Hill Valley (Back to the Future)



Hill Valley, California, is the fictional setting for the Back to the Future films. In addition to the main plot, the series of films are well-known for the many sight gags, verbal innuendos and detailed set design, from which audiences attempt to reconstruct a detailed and consistent history and geography of the area. Much of the popularity of the series of films is due to the multiple times that viewers watch the films and still discover subtle gags that they hadn't noticed before.

As it is implied in the movies, the town was first settled about 1850, and in 1865 became a city. By the 1880s the railroads had reached the town and the small settlement was growing. Construction of the courthouse began in 1885 and the Shonash Ravine Bridge in 1887. By 1955 the town was in its heyday, with a grass-covered town square right in front of the courthouse. A popular place to hang out was Lou's Café; other businesses included Ruth's Frock Shop, a Texaco gas station, Roy's Records, and the Essex Theater.

On Saturday, 12 November 1955, at 10:04 PM PST, lightning struck the clocktower, freezing the clock at 10.04 pm where it would remain for at least the next 60 years, despite many attempts to repair it. The Hill Valley Preservation Society believed it should remain stopped as a symbol of its history and heritage.

By 1985 Courthouse Square was but a shadow of its former self. Since Twin Pines Mall opened, a lot of the businesses had relocated there or shut down, and the Square was full of adult book stores and second hand shops. On October 26th 1985, local inventor Doc Brown invented a time machine built into a De Lorean sports car, and his young friend Marty McFly was accidentally sent back to 1955. Marty interfered with his parents' first meeting but managed to get them back together, and using the lightning bolt that struck on November 12th got back to the future, only to discover that because of his interference, his father George McFly was now a confident sci-fi author rather than a geeky office worker.

It is in the future though that Hill Valley regained its heyday. By 2015, the town square is once again a grassy park with a lake, and shops had returned to the square. The courthouse has been converted into a mall, and the clock is still stopped at 10.04pm. The future for this little town in California looks bright indeed.

We also see an alternate history in Hill Valley. In 2015, Biff Tannen steals the time machine, goes back to 1955 and gives his teenage self a sports almanac with the results of every sports game from 1950 to 2000. Using this book, Biff became incredibly wealthy. In 1973 he murdered George McFly and married his widow, Marty's mother Lorraine Baines McFly. Gambling was legalised in 1979 and Biff turned the courthouse into a casino-hotel. Luckily, Marty and Doc went back to 1955 and got the almanac from young Biff, thus returning history to normal.

Hill Valley is located in Northern California, 12 miles east of Grass Valley and with railway links to San Francisco. The town is nestled in rolling foothills, and (according to details in part 3) although there is a desert within walking distance of the town, the nearby lake freezes over in the winter.

Notable trivia

 * The drunk man who in 1985 (normal) comments 'crazy drunk driver' after seeing Marty crash into the Town Building comments in 1985 (alternate) 'crazy drunk pedestrian' after Marty walks into his shopping cart.
 * The principal of Hill Valley High School has not had much hair since at least 1955.
 * The clock tower (or at least the face) appears in all time periods.
 * In 1885, the clock tower has not been built, but the clock mechanism has been.
 * In 1955, the clock tower is struck by lightning and the clock badly damaged.
 * In 1985 (normal), the clock tower is in need of repair.
 * In 1985 (alternate), the clock tower has been converted into a high rise casino.
 * In 2015, the clock tower has been renovated into a mall with a large stained-glass entry way and underground features.
 * In 2015, Hill Valley is connected to its suburbs by flying cars that use the Skyway
 * In 1985 (alternate), Hill Valley High School is destroyed
 * In 1985 (normal), the mall has two names: it starts as Twin Pines Mall, but after Marty destroys one of the pine trees in 1955, he comes back to discover it has been renamed Lone Pine Mall.
 * Marty crashes into the Town Theater upon returning to 1985 (the first time)
 * The Twin Pines Mall has a JCPenney
 * In 2015, police officers wear hats with various phrases such as "Have a nice day" scrolling on an LED screen across the brim.
 * In 2015, trash cans move themselves around the city, automatically moving to where they are needed.
 * In 2015, floating street lights and traffic signs outline the Skyway
 * In 2015, a floating sign saying "Welcome to Hill Valley" has symbols representing the Rotary, Kiwanis and Lions clubs.
 * The grassy commons from 1955 becomes an underground shopping mall in 2015. The street running parallel to the clock tower on the other side of the commons becomes a 'No Landing Zone' in 2015.
 * Back in the real 1985, something did change, namely the name of the Clayton ravine. There's a sign "Eastwood ravine", when Marty and the DeLorean are rolling over the railroad track at the end of Part 3.