Saturday, March 3, 2018

They Wanted More Daylight


It’s that time again, when most of North America will see the clocks spring ahead for Daylight Savings Time. Why do those clocks change?

In 1907, a London builder named William Willet wrote a pamphlet called called ‘The Waste of Daylight’ that proposed shifting time forward. He reasoned that this would allow working people to enjoy daylight during waking hours instead of losing it while they slept. Willet proposed that clocks advance by 20 minutes at 2:00 am on each of the four Sundays of April, then return the same way during the four Sundays in September.


The idea caught on quickly – but not in England. The clocks in Port Arthur (now Thunder Bay), Ontario, Canada were shifted forward by one hour at midnight on July 1, 1908.

It would be nine more years before Willet’s idea took root in Europe, spurred on by WWI. Germany and Austria were first to make the change in April 1916, and Britain approved Daylight Savings Time changes on May 17, 1916.

Today, Daylight Savings Time is used in over 70 countries around the world, but not all honor it the same way or consistently throughout the country. The chart on this website shows that in more detail.

In North America, most people will move their clocks forward an hour this weekend, at 2:00 am on March 11th. That will move an hour of daylight later in the day, where it will get enjoyed the most during our summer months.

Remember to adjust your clocks this weekend, or on Sunday you might show up an hour early to anywhere you need to be!

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