Bill Cipher Statue

Gravity Falls is the original show created by Alex Hirsch and this is where the Bill Cipher statue comes from. He was the main antagonist of the show and was originally located in Reedsport, Oregon, and had to be moved around but now he finds his home in confusion hill. It is truly amazing to see the amount of love and carry went into the show he came from and the loyal fans who participated in the scavenger hunt for the statue.

Gravity Falls, created by Alex Hirsch, was a popular Disney animated show which ran for two seasons over the course of nearly four years. The series follows 12-year-old twins Dipper and Mabel Pines as they spend the summer in the fictional town of Gravity Falls, Oregon, with their “Grunkle Stan” Stanley Pines. Over the course of their time there, they and their friends experience all kinds of supernatural events and meet different creatures, one of which was Bill Cipher. 

The inspiration for this show came from Hirsch's own childhood experiences and his relationship with his own twin sister growing up during their summer vacations. Dipper Pines is based on how Hirsch felt it was like as a kid. The inspiration for the Mystery Shack in the show was taken from Confusion Hill. In fact, Alex Hirsch managed to help save Confusion Hill when the Covid-19 pandemic made it difficult for the location to make any profit. Alex Hirsch helped provide publicity for Confusion Hill’s fundraiser, ensuring it met its goal.

In the final episode of the series, a real-life statue of Bill Cipher was briefly shown. This was the start of Gravity Falls ARG called the Cipher Hunt, a search for the statue that took place over the summer of 2016 after Gravity Falls ended. Clues were found all over the world, hidden in code in places such as a cathedral in Saint Petersburg, Russia, a shrine in Japan, and a roadside attraction in California known as Confusion Hill, where the statue eventually found its permanent home after the Hunt ended. Eventually, one fan traced the clues to Reedsport, Oregon, where Bill Cipher was found on the ground in a forest on August 2, 2016. The winner of the scavenger hunt was dubbed the “Mayor of Gravity Falls” and received a sash saying so as a prize.

The next day, local police took the statue because of a property dispute over who owned the land where it had been placed. Within a few days, it had found its new temporary home in Reedsport’s Bicentennial Park – without its hat, which had been lost at some point during the dispute. Finally, it was removed again, with a sign saying, “BILL WAS HERE” at his Bicentennial Park Location. It was moved to Confusion Hill in Piercy, California, where it, along with a new hat, remains to this day as a permanent part of the attraction.  

Gravity Falls, Wikipedia. Accessed September 22nd, 2022. https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Gravity_Falls#:~:text=Hirsch%20was%20called%20in%20to,up%20during%20their%20summer%20vacations.

Soberman, Matthew. Real-Life Inspiration for “Gravity Falls” Mystery Shack Saved Thanks to GoFundMe Campaign, WDW News Today. April 24th, 2020. Accessed September 22nd, 2022. https://wdwnt.com/2020/04/real-life-inspiration-for-gravity-falls-mystery-shack-saved-thanks-to-gofundme-campaign/.