, made liquor (probably Aquavit).   Karen Christensdatter, lived in the house of Ole Tellefsen.
    Witnesses to Baptism :  Berthe Tellefsdatter (Probably sister of Ole), John Owensens Enke (John Owensen's widow), Kristen Olsdatter (Probably daughter of Ole), Torg Torgesen (Probably a servant at Ole's), Jorgen Simensen (Son of Simen).
    Baptism  in : Church
    Remarks : Ingeborg Dorthe Mortensdatter told the Priest that a child was born and the parents were not married.

It is unknown how Peter got to California at the age of 19, had enough money to open a General Store and had the business skills to run it. But, since his father must have had some wealth as a liquor maker, Peter probably was given the capital to get started in America by his father, as well as some training in the ways of business.