New Hampshire

I went to Lancaster, NH to see eclipse in its totality: Here’s what it was like

Published

2 years ago

April 8, 2024

I went to Lancaster, NH to see eclipse in its totality: Here’s what it was like

Lancaster, New Hampshire, was almost unrecognizable Monday as what seemed like thousands of visitors streamed into the town to see a once-in-a-lifetime sight: a full solar eclipse.

I drove up from Hopkinton, New Hampshire, and made it to Lancaster around 10 a.m. after hitting a little traffic. Usually a town of just over 3,500 people and quiet during “mud season,” the town was buzzing with energy. Five hours before the eclipse, the streets were full of people walking around, getting snacks at local shops and food trucks, and setting up their blankets and chairs in preparation.

Sitting on a field next to the Granite Grind, Heidi and Nina Glavac had arrived in Lancaster around 9:30 a.m. to make sure they got a parking spot. They are from nearby Bethlehem.

“I want to do the 100%, right. And our house apparently my husband’s like, we’re 99.6. So I’m like, where’s the closest to where we live,” said Heidi.

Much of New England saw a partial eclipse somewhere in the 90th percentile. But many of the people who traveled to Lancaster said they saw it as their one chance to see a total eclipse. The next one in the area won’t be until 2079.

The total eclipse

The moon began covering the sun around 2:15 p.m. Wearing my ISO certified eclipse glasses, I saw the sun begin to morph into a crescent.

Brad Moser, an assistant professor of physics and astronomy at Plymouth State University, was standing outside The Lancaster Motel with his telescope.

“I’m most excited … there’s a couple of minutes leading up to totality, there’s things like shadow bands or shadow snakes, if you’ve heard of those before,” Moser said. “Once there’s like this narrow slip a couple of minutes right before the eclipse, you can look onto the ground and there should be like these sort of like wavy shadows that are like kind of leaping over each other, kind of snakelike.”

Moser said that in the moments leading right up to full totality, informed viewers can see things like “Bailey’s Beads,” or little fibers of sunlight, and the subsequent “diamond-ring effect” as they disappear. Moser said these are caused by the sun’s light coming past the mountains and valleys on the moon.

The sun was still only partly obscured when I came upon a large sports field with hundreds of people scattered. Hannah, Chris, and Trish Autenrieth sat with their dog, Bear. Hannah lives in Rhode Island but had come home for the weekend just for the eclipse. The Hooksett family had driven up that morning, arriving just before the eclipse started.

“We figure there’s probably going to be some kind of an alien communication,” Chris joked.

As the sky got darker, kids who were playing catch and wrestling reunited with their parents to stare at the sun.

“Mommy it’s getting more!” cried one curly haired child.

“Momma it looks like a banana,” said a young boy around 3:15 p.m.

People started putting back on their jackets as the air grew colder, and murmurs grew about the light.

“Weird glow right now,” said one. “Not like sunset darkness, like under the shade of a tree or something,” observed another.

Just as the sun slowly, then suddenly slips under the horizon at sunset, the moon quickly overtook the sun in the sky, covering the whole field under an eerie darkness. For a short 20-40 seconds, all the observers were able to stare directly at the eclipse without glasses. You could see the corona, or the outermost atmosphere of the sun, as well as some brighter planets and stars in the sky. People clapped, laughed and screamed.

There was no alien communication, but the Autenrieth family said their trip was definitely “worth it.”

Residents, business owners of Lancaster worked together

Ruby Berryman, owner of The Lancaster Motel, said they had been preparing for a year for the eclipse. The hotel put together a package that included a few nights, food and entertainment like live music and talks by Moser, the astrophysicist from Plymouth State. Its 40-person capacity was filled last week, but she said they’ve been getting calls all night.

“It’s been nice to see the town come to life. Seeing all my neighbors and stuff,” Berryman said. “We normally don’t see this much traffic except during the fair. But even with the fair people are driving by, they’re not milling around and meeting each other.”

She said the motel partnered with local businesses, such as handing out coupons, to further stimulate the local economy.

Indeed, the Granite Grind and Polish Princess Bakery, two bakeries in town, saw huge lines for much of the morning. Business was also hopping for the food trucks that had come from nearby towns. And a couple local Girl Scout troops were clearing out their remaining inventory.

The bright, sunny skies added to the overall jovial feeling in town.

“I feel like it’s a gift to me personally,” said Berryman.

People came from near and far

Sprinkled throughout the New Hampshire and Massachusetts license plates, states like Utah, Washington D.C., and Kentucky were also represented.

More: Eclipse arrives in NH and Maine: Crowds thrilled by show in sky

Samir and Cristina Shoukleur came from San Diego.

“I wanted to see the eclipse in Mazatlan, Mexico, because that’s where it started,” said Cristina. But the pair had family in the area, and so they decided to combine the trip. She said it felt very spiritual, and so happy. “It was like I wanted to say, Happy Eclipse Day! Like Happy New Year.”

Paul Broce, Bea Zakur, and Linda Swope drove up on Sunday from Massachusetts and Rhode Island. They felt so lucky to have no clouds for the eclipse.

“We’re not going to be around for the next one,” said Broce about why they decided to come. “We’re a lot older than you are.”

I’ll be 83 by the time of the next eclipse in this area. I told them it might be a stretch for me too to make it. But as a newfound umbraphile, I’ll certainly try!

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New Hampshire

Up to 4 inches of snow expected in NH tonight. See latest forecast

Published

6 hours ago

March 3, 2026

Press Room

Up to 4 inches of snow expected in NH tonight. See latest forecast

It may be March, but winter in New Hampshire is far from over. Just one week after a blizzard tore through the state with heavy snow and high winds, the state is getting another round of snowfall.

The state will get three to five inches during the evening and night of Tuesday, March 3, says the National Weather Service (NWS) of Gray, Maine. While the accumulation will not be significant, the snowfall may cause dangerous road conditions and a layer of ice on the ground in certain parts of the state.

Here’s what to know before tonight’s snow in New Hampshire, including snow totals and timing.

When will it snow in NH tonight?

According to the NWS, it will start snowing in New Hampshire during mid-afternoon or early evening and continue through the night. Specifically, snow will arrive to the southern part of the state around 2-3 p.m., spreading northwards through the rest of New Hampshire by 5 p.m.

Rain or freezing rain will mix in later this evening across southern New Hampshire, creating a wintry mix. All precipitation should move out of the state by midnight.

Due to the timing of today’s snowfall, the Tuesday evening commute will be affected, with the NWS warning to slow down and exercise caution while driving.

How much snow will NH get tonight?

New Hampshire will get one to four inches of snow tonight, with one to two inches in northern New Hampshire, two to three inches in southern New Hampshire and three to four inches in the center of the state, with the possibility for five inches in localized areas.

In the Seacoast specifically, Portsmouth, Rye, Hampton and York are expected to get between two to three inches of snow, while Dover, Exeter and Rochester may get up to four.

The wintry mix may also cause a light glaze of ice across southern New Hampshire.

NH weather watches and warnings

The NWS has issued a winter weather advisory for the state of New Hampshire, in effect from 1 p.m. on Tuesday, March 3 through 4 a.m. on Wednesday, March 4.

Sign up for weather SMS alerts

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New Hampshire

Bedford man barred from conducting any securities business in New Hampshire

Published

18 hours ago

March 3, 2026

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Bedford man barred from conducting any securities business in New Hampshire

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New Hampshire

New Hampshire employment law in 2026 – NH Business Review

Published

1 day ago

March 2, 2026

Press Room

New Hampshire employment law in 2026 – NH Business Review

What employers are getting wrong, and how to fix it before it becomes a claim

New Hampshire’s employment law landscape heading into 2026 may not be dramatically different from last year, but the real risks lie in implementation missteps. From the initial setting of wages, to calculating and distributing wages, employers will likely find a specific statute and/or labor regulation governing the transaction. Failure to follow these detailed wage and hour laws can result in significant back wages and other penalties being imposed by the state or federal Department of Labor following an audit. Fortunately, however, this area of employment law is relatively easy to master, once you are familiar with the basics.

Notice compliance

One of the most common pitfalls for employers in New Hampshire is misunderstanding the wage and hour notice requirements under RSA 275 and the related New Hampshire Department of Labor Administrative Rules.

At the time of hire, employers must notify employees in writing of their rate of pay and the day and place of payment. This notice is traditionally delivered to employees by way of an offer letter or some sort of “New Hire Rate of Pay” form. (A sample form is available from the New Hampshire Department of Labor website.) What surprises most employers, however, is that Lab. 803.03(f)(6) also requires employers to request and obtain their employees’ signatures on this written notification of wages, and employers must keep a copy of the signed written notification of wages on file. Further, employers must notify employees in writing during the course of employment of any changes to wages or day of pay prior to such changes taking effect, and the employer must obtain the employee’s signature on this subsequent notification as well. (See RSA 275:49; Lab. 803.03.)

Employers are further required to notify employees in writing, or through a posted notice maintained in a place accessible to employees, of:

• employment practices and policies with regard to vacation pay, sick leave and other fringe benefits.

• deductions made from the employee’s payroll check, for each period such deductions are made.

• information regarding the deductions allowed from wage payments under state law. (RSA 275:49; Lab. 803.03.)

Policies regarding vacation and sick leave should inform employees whether or not the employer will “cash out” unused time at year end or at the end of employment, and if so, under what terms. Again, if any changes are made to vacation pay, sick leave and other fringe benefits during the course of employment (all of which are considered “wages” under New Hampshire law), employers must request and obtain their employees’ signatures on the written notification of the change, and must keep a copy of the signed form on file. (Lab. 803.03.) Importantly, notification by way of pay stub alone is not sufficient, and, these requirements apply to both increases and decreases in pay.

Two-hour minimum (reporting pay)

Another frequently overlooked obligation is New Hampshire’s two-hour minimum reporting pay requirement. Under RSA 275:43-a, non-exempt employees who report to work but are sent home early must generally be paid for at least two hours. Weather-related closures, client cancellations or operational slowdown days can trigger this rule. Employers should also note that the New Hampshire Department of Labor currently applies this law to remote-based employees. Consequently, employees who “report to work” at an employer’s request from a home office may likewise have a right to two hours of pay, depending on the circumstances.

Salaried vs. hourly employees

Misclassification of employees as exempt from overtime remains a significant source of compliance exposure. The position’s job duties — not the titles or label such as “salaried” — determine whether an employee qualifies for an overtime exemption.

Employers, particularly in nonprofits, health care and small businesses, unintentionally misapply exempt classifications to roles such as administrative staff, office managers, executive assistants, program coordinators or hybrid jobs that involve significant non-exempt tasks. Over time, as organizational needs evolve and employees take on broader responsibilities, job duties can drift outside of an exemption’s scope.

Best practice is to periodically review job descriptions and actual job duties to ensure continued compliance with exemption criteria, particularly following any significant restructuring or job redesigns.

Peg O’Brien is chair of McLane Middleton’s Employment Law Practice Group. She can be reached at margaret.o’brien@mclane.com.

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