Daylight Saving Time will be observed this year from March 10th to November 3rd, giving us the opportunity to make better use of the natural daylight. Over the past 100 years, Daylight Saving Time has seen several changes on how it has been observed. Who knew that an hour could make such a difference in our lives?

1.     The word Saving is not plural. I know. It was admittedly a surprise for me, too. Many people refer to the spring time change as daylight savings time, but that is not correct.

2.     President Woodrow Wilson signed Fast Time, the original Daylight Saving Time, into law in 1918 in support of the war effort. Seven months later, the law was repealed. While some believe the time was moved forward to help the farmers get more work done during the daytime hours, they were actually opposed to the change. Farmers are more dependent on the sun rising and setting as the livestock cannot read a clock anyway. Some larger cities like Boston and New York chose to keep Fast Time as it was better for retailers and urban dwellers. Unfortunately, this lack of uniformity would get worse before it got better.

3.     Although the United States has been first to implement many new ideas, the changing of the clocks to make better use of daylight was not one of them. In 1916, Germany turned their clocks ahead one hour in the hopes of saving fuel during World War I. A similar plan was brought to the House of Commons in the United Kingdom in 1908, but it was not signed into law until 1916.

4.     During WWII, President Roosevelt instituted the use of Daylight Saving Time again. It was not the seasonal time change we have today, but rather a year-round adjustment that lasted from 1942 to 1945. In 1966, The Uniform Time Act was established, instituting the season time change which would run from the last Sunday in April to the last Sunday in October. The irony of the Uniform Time Act was that states were allowed to exempt themselves to set up their own ordinances.

5.     So why do we change the time at 2:00 a.m. instead of midnight? There are several reasons for this. First, changing the time at midnight would push us to 11:00 p.m. the evening before, creating more confusion. Secondly, 2:00 a.m. was thought to be minimally disruptive while still allowing the entire continental United States to change to Daylight Saving Time before daybreak. In the European Union, however, the entire country changes to Summer Time at the same moment – 1:00 a.m. Universal Time (Greenwich Mean Time).

6.     Even today, after almost 100 years of trying to make the most of our daylight, some of the states in the U.S. do not observe Daylight Saving Time. Hawaii, with its beautiful weather, just doesn’t need it. Arizona also does not observe Daylight Saving Time, with the exception of Navajo Nation. Located in the Northeast part of the state, the Navajo Nation completely surrounds the Hopi Reservation, who, to make matters more confusing, does not observe Daylight Saving Time either. Until 2006, most of Indiana did not observe Daylight Saving Time, but rather left it up to the counties.

7.     Daylight Saving Time is observed in some way in 70 countries across the globe. Most countries near the equator do not participate, as well as most of Africa and Asia. Antarctica experiences 24 hours of sunlight during the summer months, making Daylight Saving Time pointless. However, they chose to follow it in order to synchronize their time zone with other stations that do observe Daylight Saving Time. In Australia, most of the continent uses Daylight Saving Time, while parts, like Queensland and Western Australia has chosen not to observe. Most of Canada, like the United States and Australia, observe Daylight Saving Time, with exceptions in a few regions across the country.

8.     Can Daylight Saving Time change birth order? A unique concern about the birth order of twins was brought up during the United Kingdom’s early use of Summer Time. If a woman gave birth to one twin at 1:55 a.m. on the morning of the clock change and 2:05 a.m. (after the time change) for the second twin, on paper, the second twin is older. As strange as it sounds, that did happen to a mother in Massachusetts in 2016.

Pam Molnar is a freelance writer and mother of three. Despite losing an hour this month on the clock, she looks forward to having the sun around a little longer in the evening.

Lose One Hour of Sleep, Gain an Hour of Sunlight Each Evening

Daylight Saving Time can be seen as the glass half empty or half full. Yes, on one night you will lose an hour of sleep and it may take you a couple of days to adjust. But look what you gain!

An extra hour of sunlight every night! Here’s what you can do with that time:

Go for a walk

Throw a ball for your dog

Prepare your garden

Sit out on the porch

Go to the outdoor mall

Make dinner on the grill

Ride your bike

Take a canoe ride

Go geocaching

Use sidewalk chalk

Play backyard games

Visit with the neighbors

Skip rocks on the water

Explore a new trail

Blow bubbles

Roller blade

Look for tree buds

Bird watch

Climb a tree

Fly a kite

Go to the park

Jump on a trampoline

Plant flowers

Kick a soccer ball

Watch the sunset

by Pam Molnar