Pacific is a small city in Washington state that sits astride the King and Pierce county line, roughly midway between Seattle and Tacoma and immediately south of Auburn. The White River runs along its edge, and the city's relatively flat streets look out toward Mount Rainier on clear days. With about 7,200 residents, Pacific is a compact, primarily residential community that grew out of the White River Valley's farming and railroad era. For much of its early history, the valley around Pacific was shaped by water. The White River flowed north through what is now Auburn while the Stuck River ran south toward Sumner, and valley farmers endured almost annual flooding until the completion of Mud Mountain Dam in 1948 and the Howard A. Hanson Dam in 1962 ended major flooding and opened the way for residential growth. Today the river is a recreational asset rather than a threat, with the paved White River Trail passing nearby. Modern Pacific is a low-key, family-oriented place. The city operates its own parks and recreation programs, including youth activities, sports leagues, and community events, and it is best known regionally as the southern terminus of the Interurban Trail, a paved bicycle-and-pedestrian corridor that follows a former interurban rail line north into the Seattle metro area. State Route 167, the Valley Freeway, runs along the city and connects it to Auburn, Kent, and Renton to the north and toward the Tacoma area to the south, with Sounder commuter rail available at nearby Auburn station. Because it straddles two counties and is bordered by larger neighbors, Pacific offers a small-town scale with access to the amenities of the South King County region. Its housing is predominantly single-family and built from the mid-20th century onward, and its streets are framed by the river and views of Mount Rainier. That combination of a quiet residential grid, a river setting, and quick freeway access between two major metro areas defines day-to-day life in Pacific.