Peter began buying wheat from local farmers and shipping it back to the eastern part of the U.S.

In 1873, Ole Ensberg started a blacksmith shop and in 1874 an additional quarter section of land was laid out into lots and added to the village of Peterson.

Also in that year fifteen additional acres were platted and Prospect Park, Mill, Centennial, Fillmore, Church, and Myrtle Streets were named.

In 1876, a mill was built with farmers living in the surrounding areas subscribing most of the stock.

In 1882, the Minnesota and Dakota Gazetteer, gave a contemporary description of Peterson: "An unincorporated village of 100 inhabitants in Rushford Township, northeastern part of Fillmore County, and a station on the Southern Minnesota Railroad, 25 miles from Preston and 120 miles from Minneapolis.

A steam flour mill is also in operation in the village and there is a Lutheran church and district school.

Modes of communication are: Western Union Telegraph, American Express, two stages semi-weekly from Pilot Mound to Peterson via Arendahl and daily mail service."

Very little is known about his early years, or that of his family  however records show he  emigrated  to the  United States at age 14 on  May 14, 1843 with his sister Ragnild and  her husband Gullick O. Laugen.

Their  ship "Hercules" set sail  with 55 passengers from Norway and arrived in New York  ninety seven days later.

There were many reasons for the emigrations from Norway  to the United States in the 1800s  but economics  and/or religion usually played a big part and we don't know that of Peter Haslerud but we do know that one of the first churches in the village he founded was based on the  principles of  Hans Nielsen Hauge  (see Wikipedia's entry on Hauge).

After early years in Wisconsin and  Illinois (where he met and married Cornelia Aslaksdtter Anderson Teigen (born October 1, 1824- died April 15, 1892).

He plated and planned the village- seeing that schools and churches were built, naming streets and parks, establishing grain elevators and trout farms.

Peter lived in the  home from its origin in  1853 until his death in  September 1880, his wife Cornelia died there in  April 1892.

Peterson is one of several towns intersected by the Root River segment of the Blufflands State Trail.