Visitors and locals find Springfield to be a 'perfect spot' to see the moon eclipse the sun

Sun and moon themed decorations and merch were at the Eclipse Over Springfield event.The recent eclipse which sliced right through Springfield skies on April 8 had everyone in the city with their chins up. Folks from across the community and beyond gathered near the city center, many of them at The Greater Springfield’s celebration of the astronomical event at National Road Commons Park. 

The event featured food trucks and vendors, lawn games, partnerships from the Clark County Combined Health District and the Springfield Public Library Bookmobile, and live music from the local band After Rain. 

At the celebration, Derek Snowden was working tech for the stage and had this to say about the outing: “It’s a killer turnout, with a great band. I’m glad to see Skyline Chili here as a sponsor! The Visitor’s Center did a great job organizing such a unique event.”

Vistors and locals turned out for the Eclipse Over Springfield celebration.The park really started to see a lot of foot traffic as the eclipse came closer to totality. This is when Kathy Myint-Hpu and her family showed up on the scene, visiting all the way from Washington D.C. 

The eclipse drew almost everyone's attention as it put on a celestial show.“We were heading as far west as possible and stayed the night with friends in Pennsylvania, but this morning, with the cloud coverage, we decided to head even closer to totality,” Myint-Hpu said. “The timing worked out that Springfield was the perfect spot, at the perfect time, with the perfect weather! I’ve never been to Ohio but a friend of ours mentioned that libraries would have the most ideal information and space for the event so we followed your public library! And what a pleasant surprise it was to find such a town as this, the festival is also a nice thing to happen upon.” 

Myint-Hpu and her family were among approximately 800 attendees to the celebration. There also were many more familiar faces from the Clark County region, such as Springfield native Josh Compston and his daughter, Taylor. Josh showed his appreciation for the eclipse-watch party and other gatherings such as these, saying, “I just love coming to these community events and getting to see my friends from work and families of her friends from school and getting to enjoy these public spaces together. This is awesome!”

Totality lasted about 2 minutes and 37 seconds in Springfield. A special playlist was prepared which featured  songs that mentioned the sun, so even the performers could pause and appreciate this unique phenomenon. 

The Marines turne their eyes to the sky as the moon passed over the sun in Springfield, Ohio.At about 3:07 p.m. the crowd started to rise from their picnic blankets, people could be seen coming to their balconies and even the rooftops of surrounding buildings, and solar eclipse glasses went up as people watched the syzygy come into formation. Whoops and applause could be heard from all over the city, perfectly representing the mood for such an extraordinary sight. Some were even moved to tears at what could only be described as enchanting. 

The Greater Springfield’s Downtown Events Programmer Kristina Jarrell, spoke with The Springfield Hub on how the organization thought the event was going. “A ton of people came out. We’re very happy,” Jarrell said. “We advertised as much as we could. I’ve recently joined this role but I'm very glad that we had such a large draw here. Lots of families enjoying some wholesome fun, that’s what I like to see.”

The Total Solar Eclipse band was 124 miles wide. According to ODNR, “The last total solar eclipse visible in Ohio was in 1806. The next total solar eclipse in Ohio will be in the year 2099.”


The sun was just a shadow of itself during the totality.