In last week’s article, when I discussed the changing weather, I also hinted at a piece about Daylight Saving Time — when we shift our clocks one hour ahead or back, depending on the season and where we live. Believe it or not, this practice can even influence how cold or warm the day feels at sunrise or sunset.
While it may not directly affect the weather, it certainly impacts how we perceive temperature changes from day to day. The total amount of daylight doesn’t change; rather, it’s redistributed — later in the day when we “spring forward,” and earlier when we “fall back.” Originally, this shift was introduced to save energy, but over time, it has come with its own set of challenges.
You might be wondering — where did this idea of time-shifting come from? Well, get comfortable, because I’m going to explain the origins of Daylight Saving Time.
Before the modern concept of DST, day and night were divided into 12 equal hours, no matter where you lived. However, ancient civilizations had already experimented with adjusting time based on the sun or moon’s position. For instance, the Romans used water clocks that varied by season — at Rome’s latitude, the third hour from sunrise (Hora Tertia) began at 9:02 a.m. and lasted 44 minutes at the winter solstice, but started at 6:58 a.m. and lasted 75 minutes during the summer solstice.
It wasn’t until the early 19th century that a more formal version of the idea appeared. The Cortes of Cádiz issued a regulation moving certain meeting times forward by one hour from May 1 to September 30 to accommodate seasonal daylight changes. However, this didn’t involve changing the clocks — it simply adjusted schedules. Many private businesses already followed similar practices on their own.
In the late 19th century, George Hudson, a New Zealander, proposed a two-hour daylight-saving shift to the Wellington Philosophical Society. However, many credit William Willett, an English builder and outdoorsman, as the father of DST. In 1905, during an early morning horseback ride, he noticed how many Londoners slept through much of the daylight and began advocating for the change.
North America first experimented with the concept on July 1, 1908, when Port Arthur, Ontario became the first city in the world to enact DST, followed by Orillia, Ontario, and later by Austria-Hungary, Russia, and the United States with the Standard Time Act of 1918 (then known as “War Time”). DST became more widespread during World War II and regained popularity during the 1970s energy crisis. The U.S. even tried permanent DST in 1974, but it was repealed a year later due to complaints from schoolchildren and workers dealing with dark early mornings.
In my personal opinion — and I think almost everyone who has had to wake up early for school or work can agree — the fall time change is far more enjoyable. You get an extra hour of sleep and a slower morning start. But when spring comes and that hour is taken away, it feels like time itself is playing a cruel trick — leaving you groggy, confused, and wishing for one more hour of rest.
