###New England's Dark Day
New England, 1780 — A massive, impenetrable darkness swallowed the Northeastern United States, tricking confused farm animals into thinking it was midnight at noon.
In the days leading up to May 19, 1780, the New England sky turned a sickly yellow. An angry, blood-red sun beat down, accompanied by the heavy stench of soot. But the real panic started when the sun completely vanished.
By 10:30 a.m., a solid black wall of darkness swallowed the region. At high noon, people couldn't see a person standing across the room. Confused chickens went to roost, roosters crowed, and frogs began peeping in the middle of the afternoon.
The blackout lasted for hours. When the moon finally rose, it was glowing red. People panicked, but tree rings now prove it wasn't the apocalypse: massive Canadian wildfires had pumped columns of smoke into the sky, mixing with thick fog to entirely blot out the sun.
New England's Dark Day — New England, 1780