After serving in the navy, Peterson was a professor at Concord University in West Virginia and also was a faculty member at Marietta College.

After retiring from the limited edition print industry, Peterson continued to paint daily and designed work specifically for reproduction.

He enjoyed a 20 year long career as a Professor and eventually became the Head of the Art Department at Marietta College, Ohio.

As a full time painter, he soon established a national (and eventually international) reputation, initially through Illustrations for Wooden Boat, Cruising World, Sail and other nautical magazines.

From 1992 onward, associated with the White Door Publishing Company, he was listed by the U.S. Art Magazine as being among The Top Ten Most Popular in the nation's print industry.