What Is 420?

In Cannabis culture, 420 refers to the consumption of pot at either 4:20am or pm or on the 20^th of April. But…what is 420? Where did it start?

Theories abound. Many thought it was a police code to indicate that there was marijuana smoking in progress. Others suspected that it related to the death dates of iconic figures Bob Marley and Jimi Hendrix.  There have even been connections made to the birth date of Adolf Hitler.

The true origin of the term dates back to the early 70’s in the town of San Rafael, California. A group of high school students, who called themselves “The Waldos” (because they would always hang out by a certain wall in their high school), heard of a secret stash of marijuana that was said to be hidden in the San Reyes peninsula. Upon discovering this, they hatched a plan to meet near a statue of Louis Pasteur and attempt to find the hidden stash. For weeks, they would meet by the same statue and pursue the mystery crop. Their code for the secretive meetings? 420-Louis.

As the years progressed, it was in fact the band the Grateful Dead that perpetuated the myth of “420” among American youth. With their current rock scene populated by “thugs” and “speed freaks,” the Dead relocated to Marin County Hills, just a few blocks from where the Waldo’s went to school. The two groups would hang out together and smoke weed after the band rehearsed. It was during this time that the term “420” got stuck in the band’s head and they began using it ever after. In addition to the Grateful Dead, Steven Hager of High Times wrote frequently about the term and is considered a key player in cementing its folkloric status.

April 20th has since become an iconic counter-culture holiday in North America, where people congregate for the purpose of consuming cannabis. North American observations have happened in several locations in both the United States and Canada, including the University of Colorado’s Boulder campus, Dundas Square in Toronto, Ontario and the Vancouver Art Gallery in Vancouver, British Columbia.

It’s officially hit the mainstream. On April 20th, snapchat offers a 420-face filter option, that features shallow text that disappears after April 20th.

The 420 holiday has given way to highway signs bearing the consecutive numbers being stolen. It got so bad in Colorado that the Colorado Department of Transportation replaced the 420-marker on the I-70 east with a sign that read 419.99 so as to dissuade potential thieves. The Idaho Department of Transportation did the same thing and their Highway 95 sign now reads “419.9.”

The term “420” has surfaced in Cannabis legislation when in 2003, California introduced Senate Bill 420 in order to regulate marijuana. The name was a specific reference to 420’s place in Cannabis culture. An unsuccessful bill to legalize cannabis in Guam was also called Bill 420.