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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 10.04pm 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 McFlyBack to the Future characters Marty McFly is a fictional character, the lead character in the Back to the Future motion picture trilogy, played by actor Michael J. Marty was born in 1968, the youngest of 3 children to George McFly and Lorraine Baines McFl 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 McFlyBack to the Future characters George Douglas McFly is a fictional character, the nerdish father of Marty McFly in the Back to the Future films. George was born on April 1st 1938 in Hill Valley, California to Arthur and Sylvia McFly. He was played by Crisp 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 20152015 is a common year starting on Thursday (see link for calendar). Events March 20 Total solar eclipse (visible in the North Atlantic). April 25 100th Anniversary of Dardanelles Campaign at Anzac Cove September 13 Partial solar eclipse Fictional Referenc, 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 TannenBack to the Future characters Biff H. Tannen is a fictional character in the Back to the Future films — he acts as the town bully and opposes the hero of the series, Marty McFly. The role of Biff Tannen is played by Thomas F. Biff was born on March 26th, steals the time machine, goes back to 1955 and gives his teenage self a sports almanac with the results of every sports game from 1950Events January January 5 US Senator Estes Kefauver introduces a resolution calling for examination of organized crime in the USA January 6 The United Kingdom recognizes the People's Republic of China. The Republic of China severs diplomatic relations with to 2000This page is about the year 2000. See 2000 AD for the UK comic book, Number 2000 for other uses. 2000 is a leap year starting on Saturday (see link for calendar), and also the International Year for a Culture of Peace''. Events Y2K passes without the seri. Using this book, Biff became incredibly wealthy. In 1973Events January events January 1 United Kingdom, Ireland, and Denmark enter the European Economic Community now known as the European Union January 3 Columbia Broadcasting System (CBS) sells the New York Yankees for $10 million to a 12-person syndicate led 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.