A list of Durham references and hidden clues in ‘Stranger Things,’ Seasons 1-5
AI-generated summary reviewed by our newsroom.
- Duffer Brothers seed Durham place names and neighbors across Stranger Things.
- Cornwallis, Kerley, Eno River, Jordan Lake and local businesses appear.
- Season 5 drops in 2025 in three volumes, beginning Wednesday, Nov. 26, 2025.
As the first installment of “Stranger Things” Season 5 — created of course by Matt and Ross Duffer, the pride of Durham — lands on Netflix, we wanted to look back on all the times the mega-hit sci-fi show sent hometown shoutouts back to the Triangle.
For the uninitiated, “Stranger Things” is a popular retro-horror-sci-fi-coming-of-age-adventure series set in the 1980s in Hawkins, Indiana (with excursions in Season 4 to Russia and California). When “Stranger Things” started in the summer of 2016, the show’s main characters were just your everyday, run-of-the-mill, bike-riding 80s kids, out saving the world from apocalyptic monsters of the Upside Down hellscape beneath their small town.
That was nearly 10 years ago, and those kids have grown into teenagers and young adults, though the new season is still set in 1987. But those quickly growing kids are still saving the world (with the occasional help of a couple of adults), and they’re still doing it while the Duffer Brothers (as they’re professionally known) drop little Durham area Easter eggs here and there — a little wink to the people they know and love back home.
We haven’t had a chance to watch Season 5 yet (episodes drop at 8 p.m. on Wednesday, Nov. 26, and some of us have pies to bake), but here’s a list of all the instances we’ve spotted in the past, pulled from some of our previous “Stranger Things” coverage.
But until then, we do have a local reference already spotted in the “Stranger Things” Season 5 teaser released this summer (check the bottom of this story). And don’t worry, we’ll update you when we have our full Season 5 list ready.
Durham NC references in Season 1 of ‘Stranger Things’
Durham roads: Some major Durham roads get mentioned in “Stranger Things,” and none more often than Cornwallis. That’s probably because the Duffer Brothers grew up in a neighborhood off West Cornwallis, near Duke Forest.
- In one instance, the kids tell the police that the place where Will Byers (Noah Schnapp) went missing, which is referred to by the kids as “Mirkwood” (a J.R.R. Tolkien “The Hobbit” reference), is a wooded area at the intersection of Cornwallis and Kerley roads in Hawkins. West Cornwallis and Kerley Roads do intersect in Durham and it’s a mostly wooded area near Duke Forest.
- The series has also mentioned Mt. Sinai and Kerley roads, which also intersect, and which are not far from West Cornwallis Road.
Childhood friend: In an episode in which the kids are playing “Dungeons & Dragons,” the name “King Tristan” is mentioned. Matt Duffer told The News & Observer in November 2017 that Tristan was a friend: “Tristan, he was our next-door neighbor,” Duffer said then. “And he made movies with us all throughout childhood, and he was our closest friend.”
An owl attack? Nope. False alarm. In the first episode of Season 1, Joyce Byers (Winona Ryder) goes to visit police chief Jim Hopper (David Harbour) to report that her son Will has gone missing. Hopper tries to convince her it’s probably nothing and that she shouldn’t worry: “You want to know the worst thing that’s ever happened here in the four years I’ve been working here? You want to know the worst thing — was when an owl attacked Eleanor Gillespie’s head because it thought that her hair was a nest.”
Many people are aware that following the 2001 death of Kathleen Peterson in Durham (for which her husband Michael was later convicted of murder), a theory that she actually died following an owl attack (to the back of her head) gained popularity.
No one in Durham who watched this and heard “an owl attacked Eleanor Gillespie’s head” didn’t think of the Petersons. But we reached out to the Duffer Brothers through their assistant in 2017, and they said that the reference was not intentional.
A nod to Eno’s rock quarry? Reader Jerry Arnold reached out to share a theory about the rock quarry where El saves Mike after he jumps into the water: a reference to swimming spot off the Eno River? That’s a solid theory, especially considering Eno shows up in Season 2.
Strawberry Festival tee: Reader Heather Chambers of Durham wrote in to tell us her family spotted El wearing a Strawberry Festival T-shirt and it seemed like a definite nod to the annual Strawberry Festival at Durham’s Central Park School for Children, held each year in May. The school appears to have a different T-shirt design each year, so it’s definitely possible!
Durham NC mentions in Season 2 of ‘Stranger Things’
The Eno River and Jordan Lake: While Bob Newby (Sean Astin) helped Joyce try to figure out where Hopper was trapped, he recognized two bodies of water from some of Will’s drawings, and realized the drawings were a map of Hawkins. “And if that’s Lake Jordan, then you can probably find ... the Eno River,” Bob says to Joyce.
Neighbors: In an interview with The N&O in 2017, Matt Duffer revealed that a second character in “Stranger Things” was named after a Durham neighbor. “When Dustin’s talking on the phone and pretending to talk about the cat, he’s talking to Mr. McCorkle,” Matt Duffer said. “Mac MacCorkle was our neighbor next door.”
Trick-or-treat in the rich neighborhood: In Episode 2, the Lochn’ora neighborhood in Durham is mentioned. In the episode, the kids are deciding where to go trick-or-treating and one character suggests they go to Lochn’ora: “That’s where the rich people live, right?” Later, a neighborhood sign reading “Loch Nora” is shown. John Snyder, then president of the Lochn’ora Home Owners Association, told The N&O at the time that the spelling was off, but the distinctive font was correct.
Durham references in Season 3 of ‘Stranger Things’
Cornwallis, again: In Episode 2, Nancy and Jonathan, both now working at the Hawkins Post newspaper, interview a woman living at 4819 Cornwallis Road.
Hungry for barbecue? In Episode 4, Hopper and Joyce study a map and point out important locations close to Jordan Lake. One of the spots Joyce mentions is “Bullocks,” but she doesn’t say if that’s a road or farm or business or a person’s property. But anyone the least bit familiar with Durham will think of the famous barbecue spot on Hillsborough Road as soon as they hear that name. And they’ll get hungry.
Season 4 mentions of Durham in ‘Stranger Things’
Go Falcons! We heard from a couple of different alert readers about this one when Season 4 landed in 2022: In the first episode, the Hawkins High basketball team plays in the championship game against the Falcons, which is the same mascot for Charles E. Jordan High School in Durham, where the Duffer Brothers graduated.
Actually Durham! Hands down the best Durham reference in “Stranger Things” comes in Season 4, when the actual city of Durham is referenced. It happens in Episode 2 when Joyce and Murray Bauman (Brett Gelman) are making a phone call from Lenora Hills, California, to Russia, and Murray “spoofs” the number to make it look like they are calling from Durham, NC. BONUS: Brett Gelman is a graduate of the UNC School of the Arts.
Forest Hills. A tipster on Instagram spotted that the name of the community where Max and Eddie Munson live is called Forest Hills Trailer Park. We see the “Forest Hills Trailer Park” sign in Episode 2, when Nancy is stopped by a policeman as she tries to enter. The name given to the rundown trailer park is especially funny because Durham’s Forest Hills neighborhood is part of a national historic district known for beautiful, older (very expensive) homes.
Enzo? A few different readers made the connection between a Russian character who calls himself Enzo, first seen in Episode 2, and the Durham pizza restaurant called Enzo’s.
El Rodeo. Also in Episode 2, when Mike arrives for his spring break vacation with El in California, she tells him she has their whole visit planned out, including a trip to El Rodeo for “the best burritos.” El Rodeo is a popular Mexican restaurant in Durham, N&O reader Jacob Haigler pointed out. In fact, there used to be two locations: one on Roxboro Road at Duke Street and one in Brightleaf Square (that one is now closed).
Can’t party without Cornwallis. In Episode 6, Dustin, Steve, Nancy, Lucas, Max and Robin get a call from Eddie Munson (Joseph Quinn) who is hiding at Skull Rock. Eddie asks if they know where that is and Dustin (Gaten Matarazzo) says, “Yeah that’s near Cornwallis and —” then Steve (Joe Keery) adds: “Garrett — yeah, I know it.” Cornwallis and Garrett Roads are not too far from each other, but they don’t meet. They almost run parallel to each other. The closest the two roads meet would be on at the end nearer to Cornwallis Road Park or Duke Forest, both off West Cornwallis Road.
Cole Mill Road. On Twitter (now X), @_erin_rachel let us know that in an early Season 4 episode, Dustin is talking to his mother on the phone and mentions Cole Mill Road, which runs from Eno River State Park to Hillsborough Road in Durham.
Durham NC area references in Season 5 of ‘Stranger Things’
Duffers’ high school drama teacher. In perhaps the ultimate nod to home, The Duffer Brothers cast their high school drama teacher for a significant role in Season 5. In a post on Instagram, Ross Duffer acknowledged that Miss Harris, the caring teacher seen throughout the first four episodes of the season, is played by Hope Hynes Love, who taught drama at Jordan High School in Durham (she now teaches at East Chapel Hill High School).
Duffer wrote: “High school was rough for me and my brother. But Hope saw something in us we didn’t see in ourselves — and she helped give us the confidence to not only survive those four years, but to move to LA and chase our dreams. Shoutout to all the teachers out there making a difference. And please… let’s prioritize the arts in schools.”
WPTF-inspired? In the teaser released this summer, there’s a quick glimpse of a building with a distinct resemblance to the decades-old WPTF radio building in Cary. Though the bright red call letters read “WSQK” rather than WPTF, there’s no mistaking the similarities between the station in the show and the Triangle’s old Art Deco-style transmitting site. The building is shown multiple times throughout the first four episodes of Season 5 and is an important setting for the plot.
Cornwallis, of course. Cornwallis Road is mentioned several times in the first four episodes and is shown on a giant map of Hawkins used by the characters as they plan their missions. At one point, someone mentions taking “Main to Cornwallis,” but those roads don’t actually intersect in Durham.
Enzo returns: We mentioned that in Season 4, local readers thought a character named Enzo was a nod to Enzo’s Pizza Co. on Erwin Road. Well, in the first episode of Season 5, Enzo’s is mentioned again, but this time as a restaurant. In “Stranger Things,” Enzo’s sounds a little fancier than a casual (but delicious) pizza place, as Robin must make a reservation there to take her girlfriend, Vickie, to dinner.
Erwin or Irwin? In a couple of episodes, starting in Episode 2, the characters mention Erwin Road, which is a pretty significant Durham road (for example, Duke Hospital is on Erwin Road). In both the “Stranger Things” and Durham worlds, it intersects with W. Cornwallis and runs through the Lochnora neighborhood. But my closed captioning spelled the road “Irwin.” We’re definitely still counting it.
Pickett / Hazelwood: Another Durham road mentioned is Pickett Road, which is near Duke Forest. Hazelwood is also mentioned in Episode 2. Hazelwood Road in Durham isn’t super close to Duke Forest, but also not that far — so maybe?
McCorkle Farm. In Season 3, Dustin talks on the phone with Mr. McCorkle, and Matt Duffer told The N&O that Mr. McCorkle was one of their neighbors growing up. In Season 5, the McCorkle Farm serves as an important setting, first mentioned in Episode 2 but also showing up in Episode 2.
Dr. Kay. I admit this might be a stretch, but the main human antagonist in Season 5 is Major General Dr. Kay, played by Linda Hamilton. Dr. Kay leads the paramilitary operation headquartered at Hawkins Lab and is coordinating the search for El. Many times, starting in Episode 3, the military police say “Dr. Kay,” which of course sounds like “Dr. K,” which to this North Carolina ear brings to mind “Coach K,” the former and longtime head coach of Duke’s men’s basketball team. (Also, the internet tells me that this paramilitary operation led by Dr. K is called the Wolf Pack — likely because Blue Devils would be too on the nose?). Update: Jerry Arnold wrote to share his own somewhat similar theory: Considering the Wolf Pack reference, might Dr. Kay be a reference to NC State Wolfpack’s former women’s basketball coach, the late Kay Yow? We like that theory even more!
Gable Ridge Road. Gable Ridge Road is mentioned in Episode 3 and the street sign is shown. There is a Gable Ridge Drive in Durham, but it’s not all that close to Cornwallis, so maybe a a teeny bit outside the “Stranger Things” universe.
When is “Stranger Things” Season 5?
The fifth season will be released in three installments: Volume 1 (episodes 1-4) will be released on Netflix Wednesday, Nov. 26, followed by Volume 2 (episodes 5-7) on Thursday, Dec. 25 and the season finale on Wednesday, Dec. 31.
Fans across can watch the finale on the big screen at select theaters nationwide, Netflix announced this fall. (The finale will also stream on Netflix.)
This story was originally published November 26, 2025 at 12:28 PM with the headline "A list of Durham references and hidden clues in ‘Stranger Things,’ Seasons 1-5."
