In 1911, the Union Pacific constructed the OWR&N railroad to Yakima and established many stations throughout the Yakima Valley. At the time it was common practice to allow constructions parties to name the sidings. Many of the workers were Spanish and Mexican, and they named the local station Buena, a Spanish word meaning 'good'.

Despite economic ups and downs, the Buena community has a long history of supporting "literary and intellectual" pursuits. For nearly 100 years, members of the community have made books accessible to the residents. As early as 1917, Mrs. William Hanson kept books to loan on the balcony of her store for the young people of the community. In 1946, with the coming of the County Library, the Buena Book Nook was opened in Nielsens' grocery story, where two sets of shelves folded like huge books.

The Buena library has never managed to find a permanent home. It has been housed in a church, a store and in a private home. In 2002 the Friends of Buena Library (FOBL) raised the funds to save the 80-year old library from having to close its doors for lack of a facility. Now we are trying to replace the old double-wide modular with a building that can become a cornerstone of this little community.