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History · Buckley

Buckley’s history is
mostly unwritten

The public archives hold only 2 old photos of Buckley. The rest are in attics, shoeboxes and the historical society. Help start the collection.

1889established
2old images & papers
10recent photos
Preparing to build concrete culvert to lead flume under the railroad trestle at Buckley, April 4, 1911, 1911 · Wikimedia Commons

The story

from WikipediaRead it all ↗

1856 Decisive battle of the Puget Sound War fought at Connell's Prairie, 6 miles (10 km) west of Buckley. It was significant because it boosted the morale of the settlers because it was such a great victory with no casualties to the regulars or volunteers.

Jeremiah 'Jerry' Stilley, first permanent non-Indian resident, settled West of town.

1877 Railroad built from Tacoma to Wilkeson to transport coal.

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.

Town renamed "Buckley" for J.M. Buckley, Northern Pacific Railway district superintendent.

Text from Wikipedia, licensed CC BY-SA 4.0.

Timeline

built from the dates on the items below
1889Established
1911Preparing to build concrete culvert to lead flu…Commons
1937QSL W7ELJ (1937)Commons
1940–1999Nothing yet. Family albums go here.
Be one of the first

Start Buckley’s collection

The first neighbors to add old photos shape how Buckley’s history is told.

2 of 10 decades since 1900 have photos 🔁Retake an old viewPreparing to build concrete culve…, 1911: stand where they stood+15 📦Share a family photoSign in to add one+10

Famous people from Buckley

See all 2 →
Lucille LundLucille LundFilm, TV & StageThron RiggsThron RiggsSports
By decade

Buckley, decade by decade

1910s1 item
Preparing to build concrete culvert to lead flume under the railroad trestle at Buckley, April 4, 1911CommonsPreparing to build concrete culvert to lead flume under the…1911
1930s1 item
QSL W7ELJ (1937)CommonsQSL W7ELJ (1937)1937
1940s–
1990s
Nothing in the archives for these yearsWeddings on Main Street, storms, parades, school pictures, the old store. If it’s in your family album, it belongs here.
📷 Add from your album
Today10 photos
Hoary Marmot and Western AnemonesCommonsHoary Marmot and Western Anemones2017Buckley WA seen from Pinnacle PeakCommonsBuckley WA seen from Pinnacle Peak2017Weeks' Funeral Home at Buckley CemeteryCommonsWeeks' Funeral Home at Buckley Cemetery2011Main Street Coffee HouseCommonsMain Street Coffee House2011Main StCommonsMain St2011Building inCommonsBuilding in2011Buckley Welcome SignCommonsBuckley Welcome Sign2011Buckley Police DepartmentCommonsBuckley Police Department2011Buckley City HallCommonsBuckley City Hall20112011-11-25, Bench inCommons2011-11-25, Bench in2011
National Register of Historic Places

Nothing in Buckley is on the National Register yet

That’s true of most small towns. It doesn’t mean Buckley has no history, only that no one has written up a nomination. The closest listed place is Trommald Building in Enumclaw, 3.2 miles away.

Buckley and the nearest listed places

Dashed line = Buckley. Tap a dot.
Trommald BuildingLouis and Ellen Olson HouseWalker Cut Stone CompanyWilkeson ArchHoly Trinity Orthodox ChurchWilliam Bisson House

Closest to Buckley

Trommald BuildingEnumclaw · Commercial Style · Built 19203.2miLouis and Ellen Olson HouseEnumclaw · Classic Box · Built 19053.2miWalker Cut Stone CompanyWilkeson · District3.7miWilkeson ArchWilkeson · Rustic · Built 19253.9miHoly Trinity Orthodox ChurchWilkeson · Gothic Revival4mi

How a place gets listed

1Talk to the stateEvery nomination goes through the State Historic Preservation Office. Owners, towns and historical societies can start one.
2Try a local or state list firstMany states keep their own register with a shorter form, a common first step for old barns, halls and schoolhouses.
3Write it upA nomination covers the history, photos and a map. Trommald Building’s page links to a real one.
Know an old place in Buckley?A mill, a schoolhouse, a cellar hole, a church: add a photo of it to Buckley’s story, or a memory of it.
📷 Add a photo of an old place
National Park Service, National Register of Historic Places · photos from Wikimedia Commons

Then & now

No then-and-now pairs yet. Take a photo from the same spot as Preparing to build concrete culvert to lead flume under the railroad trestle at Buckley, April 4, 1911 (1911) and it appears here side by side.

🔁 Retake this view · +15

Stories next door

nearby towns’ history
📜 Enumclaw📜 South Prairie📜 Wilkeson📜 Carbonado

From Wikimedia Commons (12). Images are copied here with their credits and licenses, shown on each photo’s page. Refreshed monthly.

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Boundary source: https://tigerweb.geo.census.gov/arcgis/rest/services/TIGERweb/Places_CouSub_ConCity_SubMCD/MapServer/18 · 2025-01-01
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