St. Peter, South Side
St. Peter was founded in 1871 as a German ethnic parish. It was taken from St. Michael in response to the growth of population in the South Side. The cornerstone of the first church was laid on October 8, 1871 and the completed church was dedicated on March 17, 1872. This first church was a combination church and school, with the first floor being used as a school and the second floor as the church.
The population of the church grew so quickly that in a little over a year, on July 13, 1873, the cornerstone for a new church was laid. This church was dedicated on November 15, 1874. The old church was then used solely as a school.
This church served the parish until it was destroyed in a fire on March 7, 1952. This fire completely destroyed the building. A new church was built and dedicated on January 18, 1954.
As the growth of population led to the creation of the parish, the loss of population in the South Side in the 1970's and 1980's led to the closing of the parish. In 1992, the South Side parishes were merged and the new Prince of Peace parish was created. St. Peter church remained open, however, as now serves as a worship site for Prince of Peace.
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| The lower photo is the second church, the school in the upper right corner is the converted first church, circa 1880 | Interior of second church, undated | St. Peter Church, 1990 | Interior, 1990 |
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