when did daylight savings begin in the united states
History of time in the United States Use of standard time gradually increased because of its obvious practical advantages for communication and travel. Standard time in time zones was not established in U.S. law until the Standard Time Act of 1918 of March 19, 1918, also known as the Calder Act (15 USC 260).[1][2] The act also established daylight saving time, itself a contentious idea.
Daylight saving time in the United States During World War I, in an effort to conserve fuel, Germany began observing DST on May 1, 1916. The rest of Europe soon followed. The plan was not adopted in the United States until the Standard Time Act of March 19, 1918, which confirmed the existing standard time zone system and set summer DST to begin on March 31, 1918 (reverting October 27).[4] The idea was unpopular and Congress abolished DST after the war, overriding President Woodrow Wilson's veto.[5] DST became a local option and was observed in some states until World War II, when President Franklin Roosevelt instituted year-round DST, called "War Time", on February 9, 1942.[6] It lasted until the last Sunday (the 30th) in September 1945. After 1945 many states and cities east of the Mississippi River (and mostly north of the Ohio and Potomac rivers) adopted summer DST.[7]
Daylight saving time Starting on April 30, 1916, the German Empire and its World War I ally Austria-Hungary introduced DST (German: Sommerzeit) as a way to conserve coal during wartime. Britain, most of its allies, and many European neutrals soon followed suit. Russia and a few other countries waited until the next year, and the United States adopted daylight saving in 1918.
Central Time Zone Central Standard Time (CST) is six hours behind Coordinated Universal Time (UTC). During summer most of the zone uses daylight saving time (DST), and changes to Central Daylight Time (CDT) which is five hours behind UTC.