Peterson Elementary School celebrated 150 years of educating youngsters with displays, refreshments, a history lesson (naturally) and tours of Little Red, the best-known building on campus.
Peterson, at 9710 W. Central, is the oldest school in Wichita USD 259 operating at its original location, although it started out as a county school known by another name.
The Dec. 13 event drew about 300 people, many of them former staff and students. “Pretty much all of them came because they had a tie to Peterson,” Principal Matt Phillips said. “It’s just a good reminder of how special the community and people here at Peterson are.”
According to a history compiled by retired teacher Deanne Alexander, the land for Peterson was donated by Daniel Peterson, who emigrated to the United States from Sweden in 1866, living for a time in Leavenworth. Peterson’s brother followed two years later, only to die a few days after his arrival. Daniel Peterson married his widowed sister-in-law, Carrie, and the two homesteaded in Sedgwick County near Wichita in 1870…