There’s no ‘better place’ to see April 8 total solar eclipse than in this tiny Texas town
For four minutes and 23 seconds, at exactly 38 minutes past 1 p.m. on Monday, April 8, this sleepy Texas town straddling Interstate-35 an hour south of Fort Worth will be captivated by a rare celestial phenomenon the likes of which will not be seen again in North America for a generation.
This will be Hillsboro’s shining moment in the shadow of a total solar eclipse, and it hopes to lure up to 60,000 eager skygazers to town. Perhaps for the first time in the city’s over 140-year history, Hillsboro will share the spotlight in a global event.
“Hillsboro has just kind of stayed sleepy, I think we’re gonna wake up,” said Luanne Henry, manager at the flower shop Sage Blooms. “This is gonna wake us up.”
Hillsboro has spent the last year-and-a-half laying plans as willing hosts for the total solar eclipse, even going as far as rebranding itself as “Eclipseboro.”
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Hillsboro City Manager Megan Henderson admits that Hillsboro “proudly stole” its nickname from Hopkinsville, Kentucky, which rebranded itself as “Eclipseville” for the 2017 total solar eclipse. Hopkinsville was just one of the many cities who benefited from being in the path of totality during the eclipse. It profited from the more than 116,000 visitors who stayed and spent their money in town to the tune of $28.5 million.
Although Hillsboro is not expected to draw nearly as many visitors as Hopkinsville, The Great American Eclipse, a website that sizes up the draw of the eclipse to towns on the path of totality, estimates that 15,000 to 60,000 people will travel to Hillsboro for the event.
Big enough for the Texas Department of Transportation to consider warning motorists to expect traffic jams on the Interstates and state highways crisscrossing the town as the skies darken and eyes shift to catch a glimpse of the rare phenomenon. A state spokesperson told the Star-Telegram that crews will plaster signs along roadways to help direct traffic.
The reason millions are expected to travel south — and many will travel to Texas down the spine of the path of totality — is for the prospect of the best weather to watch the eclipse. A quick look at historical weather data for the North Texas region shows that the area in April recorded 6.9 days with a trace amount of rain, 4.5 days with .1 inches and 1.1 days with more than an inch.
No rain means less clouds — clearer skies with which to see the sun — giving this north-central Texas town a galaxy-sized boost, Henderson said.
“I just want it to work,” the city manager said. ”I want our folks to be able to make the most of the opportunity, whatever that looks like for them.”
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A Hill County gold rush
Just off Waco Street, and a stone’s throw from the Hill County Courthouse, sits the boutique Finished Seams.
In the back of the store, flanked by sewing machines and two dressing rooms, shop owner Susan Shewmake tells the Star-Telegram that the influx of tourists to Hillsboro can only be beneficial.
“We are a small town, we rely on visitors,” Shewmake said. “Those guests are helping us.”
Shewmake plans to open her shop earlier and stay later the weekend leading up to the big day, even promising to make last-minute alterations to anyone’s eclipse wardrobe.
In fact, the shop is selling all kinds of “Eclipsboro”-branded merchandise including black shirts with purple and yellow lettering that reads, “Total eclipse of the [heart] of [Texas].”
“The whole idea is we want people to come enjoy our town,” Shewmake said. “And come back when there are fewer people.”
With eclipse tourists converging on this small town, many will need a place to stay — from hotels to short-term rentals. Stuart Scarborough didn’t know why his VRBO rental home on Lake Whitney rented out for an entire week two years ago. He soon put two-and-two together.
“My guess would be its to a family or to a couple that is very interested in [the eclipse],” Scarborough said.
Initially, Scarborough felt like he missed out on raising the rental price to meet the eclipse-level surge pricing for the lakefront property that sleeps eight people.
But he would soon get a second shot at a better price.
In early February, the people who booked the property in June 2022 canceled their reservation, Scarborough said. The three-bedroom, two-bathroom property was relisted for around three times its initial asking price, sitting over $900 per night the weekend leading up to the eclipse. The experience made Scarborough rethink how he manages the property online. Now people can only rent out the house six months in advance.
“Just in case some other major event is going on in the area that everyone else knows about but me,” Scarborough said with a chuckle.
Prepping for their big day is no small task for many in town. On Elm Street, next door to Hillsboro’s historic Bond’s Alley, Stacey Hunt checks on customers at Overflow Coffee Co. Hunt, who opened the cafe in 2017, anticipates a rush of visitors in town for the big event eager to spend their money.
With the influx of out-of-towners in mind, she’s even invited past employees who worked at the shop during their teen years to come back and help out.
“All the girl employees, we’re gonna have a sleepover here,” Hunt said. “It’s also gonna be like our own little reunion party.”
As things settle down inside the coffee shop that used to be the historic T.B. Bond Pharmacy, Hunt spent the quiet moment to make her lists in preparation for the big day. She’s planning to order extra cups, napkins and toilet paper, but isn’t worried about overstocking. She’ll use the inventory eventually. A neighbor has even offered to free up fridge space for Hunt to store extra milk and cold products.
Patrons are typically served club sandwiches and salads on real dishes, but, Hunt confesses, they’ll likely use to-go boxes so they don’t run out of hardware. Nonetheless, Hunt is excited and ready for the challenge.
“I think it is going to be exhausting for my staff, but we’ll celebrate when it’s all said and done,” Hunt said.
A city block over, the trees lining the sidewalk of Covington Street provide ample shade from the sun for businesses on the charming street like the colorful boutique Lemon Blush. From behind the counter, owner Jess Cerrone tells the Star-Telegram that she’s working on establishing a family-friendly zone near her store for the eclipse. From bounce houses, to a lemonade stand, the zone will serve as a place for kids to hang out.
The town can sure use the boost in business, Cerrone said. All this hubbub is coming at just the right time for Hillsboro, considering what they’ve endured in a post-pandemic landscape.
“Our town really needs the rejuvenation after COVID,” Cerrone said.
Hillsboro, Texas, plans for a planet-sized event
Tucked away in the single-story white bricked administrative building, Hillsboro city manager Henderson recalls former Mayor Andy Smith and a pair of business owners first talking about the eclipse back in 2022. Not long after, Hillsboro was named as the seventh best place in the country to view the 2024 eclipse by Astronomy Magazine.
The recognition spurred the staff of this city of 8,548 people into action. They felt they had a responsibility to prepare their town for such an enormous event.
“If a bunch of people showed up at your house unexpectedly, even if you were really happy to see them, you would want to know that you had stuff in the refrigerator,” Henderson said.
Planning an event this big takes time and everyone’s buy-in. Parked at a table inside the cafe on a brisk early February day, Hillsboro Special Projects Coordinator Allyson Cliett tells the Star-Telegram how the preparations began, starting with a presentation from a consultant who had helped the Kentucky town of Hopkinsville prepare for the 2017 eclipse.
From there, Hillsboro got to work. Committees were formed, initially meeting once a month, then weekly as the big day approaches, Cliett said. In total, over 100 residents have volunteered their time to help, she said.
“It’s been very special for me to see Hillsboro citizens and businesses kind of come together and rally around this thing,” Cliett said. ”A common goal that we’re all working on together.”
Henry, the florist, predicts the big plans will usher in big changes to her little town. Not unlike when Willie Nelson played a benefit concert in Hillsboro in 1993.
“I see changes, I see them coming,” Henry said. “In about five to eight years, this little town is going to be different.”
By the spring of 2023, Hillsboro had its Eclipsboro website and social media channels fine-tuned for the big show. The city wanted to make sure its residents knew what to expect, holding monthly town hall gatherings to stress the enormity of the coming date.
“We’re trying to tell people, maybe don’t go get your haircut on Monday [April 8],” Cliett said. “Go get your medicine the week before.”
With less than a month to go, Cliett said that Hillsboro is now dotting the i’s and crossing the t’s. Signage will be going up in the coming days all around the town’s 11-square-mile expanse. Not to mention the rush to make the final touches on beautification projects across the city.
Nothing has been left to chance. Everyone looking up to the solar eclipse will need special glasses to protect their eyes, and Hillsboro has made certain it has plenty to freely pass around. Cliett said they ordered a batch of 25,000 glasses a few months ago, but quickly realized that more were needed. The Hillsboro Chamber of Commerce was more than happy to order another 25,000 pairs.
Most of the glasses are being shared among local groups such as the Boys & Girls Club and local nursing homes. Glasses will also be available for those staying at city-sponsored eclipse camping and viewing sites.
“I think we’re okay for now,” Cliett said with relief.
It will be a 400-year wait for the next total solar eclipse along a Texas path
For many Texans, April’s total solar eclipse may be the only time they’ll have a front-row seat to a once-in-a-lifetime event.
North and Central Texas sit directly in the path of totality offering what UT Arlington planetarium director Levent Gurdemir said is, “a very rare event.”
“About 400 years ago, [the] Dallas Fort Worth area experienced a similar total solar eclipse,” Gurdemir said.
In general, total solar eclipses are not rare events, happening somewhere on the globe every 18 months. But one occurring over North Texas is, well, huge.
It takes around 400 years for a specific location to return into the path of totality. During the 2017 total solar eclipse, the path of totality was stretched from the west to the east coast, with Texas only having a sliver of the show.
On April 8, when the moon passes in front of the sun, North Texas will have its moment in the dark.
“I cannot name any better place for a solar eclipse to happen,” Gurdemir said.
