Last updated on January 7th, 2025
Every winter the historic Niels Petersen House in Tempe, Arizona, is adorned with Danish Christmas decorations and opened to the public. Now that the tree is decorated and the table set for a feast, it’s time to celebrate the holiday season while learning a bit about Tempe’s past.
Danish culture probably isn’t the first things that comes to mind when you visit Phoenix. However, one of Tempe’s founders was a Danish immigrant who became a prominent and wealthy farmer, businessman, and civic leader.
Now a house museum, the 1892 home of Niels Petersen preserves a bit of Tempe’s early history. And, at Christmas, it is filled with festive Danish Christmas decorations that reflect Petersen’s immigrant past.
- A Danish immigrant in Arizona
- History of the historic Queen Anne ranch house
- A Christmas visit to the Petersen House
- Plan your visit
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A Danish immigrant lives the American dream in Arizona
Arizona may seem like an odd place for a Danish immigrant to land. But Niels Petersen lived the American dream as rancher, businessman, and community leader in the Salt River Valley near Phoenix.
Petersen was born in a rural farming village in southwestern Denmark in 1845. But he didn’t stay there long – he joined the merchant marines as a teenager. It was a choice that took him around the world with stops in China, the Philippines, and the United States.
A Dane lands in Arizona
Accounts vary, but Petersen was in the USA to settle at least by 1870. He likely came to Arizona in 1871 with plans to prospect for gold. But it seems he quickly decided that a Salt River Valley farm would likely to offer a better payout than a prospector’s camp.
His timing was excellent.
When he arrived, a major canal was being constructed to irrigate the arid, but fertile land of the Salt River Valley. That irrigation system would eventually water more than 20,000 acres of fields and orchards. All of that was still in the future in 1871, but Petersen must have seen the area’s potential.
And there was still work to be done on the irrigation project. Petersen earned money clearing land and building diversion dams, canals, and ditches. It was hard work, but there was money to be made and the irrigation project was vital to the region’s agricultural success. And there were business opportunities as well. Petersen worked for Arizona entrepreneur Charles Hayden, a position that provided both income and a relationship with an important Arizona entrepreneur.
Niels Petersen becomes a property owner
But it seems that land was what Petersen really wanted.
To get it, he filed a claim in 1874 for 160 acres of prime agricultural land near what would someday become the city of Tempe. By 1883 Petersen was a naturalized US citizen with two adobe houses and 140 acres of wheat, barley, and alfalfa growing on that claim. And the land was now his.
But Petersen didn’t stop there. He continued expanding his agricultural holdings, both by filing additional claims and by buying property from others. His agricultural and business interests soon made him one of the wealthiest men in the area. At the same time, he became a well-respected member of the community and a leader in numerous social and civic organizations.
Even as his ranch grew to over 1,000 acres and his stature in the community rose, Petersen continued living in a small adobe house he built while homesteading his original claim. But by 1892 he was ready to remarry. (He lost both his first wife and infant child soon after the child’s birth some years earlier.)
He needed a house suitable for a woman used to a more comfortable life in an eastern city.
The life of a Queen Anne ranch house
In 1892 Petersen hired Arizona architect James Miller Creighton to design and build a home suitable for an eastern woman who was marrying a man of his wealth and social status.
Although Creighton didn’t arrive in Arizona until the 1880s, he was already a prominent architect when Petersen hired him. The Petersen’s house was among the first of several residential commissions the architect took on during this time. But those commissions came in the wake of notable public and commercial projects, including the Phoenix City Hall and the “Old Main” buildings at Arizona State in Tempe and the University of Arizona in Tucson.
Having hired Creighton, Petersen headed to Pennsylvania to marry Susanna Decker.
On their return, the couple moved into their new home.
Given Petersen’s prominence in the community, it’s likely the house was the scene of many social gatherings and events. In addition, Petersen also helped other Danish immigrants get their start in America by paying their passage in exchange for work on his ranch. In doing so, he was likely the nucleus of the area’s Danish community – a community which would have enjoyed reminders of their homeland at holiday gatherings.
The Petersens lived in their Queen Anne farm home until their deaths – Niels in 1923 and Susanna in 1927.
The Deckers move in
Susanna left the house and land to her nephew, the Reverend Edwin Decker.
Decker was living in Pennsylvania at the time, but he moved to Arizona to live in the house and, presumably, to manage the land attached to it.
Once there, Decker married a local woman. They modified the exterior by adding a two-story wood frame addition on one side. That provided space for an office with a private entrance, a bathroom, and storage. At the same time, they removed a number of decorative features from the house. They also updated the interior to better suit their needs and modern tastes.
Reverend Decker lived in the house until his death in 1948.
A pair of artists set the stage for the home’s preservation
After Reverend Decker’s passing, his widow moved into town. Like the Petersens, the Deckers had no children and the house was still part of a large working ranch in the country outside of Tempe. Thus, Mrs. Decker’s decision to move isn’t particularly surprising. More surprising is her decision to retain the property.
The house itself apparently sat vacant for a few years. It quickly began to deteriorate due to vandalism and general decay.
Fortunately, local artist Tom Harter and his wife began renting the house. The Harters had long admired the old Queen Anne and it served as their home, studio, and classroom. Under their care, the house was repaired and maintained. Even when the rest of the property was sold and subdivided for development in 1962, Mrs. Decker kept the house and surrounding 3 ½ acres, which she continued to rent to the Harters. Her decision saved it from being bulldozed for new development along with the rest of Tempe’s early farms and ranches.
When Mrs. Decker died in 1968, she left the property to the International Order of Oddfellows, an organization where Niels Petersen had been a member.
In 1977 the house was listed on the National Register of Historic Places.
It was donated to the city of Tempe in 1979. Full restorations of both the exterior and interior of the house were completed during the 1980s. That’s also when the last of the historic outbuildings on the property were demolished.
Today it is operated as a house museum by the Tempe History Museum.
Christmas at the Petersen House
In designing Petersen’s home, Creighton created a house that showed his client was a successful, forward-looking leader.
In choosing to design a Queen Anne Victorian, Creighton used the most popular residential style in America at the time. Queen Anne style homes were all the rage everywhere and building one showed good taste. But beyond being stylish, the Petersen House was constructed with modern materials. These included fanciful metal roof trim (now long gone) and newly available commercially-produced brick in place of handmade adobe bricks.
It was a large, beautiful house worthy of a man of Niels Petersen’s stature and wealth and built in a style that would be comfortable for Mrs. Petersen.
Local newspapers described it as the most elegant home in the Salt River Valley.
Typical of Queen Anne homes, the Petersen house has multiple gables, dormers, chimneys, and balconies. Most of these are ornamental. However, carefully aligned windows, gables, and dormers help ensure cool breezes flow through the house. In addition, the home’s brick exterior and high interior ceilings helped keep it cool during the Arizona summer.
The house also features decorative shingles and a wrap-around porch. The original exterior decoration once included metal trim on the roof and additional trim along the porch
The kitchen and an enclosed porch are in a one-story wing along one side of the house. Decker’s two-story wood frame addition is on the other side.
Inside the Petersen house
While serving as the base for Petersen’s large agricultural operation, the house was likely also a gathering place for Tempe’s leaders. As such, it would have been furnished and decorated in fine style.
Today the home’s 13 rooms are decorated to reflect two periods in its history:
- The main floor looks as it might have during the 1930s after the Petersen’s nephew, Reverend Decker and his wife, updated and expanded the house.
- The upstairs reflects the Victorian period when Niels and Susanna Petersen lived there.
Inside, the house feels cozy without feeling small. Formal rooms open into each other through wide archways or double sliding doors. That makes the house’s many rooms feel larger and more open than they are. However, it still feels modest; not at all like a 6,000 square foot house!
The main floor has a foyer, study, parlor, dining room, bedroom, bathroom, enclosed breezeway, and kitchen.
Today, this part of the house is furnished and decorated much as it would have been during the 1930s when Susanna Petersen’s nephew, the Reverend Edwin Decker lived here with his wife.
For the holidays, Christmas trees take pride of place, the table is set with the finest china, and the pantry is well-stocked.
From the main floor, a beautiful narrow stairway leads to three bedrooms, a bathroom, and a sitting room on the second floor.
While none of the furnishings apparently belonged to either the Petersens or Deckers, the house provides a sense of life in years past. And, while Tempe is no longer a dusty farm town of 1000 people, the house itself is still very much the building Niels Petersen had built for his new bride in 1892.
An old-fashioned Danish-American Christmas
Usually the Petersen House can only be seen as part of a pre-arranged group tour. However, each December the Tempe History Museum dresses the house up for Christmas and opens the doors to the public.
The Petersens held Christmas parties in their home. How they decorated and what sort of foods they served is unknown. However, as a center of the Danish community, it seems likely that Niels Petersen would have ensured there were at least a few Danish decorations and treats on hand to remind other immigrants of the home they left behind.
In that spirit, the History Museum uses Danish and other Scandinavian Christmas decorations throughout the house.
That includes festive Danish decorations on the Christmas tree.
And a guest bedroom is filled with Danish nisse, a type of gnome or elf associated with the winter solstice and Christmas.
(Besides being a popular guardian figure from ancient folklore, Nisse is also apparently a nickname for Niels. That makes it a particularly apt decoration for the Petersen museum!)
No room in the house is left undecorated. Even the bathroom is ready for the holidays!
There are even Danish Christmas cookies for guests. (Or, at least, there were cookies available in 2018.) However, while the dining room table is set for a Christmas feast, visitors must eat their Christmas cookies outside. But be sure to try one before you leave, as they are delicious.
Unexpected personal connections
I ended up at the Petersen house museum during an unusual December trip to Phoenix.
Having never before been to Phoenix at this time of year, I was searching for Christmassy things to do. At the same time, I was also searching for things that would interest my mother – the daughter of Danish immigrants who has now spent more than 30 winters in the Phoenix area. Surprisingly, in all those years she had never heard of the Petersen House. So, with the promise of Danish Christmas decorations and a Danish Christmas market, we decided to visit.
More surprises awaited once we arrived.
The table is set with my mother’s china
Not only did we find familiar decorations, but the dining table was set with the same Bing and Grondahl seagull china pattern we gave my mother many years ago. (Somewhat oddly, my father’s cousins in southern Sweden also own this pattern, which is where my mother first saw it.)
This Danish Christmas table setting in a historic house museum in Arizona could as easily be in the Midwestern ranch house where I grew up or the Swedish farmhouse of my cousins!
I assume the china on display did not actually belong to the Petersens. However, like the house, the pattern was created in 1892. So, it is possible they owned a set. The seagulls would have been a lovely reminder of the very different landscape surrounding Niels Petersen’s childhood home in Denmark.
We share family names
Niels Petersen emigrated from a town near my grandmother’s hometown. And, like my grandmother, Petersen’s father was a Mikkelsen. Not only that, but my grandmother’s uncle was a Petersen!
Of course, Danish names at that time usually still changed with each generation. And both Petersen (probably spelled Pedersen in Denmark) and Mikkelsen were common names. That means it’s not likely that I’m related to Niels Petersen, but it is possible.
The Petersen House is about connections
For me, the Petersen House was an unexpected portal to another time and place: A time when Tempe was a dusty farm town surrounded by fields where a hard-working Danish immigrant made the American dream come true. It’s a story of a specific person, place, and time. But it’s also the story of immigrants across America.
At the same time, the Petersen House was rich with connections to the world today and back to my ancestors.
Sometimes it’s hard to see a place as anything other than what it is today. Christmas at the Petersen House is an opportunity to step into the past and consider both our relationship our history and how it shaped the world we know today.
Plan your visit to the Petersen House
The historic Petersen House Museum is owned by the city of Tempe, Arizona, and operated by the Tempe History Museum. The house is located southeast of Phoenix, just northeast of the Interstate 10/Highway 60 interchange.
Generally, the house can only be visited as part of a pre-arranged group tour. Tours are available for groups of 10 or more between October and May. A small fee is charged for each participant.
However, during December, the Petersen House is opened to the public free of charge every Saturday and Sunday up until Christmas. During this time the house features Christmas decorations with a Danish flair. Danish refreshments, a small market with Christmas ornaments and gifts, and a variety of activities were also available on the grounds when I visited in December 2019.
The Petersen House is the oldest Queen Anne brick house in the Salt River Valley and is listed on the National Register of Historic Places. Exhibits inside tell the story of Tempe’s founding and Niels Petersen’s role in that history. The house has been restored, furnished, and decorated to reflect how it may have looked during the Victorian period (when Petersen lived there) and the 1930s.
The Tempe History Museum also operates a full-scale museum about the region’s history. That museum is located a little farther to the east of the Petersen House. It features exhibits built around four themes: College Town, Building Our Community, Living Together, and Surviving in the Desert. It also offers temporary exhibits on a variety of themes.
Visiting Tempe
Tempe is part of the vast Phoenix metropolitan area. As such, it’s easy enough to visit the Petersen House from almost anywhere in the area.
However, Tempe itself has a lot to offer as a destination.
That’s especially true for urbanites seeking a lively nightlife with lots of bars and restaurants. It’s a youthful, energetic city filled with art, college events, and sports. But there’s something for everyone.
Things to do in Tempe
While eating, drinking, and window shopping could easily fill a day or two in Tempe, there are plenty of other things to do.
Along with the Petersen House and the Tempe History Museum, the city is also home to the Arizona Heritage Center. The museum is operated by the Arizona Historical Society and features a range of exhibits.
Tempe has a fair amount of public art, but there are also a couple of noteworthy art museums.
- If you are at all interested in ceramics, the Ceramics Research Center at Brickyard is a must-see. Although the collection’s focus is contemporary work, with nearly 4,000 pieces ranging from ancient to modern, there’s something here for everyone. And, for the most part, all of it is on display – although some pieces are easier to see than others. It’s part of the Arizona State University Art Museum.
- The ASU Art Museum itself features exhibits focused on “socially, politically and environmentally engaged work by regional and international artists; innovative contemporary art practices; Latin American and Latinx artists; and 20th century and contemporary ceramics and craft.” This is a place to explore cutting edge art. A variety of other sites on the ASU campus in Tempe display work by university faculty and students.
While Tempe is pretty much fully developed, there are opportunities to get outdoors.
- Tempe Town Lake is the focal point for many community events and festivals. The lake also offers an opportunity to get out on the water on a paddleboard or small boat, which is a great way to beat the heat. If you are in town in mid-December, don’t miss the Christmas boat parade.
- Take a hike in Hayden Butte Preserve (“A” Mountain). The big “A” emblazoned on Hayden Butte is hard to miss even if you are just passing through Tempe. However, you need to actually hike the butte to discover fabulous views and remnants of the ancient Hohokam people who once lived in this area.
Baseball fans know Tempe Diablo Stadium as the home of the Los Angeles Angels of Anaheim during spring training. Several games a week are played at the stadium between the end of February and mid-March.
Of course, if you have a car, it’s a very easy drive to Scottsdale, the Desert Botanical Garden, and downtown Phoenix. Tempe is pretty much in the center of things.
Transit
Tempe is on the Valley Metro light rail system. That makes it a convenient (and more affordable) place to stay if you plan to spend time in downtown Phoenix and don’t want to rent a car. There are plenty of lodging and dining options near the light rail stops in Tempe and the train takes you right into downtown Phoenix. However, the train will not take you anywhere near the Petersen House.
Lodging in Tempe
I’ve never stayed in Tempe, but there are a lot of options available. There are even a fair number of hotels near the light rail line. If you plan to use light rail to get around, put your dates in TripAdvisor, Expedia, or Hotels.com and then switch to map view to see which hotels are near light rail stations.
Airbnb also offers a lot of options in Tempe, but their map view feature is more cumbersome to use.
Resources and further information
To learn more about Niels Petersen and his house:
- Watch this video produced by the Tempe History Museum or the video produced by CNN.
- Read the nomination form for inclusion on the National Register of Historic Places (PDF)
- Read a biography of Niels Petersen on the Tempe museum website.
Discover other historic buildings in “Historic buildings in Tempe you need to see” on azcentral.com
Read a Brief History or Tempe on the city’s website.
Learn about other Danish settlers in the book Early Danish Pioneers: Southern Arizona Territorial Days, by Avis Evelyn Knudsen Jorgenson. If you can’t find it at your local bookseller, you can get it at ABEbooks.
This is a beautiful Victorian style house with a very interesting history. As an immigrant myself, I can understand this Danish immigrant’s desire to build a house in America. We also had this dream when we came here. It’s so nice that they open the house to the public at Christmas time. I’d love to visit it sometime when I go to Arizona. I’ve never been in Tempe, but it’s not so far from Scottsdale where my sister lives. Maybe I’ll go there next Christmas.
So many people have come here seeking — and creating — a better life. That’s what makes America great. I love that a bit of that immigrant history is preserved as part of the history of this gorgeous house and the story of the founding of Tempe. And yes, it is close to Scottsdale, so you could easily visit if you make a Christmas trip to Arizona. Just keep in mind that Arizona can get a little chilly in December!