Although first instituted in 1915, the idea of daylight time had been batted around for a more than a century. Benjamin Franklin suggested the idea more than once in the 1770s while he was an emissary to France. But it wasn't until more than a century later that the idea of daylight time was taken seriously. William Willett, an English builder, revived the idea in 1907, and eight years later Germany was the first nation to adopt daylight time. The reason: energy conservation. Britain quickly followed suit and instituted British Summer Time in 1916. Several areas, including parts of Europe, Canada and the United States, followed suit during the First World War. In most cases, daylight time ended with the armistice.
by wesm12 8 months ago