Riverdale is the setting of the stories in the Archie Comics universe. It is usually depicted as a medium-sized town (possibly a suburb of a bigger city), with all the usual amenities of shopping malls, restaurants, and parks. In the first Archie stories in the 1940s, it was identified as Riverdale, New York, a real neighborhood in
The Bronx
The Bronx () is a borough of New York City, coextensive with Bronx County, in the state of New York. It is south of Westchester County; north and east of the New York City borough of Manhattan, across the Harlem River; and north of the New ...
. In '' Jackpot Comics'' #5 (Spring 1942), a story written by
Bob Montana
Robert William Montana (October 23, 1920 – January 4, 1975) was an American comic strip artist who created the original likenesses for characters published by Archie Comics and in the newspaper strip ''Archie''.
Early life
He was born in Stock ...
has the gang going on a river trip. One panel says "...the good ship 'Peter Stuyvesant' settles into the Hudson, as Riverdale High clambers aboard for a happy trip to Bear Mountain." Riverdale has been shown to have beaches, lakes, rivers, deserts, farmland, woodland, mountains, plains, a transit system, and four distinct seasons with changes in climate.
Archie Comics publisher John L. Goldwater and initial ''Archie'' artist
Bob Montana
Robert William Montana (October 23, 1920 – January 4, 1975) was an American comic strip artist who created the original likenesses for characters published by Archie Comics and in the newspaper strip ''Archie''.
Early life
He was born in Stock ...
differed on the inspiration for Riverdale, with Goldwater saying it was based on his hometown of
Hiawatha, Kansas
Hiawatha (Ioway: ''Hári Wáta'' pronounced ) is the largest city and county seat of Brown County, Kansas, United States. As of the 2020 census, the population of the city was 3,280.
History
Etymology
B.L. Rider reportedly was responsible f ...
, and Montana saying the town's high school was based on his own in
Haverhill, Massachusetts
Haverhill ( ) is a city in Essex County, Massachusetts, United States. Haverhill is located 35 miles north of Boston on the New Hampshire border and about 17 miles from the Atlantic Ocean. The population was 67,787 at the 2020 United States Ce ...
, where as in the comics a replica of Auguste Rodin's famous statue
The Thinker
''The Thinker'' (french: Le Penseur) is a bronze sculpture by Auguste Rodin, usually placed on a stone pedestal. The work depicts a nude male figure of heroic size sitting on a rock. He is seen leaning over, his right elbow placed on his left ...
stands.
In one issue of ''Archie and Jughead Digest'', when one of the readers asked in a letter, "Where is Riverdale located?", the editor replied, "Riverdale is more of a state of mind than an actual physical location. It could be anywhere that kind people live and just have fun, like Archie and his friends. It could be in the Midwest, or along the Eastern Seaboard, or even a town in Canada, Mexico, or England."
Riverdale High School
Riverdale High School is the local educational institution of Riverdale where Archie and his friends attend the 11th grade. Its school colors are blue and gold, and its school newspaper is the ''Blue and Gold''.
Only a few of Riverdale High's staff appear regularly in the comics; these include the school principal Mr. Weatherbee, homeroom teacher Miss Grundy, chemistry teacher
Mr. Flutesnoot
''Mister'', usually written in its contracted form ''Mr.'' or ''Mr'', is a commonly used English honorific for men without a higher honorific, or professional title, or any of various designations of office. The title 'Mr' derived from earlier ...
, history teacher Miss Haggly, physical education teachers Coach Kleats and Coach Clayton, cafeteria cook Miss Beazley, custodian
Mr. Svenson
''Mister'', usually written in its contracted form ''Mr.'' or ''Mr'', is a commonly used English honorific for men without a higher honorific, or professional title, or any of various designations of office. The title 'Mr' derived from earlier ...
, secretary Miss Phlips, and superintendent of schools Mr. Hassle.
in the TV show, the staff frequently shown/mentioned in Riverdale are Mr. Weatherbee (principal), Miss Grundy (former, deceased music teacher), Coach Clayton (football coach) and
Mr. Svenson
''Mister'', usually written in its contracted form ''Mr.'' or ''Mr'', is a commonly used English honorific for men without a higher honorific, or professional title, or any of various designations of office. The title 'Mr' derived from earlier ...
(caretaker)
In the five-issue miniseries ''Faculty Funnies'' (cover-dated June 1989May 1990) by writer George Gladir and penciler Stan Goldberg, faculty members Mr. Weatherbee, Mr. Flutesnoot, Miss Grundy and Coach Clayton secretly become the superhero team the Awesome Foursome after a lab accident involving Archie's science project. They lose their powers after putting out a chemical fire.
The series ''Archie at Riverdale High'' ran 113 issues (August 1972February 1987). This was followed by ''Riverdale High'', which ran six issues (AugustJune 1990). After a brief hiatus, it was retitled ''Archie's Riverdale High'' and then canceled with issue #8 (AugustOctober 1991).
Places
Places in Riverdale besides the high school include the following:
* Pop Tate's Chocklit Shoppe, the soda shop frequented by the teenaged cast.
*Pickens Park, the community park named for the fictional Civil War hero General Pickens.
*The Lodge Mansion, the large and luxurious home of wealthy Veronica Lodge and her parents.
*Homes of other members of the gang, including the Andrews residence, Jones residence and Cooper residence.
* Dilton Doiley's science lab, a home-based setup where Dilton invents and conducts experiments.
* Chuck Clayton's studio, where Chuck draws his cartoons at home.
*The beach, where Archie and the gang spend much of their time in the summer.
*The Riverdale Mall, a source of shopping and entertainment, particularly for the girls.
* The Blossom Mansion, the larger and luxurious home where wealthy Cheryl Blossom and her family live.
* Riverdale High, where all the teens go to school, and where all the dances and some parties are hosted, like homecoming.
Nearby towns
Some nearby towns include Greendale and Midvale. Greendale is the home of
Sabrina, the Teenage Witch
''Sabrina the Teenage Witch'' is a comic book series published by Archie Comics about the adventures of a fictional American teenager named Sabrina Spellman. Sabrina was created by writer George Gladir and artist Dan DeCarlo, and first app ...
, who once lived in Riverdale but eventually moved. Characters who appear in Josie and the Pussycats come from Midvale.
Riverdale High School's main scholastic and athletic rival is Central High School, located in another nearby community. Central High seems to consist of nothing but villainous types. The males are generally thuggish, conniving brutes, and the females are usually lecherous, scheming vamps. In most of their encounters, Central students seldom compete without using unsportsmanlike conduct, if not out-and-out cheating. The coaches and teachers often are not only aware of this skullduggery, but encourage it. In most cases, Central's team colors are bright red and silver-white.
In the fourth season of the iconic show, Stonewall Prep is heavily mentioned as one of the nearby rival schools. Student often dress in rabbit memorabilia and carry fake looking axes to intimidate unwanted newcomers. In a rather charming episode, Betty and Jughead have relations in Jughead's dorm during the winter months. As Jughead courageously ventures outside their cozy abode to buy them an extravagant meal of vending machine memorabilia, he is nearly attacked by one of these bunny loving students.
Pembrooke Academy is a private school attended by siblings Cheryl and Jason Blossom and their snobbish friends Bunny and Cedric. They look down on Riverdale students as "townies" and will not (except for the Blossom twins) willingly associate with them. Other schools that have been featured as Riverdale rival schools include Hadley High and Southside High. In one comic, a letter sent to Riverdale has "U." where the state should be, and a ZIP code of 10543 (which in real life is Mamaroneck, New York, the home of Michael Silberkleit, an Archie Comics editor).
Related media
* In the pilot of the 2017 series ''Riverdale'', the town is described as being located in "Rockland County." Only one county in the US has that name,
Rockland County, New York
Rockland County is the southernmost county on the west side of the Hudson River in the U.S. state of New York. It is part of the New York metropolitan area. It is about from the Bronx at their closest points. The county's population, as of t ...
, close to Archie Comics' headquarters in
Pelham, New York
Pelham is a suburban town in Westchester County, approximately 10 miles northeast of Midtown Manhattan. As of the 2020 census, it had a population of 13,078, an increase from the 2010 census. Historically, Pelham was composed of five villages ...
.
Cultural references
*In ''
The Simpsons
''The Simpsons'' is an American animated sitcom created by Matt Groening for the Fox Broadcasting Company. The series is a satirical depiction of American life, epitomized by the Simpson family, which consists of Homer Simpson, Homer, Marge ...
'' episode "
Sideshow Bob Roberts
"Sideshow Bob Roberts" is the fifth episode of the sixth season of the American animated television series ''The Simpsons''. It originally aired on the Fox network in the United States on October 9, 1994. Kelsey Grammer returns in his fourth major ...
" (Episode 2F02), several Archie Comics characters, including
Archie Andrews
Archibald "Archie" Andrews, created in 1941 by publisher John L. Goldwater and artist Bob Montana in collaboration with writer Vic Bloom,
Jughead Jones
Forsythe Pendleton "Jughead" Jones III is one of the fictional characters created by Bob Montana and John L. Goldwater in Archie Comics who first appeared in the first Archie story, from ''Pep Comics'' #22 (December 1941). He is the drummer of th ...
have a cameo, as well as a copy of ''Archie Comics''.
*In " Marge the Lumberjill" (Episode ZABF02) from the same series, Springfield Elementary students perform dramatic scenes that they write themselves, based on TV shows and YouTube, including one from'' Riverdale''.
Duckburg
The Donald Duck universe is a fictional shared universe which is the setting of stories involving Disney cartoon character Donald Duck, as well as Daisy Duck, Huey, Dewey, and Louie, Scrooge McDuck, and many other characters. Life in the Dona ...