Peters Township

Peters Township was incorporated in 1781 as one of Washington County's thirteen original townships. It had fallen within the area claimed by Virginia as its Yohogania County before the resolution of that state's boundary dispute with Pennsylvania. Over the years, portions of Peters Township were sectioned off to form other municipalities; eventually, leaving the present configuration of 19.5 square miles (51 km2).

Peters Township was named after William "Indian" Peters. There is uncertainty regarding Peters' race, with some sources holding that he was an Indian and others that he was a white man who traded with local Indians. Regardless, the Indian name has long been associated with Peters Township.

Some of the first settlers were James and Joshua Wright, James Matthews, John Sweringer, Rev. David Phillips, Andrew Dunlevy, Daniel Townsend, William Fife, and Robert Bell. Peters was initially a farming community and then later on coal became a major industry that resulted in the development of Hackett, presently a small settlement 1.2 miles (2 km) east of Venetia.

Peters Township remained a sparsely populated rural community until the 1950s. In 1950 the population was 3,004. By 2000, this number had increased to 17,556. In 1976, the township's home rule charter became effective. This altered the form of government from the prevalent Second Class Township Supervisor format to the present Council-Manager form.

The township's current arrowhead logo was adopted with the new home rule charter. An arrowhead found in Peters Township was adopted as the pattern.[3]

Peterswood Park, located in the township, is home to the Peters Township Recreation Center, as well as several football, baseball, softball, and soccer fields. In addition, there is an amphitheater as well as several pavilions.

 

According to the United States Census Bureau, the township has a total area of 19.8 square miles (51.2 km2), of which 19.6 square miles (50.7 km2) is land and 0.2 square miles (0.5 km2) is water. The main thoroughfares in Peters Township are U.S. Route 19 heading north and south, and East McMurray Road heading east and west.

 

Peters Township has six borders, including Upper St. Clair Township and Bethel Park (both in Allegheny County) to the north, Union Township to the east, Nottingham Township to the south, North Strabane Township to the south and southwest, and Cecil Township to the west.

Welcome to Peters Township School District! Every day we welcome more than 4,300 students into our classrooms to challenge and support their efforts in academics, activities and athletics. While we are widely known for our academic achievements across the state, the success of our students goes well beyond those statistics. Our dedicated and experienced staff seeks to have a positive impact on the lives of each student during their time in Peters Township – with each student we reach, we are making our mark.