This Sunday, Daylight Saving Time (DST) ends in most areas of the United States and time will “fall back” to Standard time. When this time rolls around, many question where the idea came from in the first place.
The idea was first proposed by New Zealand entomologist and astronomer, George Vernon Hudson. The “why” was simply to make better use of daylight. Daylight Saving time has been used in the United States and several European countries since World War I. It was formally adopted in the United States in 1918, and repealed in 1919 because it was so unpopular. It was then again resurrected again during WWII by FDR as “War Time”, but was not federal law, so states and localities were free to choose to opt in or out, and confusion ensued.
In 1966, President Johnson signed the Uniform Time Act into law. It was then in 1986 that Daylight Saving Time in the U.S. began at 2:00 a.m. on the first Sunday of April and ended at 2:00 a.m. on the last Sunday of October. The Energy Policy Act of 2005 extended Daylight Saving Time in the U.S., and now we begin DST the second Sunday in March and end on the first Sunday in November. Long story short, remember to set your clocks back this Sunday, and you will garner some extra sleep.
Reporting for WGRT, EBW.tv
