Petersburg is a small unincorporated community

Unincorporated area

In law, an unincorporated area is a region of land that is not a part of any municipality.To "incorporate" in this context means to form a municipal corporation, a city, town, or village with its own government. An unincorporated community is usually not subject to or taxed by a municipal government...

 in southeastern Springfield Township

Springfield Township, Mahoning County, Ohio

Springfield Township is one of the fourteen townships of Mahoning County, Ohio, United States. The 2000 census found 6,054 people in the township.-Geography:...

, Mahoning County, Ohio

Ohio

Ohio is a Midwestern state in the United States. The 34th largest state by area in the U.S.,it is the 7th‑most populous with over 11.5 million residents, containing several major American cities and seven metropolitan areas with populations of 500,000 or more.The state's capital is Columbus...

, United States

United States

The United States of America is a federal constitutional republic comprising fifty states and a federal district...

. It is part of the Youngstown

Youngstown, Ohio

Youngstown is a city in the U.S. state of Ohio and the county seat of Mahoning County; it also extends into Trumbull County. The municipality is situated on the Mahoning River, approximately southeast of Cleveland and northwest of Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania...

-Warren

Warren, Ohio

As of the census of 2000, there were 46,832 people, 19,288 households and 12,035 families residing in the city. The population density was 2,912.4 people per square mile . There were 21,279 housing units at an average density of 1,322.9 per square mile...

-Boardman

Boardman, Ohio

Boardman is a census-designated place in Boardman Township, Mahoning County, Ohio, United States, just south of Youngstown. Boardman is considered to be a moderately affluent community and is one of two major retail hubs in the greater Youngstown area...

, OH-PA

Pennsylvania

The Commonwealth of Pennsylvania is a U.S. state that is located in the Northeastern and Mid-Atlantic regions of the United States. The state borders Delaware and Maryland to the south, West Virginia to the southwest, Ohio to the west, New York and Ontario, Canada, to the north, and New Jersey to...

 Metropolitan Statistical Area

Youngstown-Warren-Boardman, OH-PA Metropolitan Area

The Youngstown Metropolitan Area is a metropolitan area centered on the American city of Youngstown, Ohio. According to the US Census Bureau, the metropolitan area includes Mahoning and Trumbull counties in Ohio and Mercer county in Pennsylvania...

. The community was founded in the 1790s by German

Germans

The Germans are a Germanic ethnic group native to Central Europe. The English term Germans has referred to the German-speaking population of the Holy Roman Empire since the Late Middle Ages....

 immigrants from Pennsylvania

Pennsylvania

The Commonwealth of Pennsylvania is a U.S. state that is located in the Northeastern and Mid-Atlantic regions of the United States. The state borders Delaware and Maryland to the south, West Virginia to the southwest, Ohio to the west, New York and Ontario, Canada, to the north, and New Jersey to...

.

Including those from Pennsylvania was Peter Musser, Israel Warner and family who are now buried outside of Petersburg in the Old Springfield Township Cemetery along with the Rudesil family and other early families.

Petersburg was named after Peter Musser by his son, Peter Musser Junior, before most of the Musser children migrated to other parts of Ohio and to Missouri

Missouri

Missouri is a US state located in the Midwestern United States, bordered by Iowa, Illinois, Kentucky, Tennessee, Arkansas, Oklahoma, Kansas and Nebraska. With a 2010 population of 5,988,927, Missouri is the 18th most populous state in the nation and the fifth most populous in the Midwest. It...

. Petersburg's post office was called "Subrosa" at one point in the early history and the first Post Master was Jacob Musser, the only son of Peter to stay in Petersburg and was noted to be the first "Squire" of Petersburg.

Petersburg used to be the principal village of Springfield township early in its history. Many business that were in Petersburg included the Petersburg Grain Mill, Petersburg Creamery, a butcher shop, a coffin shop, a millinery, a drug store, 2 grocery stores, a liquor store, a blacksmith shop, three churches, a barber shop, a veterinarian, a violin maker, Warner's Inn, the Mahoning House, Petersburg Inn, Knesal's Hardware,and many other little shops of general merchandise.

The building that was once used as the Petersburg Inn burned to the ground around 1955 and was believed to have been built around 1800. A few other significant historical buildings in the community were St. John's Lutheran Church

St. John's Lutheran Church (Petersburg, Ohio)

St. John's Lutheran Church was a small Lutheran church founded in Petersburg, Ohio, United States in the latter part of the 19th century by people in the area of Mahoning County's Springfield Township. Most citizens of Petersburg were of German descent from colonial Pennsylvania...

 and the Petersburg Presbyterian Church that were founded by early settlers of that area including the following families: Wallace, Musser, Smith and Kneasel.

Petersburg is located at the intersection of State Routes 170

Ohio State Route 170

State Route 170 is a north–south running state route located in Mahoning and Columbiana counties in northeast Ohio. It runs within a few miles of the Pennsylvania border for much of its route as it passes though the eastern parts of the two counties. The southern terminus is at an...

 and 617

Ohio State Route 617

State Route 617 is a short east–west state route in northeastern Ohio, existing entirely within Mahoning County. The western terminus of OH 617 is at OH 165 in the unincorporated community of New Springfield...

. It is skirted by Interstate 76

Interstate 76 (east)

Interstate 76 is an Interstate Highway in the United States, running 435 miles from an interchange with Interstate 71 west of Akron, Ohio, east to Interstate 295 near Camden, New Jersey....

, the far eastern end of the Ohio Turnpike

Ohio Turnpike

The Ohio Turnpike, officially the James W. Shocknessy Ohio Turnpike, is a -long, limited-access toll highway in the U.S. state of Ohio, serving as a primary corridor to Chicago and Pittsburgh...

.