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- St. Peter's was founded in 1848.
- During this time, North Rockland was becoming more populated with Catholics, many poor Irish peasants who worked in the brickyards. They brought with them their strong Catholic faith; however, if they wanted to celebrate mass they had to travel across the Hudson where the nearest Catholic church was.
- A small group of generous men met at Grassy Point to try to build a closer church. They pooled their money and purchased a lot on Ridge Street and work began on the first St. Peter's. Upon completion, Bishop John Hughes dedicated the church.
- Shortly after the church was completed, a cemetery was completed on Ridge Street which remained there for 15 years. The site actually began the current site for St. Peter's School.
- The very first priest at St. Peter's was Father Hackett, followed by Father Maguire, and the first two pastors were Father McKeon and Father Scollen followed by Father Mahoney who was pastor for 19 years.
- The brick industry was booming and more immigrants were moving to Haverstraw from Ireland, Germany, Poland, Italy, and Slovakia.
- The Ridge Street church was becoming too small for all the parishioners so the church was then moved to Broadway.
- In 1877, a piece of property was purchased for St. Peter's Cemetery, to permit the construction of St. Peter's first school. The cemetery is now located along Route 9W next to Mt. Repose Cemetery. It occupies over fifteen acres and has about 2500 graves. Almost all of the graves have been purchased. (The office is located in the cemetery; their telephone number is 845-429-4811.)
- In 1878, the rectory was moved from its original location on Ridge Street to its present location right next to the Broadway church.
- St. Peter's became the center of social life for Catholics in Haverstraw.
- Haverstraw was a close knit village; membership in the religious and social groups of the church made the parishioners of St. Peter's very close, and created the warmth in the parish which remains characteristic of St. Peter's.
- By the 1930's, Haverstraw was comprised of a different ethnic composition; now mostly Italians.
- St. Peter's had always been a parish of immigrants, a parish which had always been able to build unity among the diversity of its parishioners.
- By 1972, the composition of immigrants was again changed, this time to Spanish-speaking immigrants from the Dominican Republic, Puerto Rico, and Central America. This turned St. Peter's into a bilingual parish.
- St. Peter's remains a close community which reaches out to the local community and which warmly embraces the diverse ethnic groups that have moved into Haverstraw.
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| O God, who hast given unto Thy blessed Apostle Peter the keys to the kingdom of heaven, and the power to bind and loose: grant that we may be delivered, through the help of this intercession, from the slavery of all our sins: Who livest and reignest world without end. |
| Amen. |
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