Roy is a city in Pierce County, Washington State. It’s a rural town outside Tacoma and primarily features ranch-style homes and farms. Roy is a popular place for active duty military personal assigned to Joint Base Lewis-McChord looking to buy a home with a rural small town feel.
Roy was officially incorporated on January 16, 1908. The population was 793 at the 2010 census. Major features and/or attractions in Roy and the vicinity include the Roy Pioneer Rodeo, attracting participants and spectators from several states and Canada; Roy Elementary School, and many community organizations like 4H, Grange Hall, Scouts, etc.
Roy was one of the early communities in the area, a prosperous boom-town and a major stop on the railroad line. But 3 major blows reduced this once-thriving town to its current form. A major fire in 1929 wiped out most of the downtown businesses just before the Depression started. The railroad eventually discontinued using Roy as a main stop. The Army annexed most of the surrounding land to the north and west, limiting expansion and the local tax base, and erasing the nearby community of Loveland.