- Joined
- Mar 17, 2025
- Messages
- 11
Back in 1971, in the chill town of San Rafael, California, a group of five high school students unknowingly sparked a movement that would blaze across the world. Their names? Steve Capper, Dave Reddix, Jeffrey Noel, Larry Schwartz, and Mark Gravich — better known as "The Waldos."
Every day after school, these guys would meet by a statue of Louis Pasteur at exactly 4:20 PM. Why? Word was, there was an abandoned cannabis crop near the Point Reyes Coast Guard Station, and the boys were determined to find it. So they'd pile into a car, light up, and say “420-Louis” as code for their daily weed-hunting adventures.
Eventually, “420-Louis” got shortened to just “420” — and that became their secret code for anything pot-related. “Wanna blaze?” turned into “Wanna 420?”
But here’s where it gets wild…
Dave Reddix’s older brother was connected to the Grateful Dead, and through that crew, the term “420” started circulating in Deadhead culture. The band crew picked it up. Then the fans. Then High Times magazine caught wind of it — and boom — the code went mainstream.
By the 1990s, April 20th (4/20) had officially become the universal cannabis holiday, with smoke-outs and rallies from coast to coast.
So yeah — five stoner teens in Cali just looking for a lost crop accidentally created the global symbol for weed culture. That’s the real origin of 420.
Every day after school, these guys would meet by a statue of Louis Pasteur at exactly 4:20 PM. Why? Word was, there was an abandoned cannabis crop near the Point Reyes Coast Guard Station, and the boys were determined to find it. So they'd pile into a car, light up, and say “420-Louis” as code for their daily weed-hunting adventures.
Eventually, “420-Louis” got shortened to just “420” — and that became their secret code for anything pot-related. “Wanna blaze?” turned into “Wanna 420?”
But here’s where it gets wild…
Dave Reddix’s older brother was connected to the Grateful Dead, and through that crew, the term “420” started circulating in Deadhead culture. The band crew picked it up. Then the fans. Then High Times magazine caught wind of it — and boom — the code went mainstream.
By the 1990s, April 20th (4/20) had officially become the universal cannabis holiday, with smoke-outs and rallies from coast to coast.
So yeah — five stoner teens in Cali just looking for a lost crop accidentally created the global symbol for weed culture. That’s the real origin of 420.
