City Archives

Marty and the 1955 Doc Brown looking up the Hill Valley City Archives.

"The City Archives, down in the basement of the Hill Valley City Hall, would have been long closed by the time they [Doc and Marty] towed the DeLorean back to safety. And they would have stayed closed too, if Doc hadn't known Charlie, the night watchman. Charlie and Doc both shared a passion for the Old West in general, and Hill Valley in particular — and Charlie could be talked into bending the rules a little when it came to visiting hours and suchlike, especially if you shared some of the history you found."

—From Back to the Future Part III by Craig Shaw Gardner (quote, page 27)

"Great Scott! It's me. It is true. All of it. It is me that goes back there and gets shot!"

—Doc to Marty

The City Archives of Hill Valley were located in the basement of the Hill Valley City Hall.

History

Hill Valley's City Archives was monitored by a night watchman named Charlie, who had a love for the Old West and Hill Valley history much like Doc Brown did. Charlie would bend the rules for Doc by extending the visiting hours for him, as long as Doc showed him some of the material he came across.

While in the City Archives on the night of November 14, 1955, Doc and Marty McFly desperately searched for information in the file marked "Hill Valley: 1880s" on Doc's possible death and his killer Buford "Mad Dog" Tannen. In the process, they came across a photo of Doc standing in front of the clock to the Hill Valley Courthouse before its completion, thus proving that 1985 Doc was back there.

Doc also found a book with Marty's family ancestors, and pointed out Marty's great grandfather William Sean McFly in the book A History of Hill Valley, 1850-1930.

Appearances

• Back to the Future Part III
• Back to the Future Part III novelization