420 History: The Stories Behind April 20 Becoming ‘Weed Day’

• “The origin of the term 420, celebrated around the world by pot smokers every April 20th, has long been obscured by the clouded memories of the folks who made it a phenomenon.The Huffington Post chased the term back to its roots and was able to find it in a lost patch of cannabis in a Point Reyes, California forest. Just as interesting as its origin, it turns out, is how it spread.”
  ~ www.huffingtonpost.com/2011/04/19/420-history-the-story-beh_n_851136.html

 

• “Both marijuana smokers and non-smokers recognize April 20 or 4/20 as a national holiday for cannabis culture, but few actually know how the date got chosen.Some say “420” is code among police officers for “marijuana smoking in progress.” Some note 4/20 is also Adolf Hitler’s birthday. And some go as far as to cite Bob Dylan’s song “Rainy Day Women #12 & 35” because 12 multiplied by 35 equals 420.But, to put it bluntly, those rumors are false.”
  ~ time.com/4292844/420-april-20-marijuana-pot-holiday-history/

 

• “It seems like states are loosening marijuana laws all the time these days. With the decriminalization of either medical or recreational marijuana, smoking a joint in public seems to be getting less and less of a big deal, depending on the state in which you live, of course. Does that mean 420 is a thing of the past now?Oh, of course not. We’re all adults here. Let’s not be naive.”
  ~ http://www.techtimes.com/articles/46015/20150418/the-history-of-420-how-april-20-became-national-weed-day.htm

 

• “A group of people in San Rafael, California,^[2][3] calling themselves the Waldos^[4] because “their chosen hang-out spot was a wall outside the school”,^[5] used the term in connection with a fall 1971 plan to search for an abandoned cannabis crop that they had learned about,^[4][6] based on a treasure map made by the grower.^[7] The Waldos designated the Louis Pasteur statue on the grounds of San Rafael High School as their meeting place, and 4:20 p.m. as their meeting time.^[5] The Waldos referred to this plan with the phrase “4:20 Louis”. Several failed attempts to find the crop eventually shortened their phrase to simply “4:20″, which ultimately evolved into a codeword that the teens used to mean marijuana-smoking in general.”
  ~ https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/420_%28cannabis_culture%29