John J. Peterson was born on August 27, 1917. He was married to Alfreda Peterson.

John served in the 571st Bomber Squadron, 390th Bomber Group, Heavy, as a Staff Sergeant and Right Waist Gunner of the B-17 #42-5903 'Ascend Charlie' during World War II. He was Killed in Action on September 16, 1943, when his airplane crashed into Pen Gwyllt Meirch, The Black Mountains, in Wales, UK. Having taken off from Framlingham Air Station in Suffolk to join a force of twenty-one B-17s on an operational mission over France, the bombing of the intended target had to be abandoned due to cloud cover, and instead, an opportunity target at La Rochelle in France was raided. During the attack, the aircraft was damaged by an anti-aircraft fire with the port-outer engine being put out of action. Returning from the attack the force encountered cloud and rain squalls, and on nearing the South West coast of England, the aircraft became separated from the formation. Around an hour later, at 21:20, 'Ascend Charlie' flew into the hilltop and burned out.

SSgt Peterson is now buried in the Cambridge American Cemetery, Cambridge, United Kingdom.

Source of information: www.abmc.gov, Aircraft Wrecks: The Walker's Guide : Historic Crash Sites on the Moors and Mountains of the British Isles