St. Peter's is the oldest of the 36 Roman Catholic parishes on Staten Island, having been established in 1839, before the second-oldest St. Mary's (1852) and the third-oldest St. Joseph's (1855).

James Roosevelt Bayley, nephew of Elizabeth Ann Seton and future Archbishop of Baltimore, was appointed pastor of St. Peter's, Staten Island.

The cornerstone of a new church was laid in August 1900 by John Cardinal Farley,[5] who had earlier served the parish in his first priestly assignment.

[8] The current church building was designed by the firm of George Edward Harding & Gooch in neo-Romanesque style with Gothic accents.

[4] In the early 1950s, the De LaSalle Christian Brothers offered Seventh, Eighth and 9th Grade classes for boys in the Richmond Terrace building.