John M. Peterson
John Martin Peterson was born in Camden, New Jersey on April 15, 1892 to John and Maggie Peterson. By 1896 his family had moved to 1042 Dayton Avenue in the town of Stockton, which after uniting with Camden in 1899 was renamed North 18th Street. The Petersons remained at this address into the 1920s. The family next door for a number of years were the Behrends; their son Charles Behrend was killed in action while serving with the United States Army during World War I.
When John M. Peterson registered for the draft on June 5, 1917 he was living with his mother at 1042 North 18th Street in Camden's Cramer Hill section.
He served with the First Division in France as a private in Company D, 18th Infantry, enlisting September 21, 1917 and being discharged September 23, 1919. He served overseas 22 months and was wounded twice — by machine gun fire in the leg on July 19, 1918 in the Soissons Drive, and by shrapnel in the right lung on November 5, 1918 in the Argonne Forest.
John M. Peterson was appointed to the Camden Fire Department on December 18, 1919. He reported for duty at Engine Company 11 on January 1, 1920.
Fire Department records from 1931 show John M. Peterson residing at 1049 North 34th Street.
In 1932 he and fellow Engine Company 11 fireman Herman Dreas, both members of Corp. Mathews-Purnell Post 518, Veterans of Foreign Wars, received the Order of the Purple Heart; Peterson's award carried an oak leaf cluster.
Having reached the mandatory retirement age and having completed 36 years of distinguished service with Engine Company 11 of the Camden Fire Department, John M. Peterson retired on pension January 1, 1956. He moved out of Camden shortly afterwards.
John Martin Peterson's last days were spent in the area served by the Merchantville, New Jersey post office, i.e., in Merchantville or Pennsauken. He passed away in March of 1971.
World War I Draft Card
World War II Draft Card
Camden Fire Department Record
Tag: john-m-peterson
18th Street
Eighteenth Street runs from River Avenue north to just beyond Harrison Avenue in the Cramer Hill section of Camden, New Jersey. Originally called Dayton Avenue, it was renamed shortly after the 1900 Census.
Veteran Kills 12 in Mad Rampage on Camden Street
For a distinguished example of local reporting during the year, The New York Times submits the story by Meyer Berger of the mass shootings in Camden, New Jersey on September 6, 1949.
Fire Chief Guest at Honor Dinner
More than 60 comrades honored Fire Capt. Herman Kreher of Engine Company No. 11 at a dinner marking his fiftieth birthday and the eve of his retirement.
Funeral Rites Held for Nicholas Romaine
Funeral services were held in Camden for Nicholas Romaine, 48, a member of Engine Company No. 11, who died of injuries suffered fighting a junk-shop fire nearly eight years earlier.
2 Camden Veterans Get Honor Medals
Camden firemen John M. Peterson and Herman Dreas, both of Engine Company No. 11 and members of Corp. Mathews-Purnell Post 518, Veterans of Foreign Wars, received the Order of the Purple Heart for wounds suffered in France.