Petersen House Museum

Such a lovely mansion from the late 1800's early 1900's Museum with some great Tempe history involved. There is a lovely garden area outside for events and a kid's city park next door keeping with the farm cattle theme that the mansion once was. They are not open all the time but have an event schedule on the website. My friend is the creator of the Vintage Society so we had a garden party here yesterday and it was so, so, so lovely. If you can get to an event here it is wonderful. Check it out. I hear the holidays are really spectacular. Fair note, most of the mansion has been renovated and has non original, but still period era appropriate, pieces. However, there are still original pieces and the stain glass windows are original to the house. No public bathrooms only port a potty if you need to know that.All of the staff that we met were outstanding. I am not sure if the tours are given by Docents, volunteers, or paid staff but they were all so lovely, knowledgable, kind, and very helpful. I would go back here to an event in a minute. If you are looking for a unique venue space for a smaller maybe under 100 outdoor party this just might fit your bill. We had about 80 and it was perfect, with plenty of rooms for tables and high tops, a food buffet and even musicians.

What fun and decorated for the holidays a total win. What a great spot of history to visit in the heart of Tempe. Self guided.

They have really upgraded this park and it's terrific.We had a lot of fun taking my niece and playing with the kids on the playground, hide and seek, slides, they thought of everything.We even made up a game for the built in circular board game in the ground.There is a lot of room for kick ball. Riding scooters and bikes and playing frisbee.There is also a covered pergola to have lunch, we brought a snack, they even have a trash bin and recycling. We will spend a lot of time here, this is a great park.

The Petersen House is a local historic landmark that was built by Niels Petersen who immigrated from Denmark. The Queen Anne Style architecture house is located in Tempe and was build in the late 1800's. I grew up close to this house and we used to drive by it all the time when I was little. I just recently visited it for the first time this past Christmas. It's a beautiful home and is well preserved. They offer free tours during the holiday season and usually have refreshments outside for visiting guests. They even decorate the home with a Danish flair to honor Niels Petersen. The tours are self-guided but there are people on hand who give you some brief background information of each of the rooms. I had a really nice visit and enjoyed seeing all the different antiques and decor from back in the day. Tempe History Museum offers group tours with a suggested donation during the summer. But I suggest going during the holidays when they open it up to the public. The Christmas decor really adds to the experience.

I am quite surprised nobody has ever gone here and reviewed this on Yelp. It's been open to the public for as long as I can remember. My mom has volunteered here for about that long as well.If you're a fan of Victorian homes, local history, or even just history in general then you should definitely check out the Petersen House. It's just as beautiful on the inside as it is on the outside.Unfortunately, it's closing to the public VERY soon because the city just can't afford to keep it running... but they should re-open it around Christmas time for Danish Christmas. So if you aren't lucky enough to swing by in the next week or so... come back around Christmas!

For years I have passed by the Petersen House always curious about it but never stopping to take a look. It used to be open year-round for tours but now due to budget cuts it's only open at Christmas. (and occasional school groups I believe) So I decided this year I would finally get over there and check this place out. What a gem! And it was free!The house looks pretty big from the outside but inside it's actually fairly small. You could say it's charming and quaint. The house was decorated for a Danish Christmas - the Petersen's were Danish - complete with two Christmas trees and many Nissa hidden around the house. There was a wonderful volunteer there who told us the story of the Nisse - a little elf-like character who would protect the house and farm. This women was a gifted storyteller. I swear I hung on every word of her story about the Nisse as if I was 5-years old. It was so enjoyable. On the main floor is the living room, dining room and kitchen. Upstairs are a few bedrooms and a bathroom. The bathroom was closed to the public because it had been renovated by the last owners and did not fit the look of the rest of the house.It was so fun to get a glimpse into what life was life for someone here in the early 1900s. Very different than today I'd say. I hope the city can continue to find enough funding and volunteers to keep the house open, even if its just at the holidays because it would be such a shame to lose this piece of Tempe's past.

This place deserves more reviews. I went here several times. The most recent trip was a little date with my husband. Just to get out, you know? It's free. I only went about six months ago and they were still operating with volunteers. A docent is there to tour you. They are always informative. This is an authentic Victorian style house and I would recommend it to anyone that is an interior design student, if you're homeschooling your children, if you're trying to beat the heat of summer, if you want to go on a picnic (there is a grassy, shady area) and if you're new to Tempe. I know they used to do weddings there. They might still do weddings there and it would be very picturesque. Many years ago, I took my tabby there and snuck to the front porch to do some portraits on the rocking chair with the lacy curtains in the background. As I was taking pictures, one of the docents came out to see what was up and she was very cool with what I was doing and let me finish. The cat is dead now but I still have those nice pictures.

Yesterday I was stop by the Petersen House, Museum! I had a great time with myself guided!

Beautiful historic home dating back to the late 1800's in Tempe. The exterior is gorgeous. The interior Includes a large parlor, dining room, and kitchen on the first floor, and several bedrooms and a 1930's era bathroom on the second floor. The period decor is interesting and lovely. A glimpse into early Tempe. It is only open without an appointment a few times a year. This year it's open on March 2nd and the first 3 weekends of December. Definitely worth visiting when you have the opportunity.

I've toured this beautiful "Grand Lady" three times, and have photographed it extensively throughout. I'm surprised that no one has mentioned that this house may be haunted. I discovered this later, when I looked at the photos on my computer.The face of Niels Peterson has been photographed looking out of a ground-floor window. The face of a woman has been photographed looking out of an upstairs bedroom window. The apparition of a man (not Mr. Peterson) in an early 1920s - '30s formal tux has been photographed through the window of the dining room from outside the house. Several photos taken inside the house show white and green orbs in the upstairs master bedroom and downstairs on the antique sofa across from the front door.It would be a real shame if the house was closed to the public...I think it would make a nice place for weddings, receptions, etc.