About Buckley

 
  Why is Buckley on a plateau?   

 

  How did this plateau form? Why is the area so challenging for farming? 


The reason is because the plateau was formed about 5700 years ago by a volcanic mudflow (lahar) from Mt Rainier (see map below).

A huge landslide removed 3 cubic kilometers (0.7 cubic miles) from the summit of Mount Rainier. (The landslide removed the top 600 meters (2,000 feet), leaving a summit crater. Subsequent volcanic eruptions created the modern summit cone with the crater.). This one single event created 200 square miles of land in a matter of hours, with waves of mud 20 feet to 600 feet high. This wall of mud had the consistency of wet concrete and traveled up to 60 mph. This mudflow destroyed everything in its path, uprooting entire old-growth forests. It hit Puget Sound with such force and with so much material that it flowed underwater for 15 miles, maybe farther. An area of hundreds of square miles was covered with mud and debris up to 350 feet deep (see movie below).

The reason why water does not drain well here - making farming difficult - is because of this mudflow. Geologically, there has not been much time for topsoil to form - much of our area has only about 12-16 inches of topsoil, and directly under this topsoil is the remains of the mudflow. Water does not percolate into the mudflow, and this results in our having standing water at the surface for periods during the winter.


          Click here to play a short movie depicting the Osceola mudflow    
Extent of mudflows                    [1.2 mb .mpg file, ~10 seconds in length]
     (click to enlarge)


Chronological History of Buckley 1856 – Decisive battle of Indian War fought at Connell’s Prairie, 6 miles west of Buckley.
1875 - Coal discovered at Wilkeson.
1875 – Jerry Stilley, first permanent non-Indian resident, settled West of town.
1877 – Railroad built from Tacoma to Wilkeson to transport coal.
1882 – Town named ”Perkin’s Prairie".
1884 – Northern Pacific built railroad spur track from Cascade Junction (between South Prairie and       Buckley) to Perkin’s Prairie. Town given name ”White River Siding“ by railroad men.
1885 – Town’s first store erected by ”Dad“ Chamberlain.
1887 – Town renamed ”Buckley“ for J.M. Buckley, Northern Pacific Railway district superintendent.
1887 – First school established.
1888 – Town site platted by Alexander and Mary Wickersham. Town booming with lumber and shingle mills springing up overnight.
1889 – First post office established.
1889 – District Court appointed five men as trustees of the Town of Buckley.
1889 – First newspaper printed and published in Buckley. -The Buckley Banner.
1890 – Town incorporated by electorate.
1890 – Buckley Lodge 75, IOOF, chartered.
1890 – Western Star Lodge, F&AM, chartered.
1891 – Land donated for Buckley cemetery.
1892 – First church built.
June 17 1892 – New school built at present site of White River Middle School on A Street.
1892- World’s Fair- Buckley Mills sell wood, shingles, and supplies to be used at the World’s Fair Exhibit Buildings.
May 5 1892- Business District almost wiped out fire. Started on second story of the Buckley Lumber Store.
1892 – First organized water system established.
1893-Fire Department in Buckley was established on Feb. 24th. Dr. JH Sheets was selected as a honorary member to act as a surgeon.
October 17 1894-First fire dept. dance. Ladies-free Men-$0.25 Children as spectators for $0.10 1894 – Eola Rebekah Lodge chartered.
July 6 1895-discussion of entering first 4th of July parade, uniforms and plans to build station were finalized.
1897 –Women’s Musical & Literary Club founded.
1898 – Business district razed by fire.
1900 – Mt. Rainier Chapter, OES, chartered.
1902 – Addition built on schoolhouse.
1902 – Degree of Honor chartered.
1902 – First library established.
1905 – First high school graduation held.
1906 – Buckley Aerie 1387, FOE, chartered.
1907 – Gravity water system built; water stored in reservoir still in use by town.
1907 – First general use of electricity.
1909 – Marion Grange chartered.
1909 – School burned to ground.
1909 – Town established fire department to replace Columbia Hose Company, a private fire-fighting group.
1910 – New brick school built on A Street.
1911 – White River Power Plant completed. (Headwork, flume, powerhouse.)
1911 – Present town hall built.
1912 – Plank streets replaced by paving.
1914 – Wickersham elementary school built.
1920 – Large section of business district leveled by fire.
1923 – Vocational unit added to high school building.
1927 – FOE Auxiliary 1387 chartered.
1928 – Buckley Kiwanis Club chartered.
1929 – Town purchased pumper fire truck to replace hand-drawn equipment.
1931 – Carbon Glacier Post 1414, VFW, chartered.
1937 – Buckley Garden Club organized.
1939 – Rainier School officially opened.
1939 – Work commenced on Mud Mountain Dam on White River.
1942 – Mud Mountain Dam completed.
1944 – Buckley railroad logging ended with closure of Buckley Logging Company mill.
1946 – City limits extended to include Rainier School and farms south of town.
1947 – Last company-operated coal mining discontinued.
1947 – Additional construction at Rainier School.
1948 – Kindergarten class instituted.
1949 – Additional construction at Rainier School.
1949 – Buckley and Enumclaw school districts consolidated.
1950 – Buckley Business & Professional Women’s Club chartered.
1951 – Rural Fire District No. 12 organized.
1952 – New fire station built.
1952 – Additional construction at Rainier School.
1952 – Sewage disposal plant built.
1953 - Purchase of a 1941 Packard as first aid car by fire dept. for $945.
1953 – Wickersham school annex built.
1953 – White River School District (Buckley-Enumclaw) de-consolidated.
1955 – Buckley Planning Commission created.
1956 – New gymnasium built at high school.
1956 – Ida Marge Orthopedic Guild chartered.
1957 – Town established natural gas utility.
1957 – Buckley Junior Chamber of Commerce chartered.
1958 – New street signs erected.
1959 – Northern Pacific railroad depot torn down.

Compiled by Jessica Gallion, 2005

Taken from the files of the City of Buckley and Buckley Library


Dermographics, Numbers, & History
 

Incorporated: 1889

County: Pierce

Congressional District: 8

Legislative District: 31

2004 Estimated Population: 4510

Total Area: 4.1 Square Miles

Latitude: 47.16538

Longitude: -122.02369


Census Tract: 702.07 [Block Groups 1-4]




Total population 4,145 100
SEX AND AGE    
Male 2,096 50.6
Female 2,049 49.4
     
Under 5 years 270 6.5
5 to 9 years 276 6.7
10 to 14 years 364 8.8
15 to 19 years 271 6.5
20 to 24 years 220 5.3
25 to 34 years 577 13.9
35 to 44 years 764 18.4
45 to 54 years 666 16.1
55 to 59 years 216 5.2
60 to 64 years 146 3.5
65 to 74 years 216 5.2
75 to 84 years 123 3
85 years and over 36 0.9
     
Median age (years) 36.4 (X)

RACE    
One race 4,022 97
White 3,887 93.8
Black or African American 26 0.6
American Indian and Alaska Native 47 1.1
Asian 32 0.8


RELATIONSHIP    
Total population 4,145 100
In households 3,699 89.2
Householder 1,396 33.7
Spouse 757 18.3
Child 1,227 29.6
Own child under 18 years 1,018 24.6
Other relatives 123 3
Under 18 years 55 1.3
Nonrelatives 196 4.7
Unmarried partner 91 2.2
In group quarters 446 10.8
Institutionalized population 23 0.6
Noninstitutionalized population 423 10.2


HOUSEHOLDS BY TYPE    
Total households 1,396 100
Family households (families) 995 71.3
With own children under 18 years 537 38.5
Married-couple family 757 54.2
With own children under 18 years 384 27.5
Female householder, no husband present 172 12.3
With own children under 18 years 109 7.8
Nonfamily households 401 28.7
Householder living alone 308 22.1
Householder 65 years and over 101 7.2
     
Households with individuals under 18 years 573 41
Households with individuals 65 years and over 260 18.6
     
Average household size 2.65 (X)
Average family size 3.12 (X)

Subject Number Percent


EMPLOYMENT STATUS    
Population 16 years and over 3,134 100
In labor force 2,276 72.6
Civilian labor force 2,276 72.6
Employed 2,120 67.6
Unemployed 156 5
Percent of civilian labor force 6.9 (X)
Armed Forces 0 0
Not in labor force 858 27.4


COMMUTING TO WORK    
Workers 16 years and over 2,075 100
Car, truck, or van -- drove alone 1,370 66
Car, truck, or van -- carpooled 275 13.3
Public transportation (including taxicab) 0 0
Walked 277 13.3
Other means 110 5.3
Worked at home 43 2.1
Mean travel time to work (minutes) 26.7