The Brilliant Coal Company served as a catalyst for growth for the area and provided ample employment for more than 50 years.

The towns of Brilliant and Boston were so closely associated that no attempt was made to separate their history.

[4] Boston had originally taken its name in honor of Jimmy L. Bostick, one of the first settlers of the town.

[4][5] The coal was said to burn so brilliantly, due to its composition of only 2% ash, 1% sulfur and no clinker.

[4] At the turn of the 20th century, the Brilliant and Boston area was the most densely populated part of Marion County.

The plant was closed on April 15, 2000, due to declining sales throughout the manufactured housing industry.

Employers in the town include a garment manufacturing plant, Tullahoma Industries, which produces garments for the U.S. Army, and Stone Canyon Cabins, which manufactures park model cabins at the site of the old Brilliant Homes plant.

The following is from an August 30, 1957, Winfield Journal article: Boston is Now Brilliant; Act Also Extends Corporate Limits "It's official now.

Mayor Wood said that the increase in population resulting from the extension of the corporate limits would mean more revenue from state sources as well as other advantages.

According to the U.S. Census Bureau, the town of Brilliant has a total area of 10.6 square miles (27 km2), all of it recorded as land.