Mr. John G. Peterson was born in Germany in 1861 and came to the United States in 1881. He worked as a tinsmith in New York, Chicago and St. Louis. Mr. Peterson arrived in Juneau in April 1888 after serving in the U.S. Army for five years. While in Juneau, he operated a tin, stove and hardware store and spent his spare time prospecting. In 1893, he returned to Germany and married Miss Marie (Mary) Jensen.

In April 1899, Peterson staked a placer claim on the creek that now bears his name. By 1901, he devoted all of his time to mining and maintaining a principal lode claim half a mile east of Peterson Lake. In later years, Peterson built his home at Pearl Harbor and constructed a wagon trail from there to the mine, where a three-stamp mill was located. The mine remained in operation until shortly after his death in 1916. Mrs. Marie Peterson and her daughters, Irma and Margaret operated the mine for several years after his death.

In 1925, Irma Peterson married Mr. Charles (Carl) Olson of Sweden. Together they maintained a residence and homestead near the Peterson mine. Charles Olson died in Juneau in 1950 [?]. Mrs. Irma Peterson Olson lived to be 65 years old and died in Juneau in 1961. The couple's only child, Edward (Eddie) died in 1949.