The William Peter Mansion

This structure, completed in 1896, was the home of William Peter (1824-1899). Peter, a prominent Columbiaville businessman, was a rags-to-riches character. Around 1847 he came to the area from Germany via New York State, a penniless immigrant. Immediately he began working in a local sawmill. He invested his earnings in large tracts of land and platted the village of Columbiaville in 1871. From 1879 to 1899, Peter developed the community. He built a gristmill, a woolen mill, houses for his workmen, a school, a church and several commercial buildings. Most of Columbiaville was owned and dominated by him. His wife, Roxanna, planned this Italianate residence, which still displays its original hardwood floors and decorative woodwork in oak, mahogany, walnut, cherry and maple.