Peter Tufts, Sr. (1617 – May 13, 1700) was a prominent early citizen of Malden and Medford, Massachusetts, and ancestor of Charles Tufts who donated land for the Tufts University campus. The Peter Tufts House is still standing and is among the oldest all brick houses still standing in the United States. Peter Tufts (also spelled "Tuffts," Tuffes," and "Turfs") immigrated from Wilby, Norfolk, England to Charlestown, Massachusetts, which at the time included the present day cities of Somerville, Malden (then known as "Mystic Side"), and Medford. He is recorded in 1637 "on the Malden side (of Charlestown)." By 1638 he owned 43 acre there. By 1647 Peter was living at "Mystic Side," two years later to be incorporated as Malden, Massachusetts. In early 1647 Peter, along with William Bridge, became ferryman at Charlestown Neck on the Mystic River, succeeding Philip Drinker in that role. This ferry, later known as the Penny Ferry, served the inhabitants of Malden and the upper towns until 1787 when it was superseded by the Malden Bridge. Tufts' involvement in the Salem witch trials was thus described in the 1889 History of Malden: Tufts was recorded as a Freeman of Malden and the Massachusetts Bay Colony May 3, 1665 and October 15, 1679 (NEHGS "Register"). Peter Tufts was the first representative from Medford to the Massachusetts General Court in 1689, however it is unclear whether this was Peter Tufts, Sr. (then 72), or his firstborn son Captain Peter Tufts (then 41). Around 1678, the elder Peter Tufts built the Peter Tufts House in Medford, which was then given to his first son, the younger Captain Peter Tufts. His will is recorded in Middlesex County, Massachusetts as #22994, dated March 1, 1693 with codicils of July 8, 1695 and June 13, 1698, and executed June 10, 1701. He is buried at Malden Church Yard, also known as Bell Rock Cemetery.