Submitted Photo Patrolman Frank Peterson sits with two unidentified men looking over a rifle in Rugby. Photo from Curtis Olson with North Dakota Peace Officers Association.

Patrolman Frank Peterson is one of the honorable officers remembered along N.D. Highway 200. The North Dakota Peace Officers Memorial Highway has signs placed in remembrance of officers who gave their life to serve and protect.

After the loss of Peterson, so many questions with anger gripped the small town of Rugby, an urgency for officers to move quickly seeking information – like piecing a puzzle together clues without the latest technology has today in the year of 2026. In 1963, officers didn’t have cameras that they wear on their uniform today. The forensic technology analyzing fibers, blood and any liquid left behind at the crime scene — and other times officers were only led by “he said, she said” statements — bringing them on a wild goose chase.

The two men who fatally wounded Peterson on the night of Feb. 3, 1963, were apprehended. They spent their time behind in jail, but were eventually released once they served their court order behind bars.

Today, Peterson is remembered where he clocked in to honor and protect the community he lived. The Rugby Police Department honors him every year, setting a day aside sharing their respect.

There are many articles about Peterson online at a website called “Officer Down Memorial Page.” The website shares his story, along with messages from police chiefs, officers and a former mayor of Rugby, sharing remembrance and honoring him.

Many questions and pieces of the puzzle are still being sought, like filling in detail to help share the dedication of a community standing strong and focusing on keeping their town out of harm’s way.

Dale Niewoehner, of Rugby, has dedicated much of his life to finding answers. He sought the approval on Aug. 16, 2025, at the State of N.D. for placing a highway sign alongside mile post 251 on N.D. Highway 200 to honor an officer killed on the job. Niewoehner, like many people dedicated to their community in keeping the streets safe, researches every detail placing the puzzle together from another perspective.

Curtis Olson is a law enforcement officer and with the North Dakota Peace Officers Association. He helps organize the Honoring Fallen Officers Memorial with many dedicated retired and active duty officers. He is currently working on a Memorial Drive for this year.