Peterson Iowa Map
Explore Peterson, Iowa, with this interactive street and satellite map.
Interactive Map of Peterson, Iowa
| City | Peterson |
| State | Iowa (IA) |
| County | Clay County |
| Country | United States of America |
| Timezone | Central Time (America/Chicago) |
| Latitude | 42.918033 |
| Longitude | -95.343889 |
| Population | 322 |
| Density | 239.5 /km² |
| Incorporated | Yes |
| ZIP Code | 51047 |
| Area Code | 563 |
| County Seat | Spencer |
| School District | Sioux Central Community School District |
About Peterson, Iowa
Peterson is a locality in Clay County, Iowa, United States. It is a small community with a population of 322. The population density is 239.5 people per km². Peterson is located at 42.9180°N, 95.3439°W. It observes the Central Time (America/Chicago) timezone. Peterson is an incorporated locality. ZIP code: 51047.Peterson anchors itself within the undulating expanse of the Iowa prairie where the Little Sioux River carves a deliberate, winding path through the valley floor. It lies 18.4 miles south-southwest of Spencer, IA (from Spencer, IA: bearing 213°T), and is situated 15.7 miles northeast of Cherokee. The landscape radiates outward in a grid of precise, tilled furrows, defined by the seasonal transformation of corn and soybeans that mirror the shifting intensity of the Midwestern sun. Wanata Park provides a verdant corridor along the riverbanks, offering a quiet sanctuary where the heavy, humid air of midsummer clings to the dense woodland canopy. Across the horizon, the land stretches in vast, muted tones of green and gold, broken only by the occasional silhouette of a farmstead or the distant, stoic presence of Pilot Rock rising nineteen miles away like a singular, grounded sentinel.
Peterson carries the weight of a frontier history rooted in the grit of early settlers who recognized the agricultural potential of these fertile bottomlands. The regional economy remains tethered to the rhythm of the harvest, a cycle that dictates the slow, deliberate pace of daily commerce and community interaction. While Storm Lake sits twenty miles to the east as a regional focal point, the life of the local inhabitants remains inextricably linked to the currents of the Little Sioux River and the persistent, unshowy labor of the fields. There is a distinct, literate civility here, a quiet pride in the Scandinavian and German threads of the local heritage that persist in the architecture and the cautious, thoughtful manner of the people who call Peterson their own.
Nearby Outdoor Places
- Wanata Park (Local Park) — 0.2 mi, 173° S
- Bertram Reservation (Local Conservation Area) — 1.1 mi, 066° NE
- Gary Christiansen Wildlife Area (Local Conservation Area) — 1.6 mi, 179° S
- Buena Vista County Conservation Park (Local Park) — 1.9 mi, 179° S
- Thompson Wildlife Management Area (State Conservation Area) — 1.9 mi, 321° NW
- Waterman Prairie Complex (State Conservation Area) — 3.5 mi, 295° NW
- Bluebird Access (State Recreation Area) — 5.3 mi, 106° E
- Northern Tallgrass Prairie National Wildlife Refuge (National Wildlife Refuge) — 5.5 mi, 317° NW · 12k acres
- Soo Access (State Recreation Area) — 6.8 mi, 247° SW
- Sioux Rapids Area Historical Association Museum (Museum) — 9.9 mi, 100° E
- Sanford Museum and Planetarium (Museum) — 15.6 mi, 222° SW
- Tallman Museum (Museum) — 16.1 mi, 226° SW
- Southpark 7 Theatres (Cinema) — 17.3 mi, 033° NE
- Parker Historical Museum (Museum) — 18.5 mi, 034° NE
- L.M. & O. Railroad Museum (Museum) — 18.8 mi, 103° E
- J. Leslie Rollins Stadium (Stadium) — 20.5 mi, 160° S
- O'Brien County Freedom Rock (Monument) — 24.3 mi, 320° NW
- Quimby Centenial Train Mural (Public Artwork) — 25.0 mi, 217° SW
- Firefighter Memorial Benches (Monument) — 25.0 mi, 217° SW
- Milford Pioneer Theatre (Cinema) — 29.7 mi, 019° N
- Gull Point State Park (State Park) — 32.0 mi, 015° N
- Bike Monument (Monument) — 32.4 mi, 015° N
- Ranch Amusement Park (Theme Park) — 34.6 mi, 019° N
- Okoboji Summer Theatre (Theatre) — 34.6 mi, 018° N
- Pearson Lakes Art Center (Arts Centre) — 34.7 mi, 018° N
- Wild Rose Casino and Resort (Attraction) — 37.1 mi, 068° E
- Fighter jets (Attraction) — 38.1 mi, 216° SW
- Five Island Lake Wildlife Management Area (Nature Reserve) — 38.7 mi, 064° NE
- Twin Lakes State Park (State Park) — 46.9 mi, 130° SE
- Union Slough National Wildlife Refuge (National Wildlife Refuge) — 62.5 mi, 071° E · 5,668 acres
Latest News: Peterson
Loading news…
World News
Loading news-world…
More World News
Loading news-world…
About This Peterson Map Page
This page provides an embedded street and satellite map of Peterson, Iowa. Coordinates: 42.918033, -95.343889. Live weather conditions are sourced directly from the National Weather Service. Real-time local and world news feeds keep the page current.
Detailed location data for Peterson includes the ZIP code (51047), telephone area code (563), county seat of Clay County (Spencer), and school district assignment (Sioux Central Community School District).
Location data is drawn from the USGS Geographic Names Information System (GNIS) and cross-verified against 2020 US Census records by coordinate proximity. Population figures are sourced from the 2020 US Census.
| Page generated | August 2026 |
| Location data | SimpleMaps US Cities Database; coordinates matched to USGS GNIS definitive data |
| Wikipedia validation | Article content matched to USGS GNIS coordinates via Wikipedia geosearch API. |
