It's been quite a while since Texas had a solar eclipse, and it was a whole different world back then.
The last time Texas experienced a total solar eclipse was back in 1878. Here's just a snapshot of what the world was like at that time.
Our Texas Constitution had been adopted only two years earlier. Texas A&M was in its second year, and the University of Texas was five years away from being established. The state capital building wouldn't be built for ten more years.
The population of San Antonio was just 20,000. Rutherford B. Hayes was president, and the Morgan Silver Dollar was freshly minted for use. Thomas Edison was a year away from inventing the light bulb.
Gunfights were still common, railroads hadn't connected the country, and when the eclipse happened, celebrations arose in both big and small Texas towns.
If you miss this year's total solar eclipse, don't worry. There'll be another one in 2317.
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