Benjamin LaRoy "Pete" Peters Sr.

Benjamin LaRoy "Pete" Peters Sr.

IowaConfirmed

Dorothy's father · 1905–1993

Born

12 October 1905, Franklin County, Iowa

Died

9 April 1993, Schertz, Guadalupe County, Texas

Buried

Lakeview Cemetery, Clear Lake, Deuel County, South Dakota

Parents

Benjamin L. A. & Benjamine Peters

Sources

12

Images

1

Research status

Research status: CONFIRMED — named as father of Dorothy LaVonne Peters in her obituary S36; also S40S41

Life in the order the records give it

Birth1905

Born 12 October 1905, Franklin County, Iowa; died 9 April 1993, Schertz, Guadalupe County, Texas S38S41S42

Record—

His Social Security NUMIDENT entry gives the birth date, the death date and a death ZIP of 78154 — Schertz, Texas, near San Antonio, where his daughter Shirley lived. His SSN was issued in South Dakota S38

Burial—

Buried Lakeview Cemetery, Clear Lake, Deuel County, South Dakota, plot Block C Lot 16 Grave E2

returned to his wife's birthplace for burial S41

Record—

The SSA death date and the headstone agree exactly S38S41

Work—

He worked in a railway yard. His son's obituary: "As a teenager he would visit the train yard where his dad worked and even operate one of the engines sometimes" S40

Birth—

His fuller given name "Benjamin La Roy B Peters" and a birthplace of Scott, Franklin County, Iowa rest on an online tree alone Probable S42

Census1950

🆕 In 1950 he was 44, a stationary fireman at the railway roundhouse, living at 1032 Duluth, Sioux Falls, with Selma and their children LeRoy, Marlene, Betty and Eileen Confirmed S953. added 29 September 2026

Military1940

🆕 His own 1940 draft card gives his birthplace as Alexander, Iowa, in Franklin County, and his employer as John Morrell & Co., the Sioux Falls meatpackers; he was 35, at 1810 E. 5th Street, and named his wife, Mrs. Selma Gertrude Peters Confirmed S962. added 29 September 2026

Record1952

🆕 In his own hand, on his 1952 Railroad Retirement Board card, he named his father Ben Peters, still living, and his mother, by her name before marriage, Edna Osborn, who had died. He was 46, at 1032 No. Duluth Ave., Sioux Falls, and had just become a carman for the Omaha Road Confirmed S965. His parents' card links stay Probable for now; this is a second original naming them, beside the 1910 census. added 29 September 2026

Census1920

🆕 In January 1920, 14 and entered as La Roy B., he was the son in his mother Edna B.’s household in Florida Township, Yellow Medicine County, Minnesota, with his sisters Eva M., 16, and Hazel F., 9 (born Oklahoma), and his brothers Clifford L., 12, and Russell R., 3 months (born South Dakota) Confirmed S1052. His father heads the household on the previous sheet, which has not been read. added 29 September 2026

Family parents, marriages, children, siblings

Parents1910

🆕 His parents are now on records. In 1910, aged 4 and entered as Benjamin L. A., he was the son in the household of Benjamine Peters, 28, a farmer born in Iowa of German-born parents, and Edna B., 26, born Indiana, married seven years, at Vernon township, Kay County, Oklahoma, with his sister Eva M. and brother Clifford L. S659. With the 1903 Franklin County marriage of Benjamin Peters and Edna B. Orsborn, that confirms both. added 26 September 2026.

Parents1903

🆕 His grandparents now have their own cards. His father Benjamin's parents were John Peters and Sophia Hermann, and his mother Edna's were John W. Orsborn and Armenia Howard, all four named on his parents' 1903 Franklin County marriage return S791; his father's 1957 death certificate names John Peters and Sophia Herman again S785. added 28 September 2026.

Photos & documents 0 photos · 1 document

Documents (1)

Documents · 1 page image all documents

Retrieved from the UNT Libraries' Portal to Texas History, or — for the University of Texas Cactus yearbooks — from Texas ScholarWorks. Each thumbnail opens the full page scan, which can also be downloaded. The quoted text is the OCR that ships with the scan, copied verbatim; the page image is the authority.

Open full page

1910 United States Federal Census — Vernon twp, Kay Co., Oklahoma, ED 71, sh. 9A (Ancestry record 169535935) · **S659** — page sh. 9A

Federal census schedule · 1910

Confirmed because Image read: Benjamin L. A. Peters, son, 4, b. Iowa, in the household of Benjamine (28) and Edna B. (26). With the 1903 Franklin Co. marriage return (Benjamin Peters × Edna B. Orsborn) and LaRoy's 1905 Iowa birth this joins LaRoy to both parents..

View full page Download image

In the record Generation 4 — Kristin's maternal great-grandparents

1. S36Obituary of Dorothy LaVonne Peters Walker (12 February 1926 – 13 August 2022), Greenwood Funeral Home, Fort Worth — greenwoodfuneralhomes.com; the same text transcribed on FindAGrave memorial 242876604, Mount Olivet Cemetery, Fort Worth. Family-written. It names her husband "Melvin Walker," her parents "Benjamin 'Pete' and Selma Peters," her three daughters, her Chicago birth and Sioux Falls upbringing, the Norway trips, and — decisively — "Kristin (Earl) Proeger […]" among her grandchildren. ⚠️ Only the funeral home's own copy carries the "ROUND ROCK" dateline; the FindAGrave transcription drops it. The funeral home's page is published in full in the Documents grid (Earl's per-item exception, 25 Sep 2026).
2. S38US Social Security NUMIDENT — Walker and Peters entries, republished verbatim at SortedByName.com — walker/index_707 and peters/index_123. A government record; parent fields come from the person's own SS-5 application. Gives "WALKER, CLARENCE MELVIN … born 5 November 1920 in LOLITA, Texas, son of DANIEL J WALKER and NETTIE CLEVLAND … died 23 July 1991," and "PETERS, BENJAMIN L … born 12 October 1905 … died 9 April 1993, while residing in Zip Code 78154" (Schertz, Guadalupe County, Texas). Both sets of dates match the headstones exactly and independently.
3. S40Obituaries of Dorothy's siblings — LaRoy J. "Pete" Peters (d. 25 January 2021), Miller Funeral Home, Sioux Falls, South Dakota, millerfh.com; and Betty Jane Sanders (d. 10 September 2013), Pitts Chapel, Bolivar, Missouri, via Legacy.com. A third, Shirley Darlene Peltier's (May 2026), names the same parents. Two funeral homes, two states, eight years apart, both spelling the mother's maiden name Selland. Betty's names "Dorothy Walker of Fort Worth, TX" as a sibling, which is what proves it is this family and not a same-name collision.
4. S41FindAGrave memorials 70460076 and 70460158 — Benjamin L. Peters (1905–1993), plot Block C Lot 16 Grave E2, and Selma Selland Peters (1903–1991), Grave E1, the adjacent plot — Lakeview Cemetery, Clear Lake, Deuel County, South Dakota. Headstone transcriptions. Benjamin's SSA death date and the stone agree exactly. Family links on FindAGrave are contributor-asserted and are corroboration only; the obituaries at S40 carry the finding on their own.
5. S42Toni Walker Family Tree, hosted by Ontario Ancestors — ontariofamilyhistory.org. A user-submitted tree, not a record. Everything drawn from it is tagged Probable and nothing else on this page depends on it: the fuller given names "Benjamin La Roy B" and "Gertie," the 16 November 1925 Deuel County marriage, and the four names in the generation above Benjamin and Selma. The tree's own dates and places are confirmed, but by S38 and S41, not by it. Last modified 22 January 2025; it still lists Dorothy as living.
6. S6591910 U.S. census — Vernon township, Kay County, Oklahoma, ED 71, sheet 9A, dwelling 187. Ancestry record 169535935. Image examined, read 26 September 2026. Confirmed Benjamine Peters, 28, farmer, born Iowa of German-born parents, married 7 years; Edna B., 26, born Indiana; Eva M., 6; Benjamin L. A., son, 4, born Iowa; Clifford L., 2. With the 1903 Franklin County marriage return this joins LaRoy Peters to both parents on records, not on a tree.
7. S785Iowa death certificate 114-57-00227: Benjamin Peters, died Sioux Rapids, 19 January 1957. Ancestry record 750938128. Image examined in the Stage 2 reading, 26 September 2026. Confirmed Benjamin Peters, a widowed farmer, died 19 January 1957 at Sioux Rapids Hospital, Buena Vista County; buried 21 January in Marathon Cemetery. Father John Peters, mother Sophia Herman. It gives his birth as 12 December 1882; his own draft card (S786), the 1900 census and the marriage return all say 1881. Collection: Iowa, U.S., Death Records.
8. S791Franklin County, Iowa, return of marriages 1903, licence 1501: Benjamin Peters and Edna B. Orsborn. Ancestry record 903647093. Image examined in the Stage 2 reading, 26 September 2026. Confirmed Benjamin Peters, 22, born Cedar Falls, farmer of Alexander, son of John Peters and Sophia Hermann, married Edna B. Orsborn, 19, born Lawrenceburg, Indiana, daughter of John W. Orsborn and Armenia Howard, at Alexander on 1 April 1903, by J. C. Shirk, M.G.; witnesses Ray and Nettie Pence. The site had this marriage from a transcript; this is the image of the return. Collection: Iowa, U.S., Marriage Records, 1880–1950.
9. S9531950 United States Federal Census — Sioux Falls, Minnehaha County, South Dakota, ED 50-76, sheet 80, lines 16–21 (May 1950). Ancestry record 8605848. Image examined in the Stage 2 reading, 24–25 September 2026. Confirmed Dwelling 92, 1032 Duluth: Peters, Benjamin L., head, 44, born Iowa, stationary fireman at the railway roundhouse; Selma J., wife, 46, born South Dakota, keeping house; LeRoy J., son, 20, born Iowa; Marlene E., 15; Betty J., 13; and Eileen Y., 6. On Selma's sample line both her parents were born in Norway. The "J." is the enumerator's. Every other record gives Gertie Selma, and the site does not add a middle initial. Collection: 1950 United States Federal Census.
10. S962U.S. World War II draft registration card, serial 577, order 2139 — Benjiman Laroy Peters, Sioux Falls, South Dakota (1940). Ancestry record 197723141. Image examined in the Stage 2 reading, 24 September 2026. Confirmed Benjiman Laroy Peters (so printed, and so signed), 1810 E. 5th Street, Sioux Falls, Minnehaha County; age 35; born 12 October 1905 at Alexander, Iowa; contact his wife, Mrs. Selma Gertrude Peters, same address; employer John Morrell & Co., Sioux Falls. Only the front of the card was read; the registration date and physical description are from the index. The index reads the name "Benginan". Alexander is in Franklin County. Collection: U.S., World War II Draft Cards Young Men, 1940–1947.
11. S965U.S. Railroad Retirement Board employee registration card (Form CER-1) — Benjamin LaRoy Peters, Sioux Falls, South Dakota, signed 26 February 1952. Ancestry record 119371. Image examined in the Stage 2 reading, 24 September 2026. Confirmed Benjamin LaRoy Peters, signed “B L Peters”, 1032 No. Duluth Ave., Sioux Falls; age 46; born 12 October 1905 at Alexander, Iowa; father Ben Peters, living; mother's name before marriage Edna Osborn, dead. Carman for the C.St.P.M.&O. Ry. Co. (the Omaha Road) at Sioux Falls, entered service February 1952. He was his own informant. His mother's maiden name is spelled Osborn here; her 1903 marriage return reads Orsborn, and the site keeps Orsborn. Social Security number not transcribed. Collection: U.S., Chicago and North Western Railroad Employment Records, 1935–1970 (db 6944, image 42035_520307001_0144-02246).
12. S10521920 United States Federal Census — Florida Township, Yellow Medicine County, Minnesota, E.D. 201, sheet 8A. Ancestry record 48255115. Image examined in the Stage 2 reading, 24 September 2026. Confirmed 30 January 1920: continuing a Peters household from the previous sheet, Edna B., wife, 35, born Indiana; Eva M., daughter, 16, born Iowa; La Roy B., son, 14, born Iowa, at school; Clifford L., son, 12, born Iowa; Hazel F., daughter, 9, born Oklahoma; Russell R., son, 3 months, born South Dakota; the father of every child born Iowa. The head (indexed as Ben Peters, 37) is on sheet 7B, which has not been read; the surname is carried over from that sheet.