John Bradley (1707-1778) died as a result of a fall from a barn loft during the darkness of the total eclipse of the sun on June 24, 1778. His injuries were severe but he survived long enough to draw up his will. The map is the track of the solar eclipse that occurred on June 24, 1778. This was the first total solar eclipse recorded in the United States. The track passed from Lower California to New England. According to Thomas Jefferson, the eclipse was clouded out in Virginia. This solar eclipse lasted about four minutes over the middle Atlantic and New England States. The blue lines, which pass right over North Carolina, indicate the areas experiencing the complete eclipse of the sun.