With Monday’s solar eclipse on the horizon, New Hampshire small businesses are reaping the rewards of tourism this rare event brings.
America’s Stonehenge, a family-run business in Salem, NH is selling tickets for a solar eclipse viewing event at their 110 acre property which is home to a 4,000 year old archaeological cite and observatory.
Katherine Stone, a manager at America’s Stonehenge, explained that it is the highest point in the area.
She added, “You’ll be able to see 360 degrees around you and all the openings for the alignments in the trees.”
According to their website, the land is home to:
“A maze of man-made chambers, walls and ceremonial meeting places, at over 4,000 years old America’s Stonehenge is most likely the oldest man-made construction in the United States. Like Stonehenge in England, America’s Stonehenge was built by ancient people well versed in astronomy and stone construction. It has been determined that the site is an accurate astronomical calendar. It was, and still can be, used to determine specific solar and lunar events of the year.”
Stone continued, “The eclipse is a very meaningful time for our cite because of its origins. It was used for sky watching back in ancient times.”
Stone and the observatory expects a totality of 95% in Salem, NH.
Local New Hampshire residents told Boston 25 this is a long awaited day for them, and they’ve noticed increased traffic heading north.
“The traffic around 93 north today was crazy,” said one Nashua resident.
America’s Stonehenge is just one of many viewing events across New England Monday around 2-4 pm.
Citing an increase in revenue and foot traffic because of the eclipse, Stone finished, “We’ve seen a huge increase in our website traffic, in our social media … It’s so exciting for us when we have these really busy days.”
This is a developing story. Check back for updates as more information becomes available.
Download the FREE Boston 25 News app for breaking news alerts.
Follow Boston 25 News on Facebook and Twitter. | Watch Boston 25 News NOW