How southern Indiana communities are preparing for the 2024 solar eclipse
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Several communities in southern Indiana are getting ready to cash in on tourism dollars expected to be generated by the solar eclipse on April 8, when a large swath of Indiana will be in the path of totality and up to a million people could visit the state.
Alexis Berggren, executive director of Explore Evansville, told Inside INdiana Business even though other communities in the region will have longer periods of totality, the city wants to capitalize on the tourists it is expected to draw.
“It’s just such a tremendous opportunity, and we want to make the best of it,” she said.
The University of Evansville and the University of Southern Indiana will hold events on April 7 and 8 to celebrate the eclipse. Dr. Kent W. Scheller, professor of physics at USI, told Inside INdiana Business he expects the west side campus to be a hot spot.
“There’s going to be potentially 100,000 extra individuals in the Tri-State on that day, and several thousand of them, tens of thousands of them, will be at USI,” he said.
Vincennes will have the most extended period of totality in the state, with more than four minutes of darkness. The event is so important to the city and Knox County that officials hired Sarah Wolfe as the eclipse director. She told Inside INdiana Business she’s helping the community get organized.
“We are directly in the center of that 100-mile wide path. So logistically, we would like to be prepared,” Wolfe said.
The 2017 experience
During the last solar eclipse on Monday, August 21, 2017, the path of totality passed just south of southern Indiana. Organizers said that experience taught them that next year’s event would be an even bigger spectacle.
“When people walked away from the 2017 experience, looking forward to the 2024 experience, it became a happening,” said Berggren. “With the eclipses so close together, both geographically and from a timing standpoint, we knew it was something special that people were going to get even more excited about.”
On the day of the 2017 solar eclipse, Scheller operated a telescope and gave lectures at USI. He said about 3,000 children were on campus for the event, using special glasses to safely view the event.
“They stared up at the sky, and their jaws dropped. The kids were so excited. Then I look over, and there’s a 70-year-old man looking to the sky with his jaw dropped. It’s just so cool,” said Scheller. “I thought, man, we need to do this in 2024. We need to do this right, make it a big event, invite everybody.”
Safety first
Businesses should prepare for the 2024 solar eclipse not only for financial opportunities but also for safety purposes, according to Berggren.
“If you’re not planning for it in terms of how your own business operations are going to go that day, you need to start,” she said. “We want everyone to be safe. We want our community to be prepared. We don’t want anyone caught off guard by the increased traffic.”
Scheller, the USI professor, said the university is working with local law enforcement and state and local officials on safety and traffic plans.
With the event falling in the middle of severe weather season, organizers have brought up concerns about people gathering in open spaces to watch the solar eclipse.
“Meteorologist Arden Gregory with Channel 14 reminded us at our last public safety meeting that when we’re identifying parking areas, make sure there’s a contingency plan in case of severe weather,” said Berggren.
Organizers also want to ensure they know where eclipse events will occur in case of other types of emergencies.
“If somebody is having campers out on their back 40, good for them, make some money, you should do that,” Wolfe said. “But if we don’t know where they are, there’s no 911 address attached to that cornfield, for example, we don’t have any way to get back there quickly. And we also don’t know if the roads are serviceable for an ambulance.”
Eclipse events
Posey County will be the first Indiana county to experience solar eclipse totality on April 8. New Harmony begins at 2:01:47 p.m. central time with a duration of 3:54. The town’s businesses and organizations plan to host various events.
In Mt. Vernon, totality starts at 2:01:51 p.m. central time with a duration of 3:30. Eclipse on the Ohio will be held at Riverbend Park at 111 E. Water St. from 10 a.m. to 3 p.m. with food trucks, music and educational events. In Poseyville, totality begins at 2:02:06 p.m. central time with a duration of 3:49. The Grow Poseyville Solarbration will feature music, food, games and activities.
Kari Mobley, executive director of Visit Posey County, Inc., told Inside INdiana Business the county offers an experience that’s rural and unique compared to a larger city.
“Visitors can enjoy the eclipse on two riverfront locations and have gorgeous views of open fields,” she said. “We are so excited to welcome new and returning visitors for the once-in-a-lifetime phenomenon.”
In Gibson County, Princeton starts totality at 2:02:35 p.m. central time with a duration of 3:54. The Gibson County Total Eclipse Celebration will run for four days at the fairgrounds and feature a parade, live local entertainment, a student art and science fair, eclipse educational presentations, food trucks and carnival rides.
Oakland City begins totality at 2:03:01 p.m. central time with a duration of 3:40. The city will host a weekend of family-oriented games and activities, including a book signing by a former NASA astronaut and a disc golf tournament at New Lake.
Eric Heidenreich, executive director at the Gibson County Visitors and Tourism Bureau, told Inside INdiana Business there will also be designated eclipse-viewing locations throughout the county.
“The 2024 eclipse has the potential to provide Gibson County with a wider audience than it has ever seen,” he said. “We want to make sure that we take full advantage of this opportunity, offering our visitors the best possible experience while they are here.”
In Vanderburgh County, Evansville will start totality at 2:02:39 p.m. central time with a duration of 3:01. There are several events in the area, including Solarpalooza at USI, UEclipse at UE, Total Solar Eclipse at Angel Mounds in Evansville and Total Eclipse of the Park at Friedman Park in nearby Newburgh. While speakers will give presentations at UE and USI on April 7, USI will also have music and food trucks on campus on April 8, leading up to the start of totality.
“Then there’s the unifying event around 2:00 p.m. The lights are going to go out, and hopefully, we have a cloudless day,” said Scheller. “In the event that we have weather, we are going to pipe in the NASA feed of the eclipse in the auditoriums, in the arena, in the theater, and people can go inside,” said Scheller. “We’re not shutting down if there are clouds.”
In Knox County, Vincennes will begin totality at 3:02:52 p.m. eastern time with a duration of 4:05, the longest period in the state. The Dark Side of the Wabash party starts with several events over the weekend leading up to main celebration on April 8, which includes a group wedding.
“It’s a totally affordable wedding that one of our local churches is throwing. You get some photographs, you get some cake, you get some punch and you get married under the eclipse,” said Wolfe.
Financial opportunities
As out-of-town guests make plans to stay in the region and watch the solar eclipse, communities are seeing an influx of lodging reservations.
“We know most of the campgrounds, cottages and things like that in the parks are sold out,” said Berggren. “A lot of the parks that have chalets are now moving into tent camping and primitive camping. The people who chase these things and know what they’re doing have made their reservations. Our hotels, on the other hand, are sitting at about 40% occupancy.”
“Individuals and organizations like the Knox County Fairgrounds and the Knox County Sportsman’s Club have offered camping,” added Wolfe. “And then we’ve got churches and smaller organizations that are planning on offering RV camping and tent camping on their properties.”
Restaurant owners also expect additional table requests while eclipse watchers visit their communities.
“Restaurants probably have the easiest grabs,” Wolfe said. “It’s easy to tie in the eclipse with food things, whether it’s dessert or a burger. We’ve got one restaurant that’s already promoting an eclipse breakfast special.”
Creating solar eclipse-related events and merchandise is a great way for any business or organization to raise brand awareness and drive foot traffic, according to Wolfe.
“It’s a tremendous financial opportunity and economic opportunity for so many businesses and organizations and social clubs and churches that it seems we would be foolish to not take advantage of that or to at least try,” she said.
“It’s an opportunity to sell the destination,” added Berggren. “It’s an opportunity to sell your company. Depending on the space you have, you can hold or promote local watch parties for your own team or for your VIPs.”
The Gibson County Visitors and Tourism Bureau is offering grants to businesses to encourage eclipse-related events and activities. Applications are due Nov. 17. Heidenreich said his organization is educating business owners on what to expect during the eclipse and how their businesses could be impacted.
“We will encourage the business community to incorporate the eclipse theme into their marketing strategies and to partner with us in providing visitors with hospitality in every way possible,” he said.
An ‘amazing celestial event’
For visitors at USI and UE, there will be opportunities to learn more about solar eclipses and the universities.
Noah Alatza, chief communications officer at UE, told Inside INdiana Business that Sunday’s presentation “will provide educational opportunities and allow prospective students to experience our campus firsthand” and offer “an additional opportunity for visitors coming to Evansville to access expert insights on the eclipse.”
Scheller said the solar eclipse will also be a significant recruitment day for USI, adding that higher education institutions are uniquely positioned for this type of event.
“A university brings together the manpower, the resources and the infrastructure to watch an eclipse,” he said. “We have astronomers, we have telescopes. We have historians who can talk about how eclipses have affected humans over the past 2,000 years.”
For Wolfe, the solar eclipse coming so soon after the COVID-19 pandemic has a deeper meaning.
“We all had to be separate and apart from each other for so long that I’m just convinced that there’s a reason why it’s happening,” she said. “To refocus our vibe so that we remember how human we all are and how connected we all are and that we get to experience something together and we don’t have to be apart for that.”
“Eclipses have been a unifying theme for humans for thousands of years,” added Scheller. “One of the greatest Greek wars ceased on the day of an eclipse because the soldiers thought the gods were mad that they were fighting. So they laid down their arms and declared a truce.”
The 2024 event will be the last chance to see a total solar eclipse in the contiguous United States for 20 years. Even then, the only three states in the path of totality will be Montana, North Dakota and South Dakota.
“This will be the last total eclipse you’ll see in your lifetime in Evansville. The next total eclipse in Evansville will occur a little over 600 years from now. You’re never going to get to do this again in Evansville,” Scheller said.