Buckley is a city in Pierce County, Washington, founded in 1882 and set on the White River in the foothills below Mount Rainier. The town grew around logging, farming, and the railroad that climbed toward the mountain, and its history is still visible in the widely spaced older homes and the railroad tracks that divide the community. With a population of about 5,100, Buckley keeps the friendly, small-town feel of a classic Pacific Northwest foothills town. The city's setting is its defining feature. Mount Rainier rises to the southeast, and the White River and its tributary valleys fan out around town, leading toward the Carbon River valley and the national park beyond. State Route 410, the Chinook Pass route, bisects the community and carries travelers toward the mountain, while State Route 165 heads south into the Carbon River country. The Foothills Trail, a non-motorized rail-trail, passes through Buckley and connects it to Puyallup to the west and Enumclaw to the east. Buckley is perhaps best known for its annual Log Show, a long-running festival that celebrates the community's timber heritage with logging competitions and community events. Local life centers on the schools, parks, and the small downtown business district near the old depot. The White River School District is based in Buckley, and its high school, originally Buckley High School before a mid-century merger with Enumclaw, serves families across the surrounding area. Housing in Buckley spans older in-town homes, newer subdivisions such as White River Meadows, and rural properties with larger lots and wooded acreage on the edges of town. The community remains a practical base for people who work in the Puyallup valley and the south Puget Sound region while wanting direct access to Mount Rainier and the foothills' outdoor recreation, and it retains the quiet, close-knit character that first defined it.