Spring Forward! The Surprising, Funny History Behind Changing the Clocks

This weekend, most of us will do the same slightly annoying ritual before going to bed: change the clocks and lose one hour of sleep.

Yes, Daylight Saving Time is back. We “spring forward,” evenings get brighter, and suddenly it feels like winter is finally letting go.

But the story behind this yearly clock change is actually much stranger—and more entertaining—than most people realize.

It Started… As a Joke

Many people think Benjamin Franklin invented Daylight Saving Time. Not exactly.

In 1784, while living in Paris, Franklin wrote a satirical letter to a newspaper complaining that people were wasting money on candles because they were sleeping through the morning sunlight. His “solution” included taxing window shutters, rationing candles, ringing church bells at sunrise, and even firing cannons in the streets to wake people up.

He wasn’t seriously proposing changing the clocks—it was basically an 18th-century joke about people sleeping too late. But the idea that society could save energy by using more daylight stuck around.

The Bug Collector Who Really Started It

The first real proposal for modern Daylight Saving Time came from an unexpected place: bug collecting.

In 1895, a New Zealand postal worker and amateur entomologist named George Vernon Hudson suggested shifting the clocks forward in summer so people would have more daylight in the evenings. Why? Because he wanted more time after work to hunt insects.

So yes—part of the reason we change our clocks today is because someone wanted better lighting for catching bugs.

War, Coal, and the First Real Time Change

Daylight Saving Time didn’t become reality until World War I.

In 1916, Germany became the first country to officially adopt it as a way to conserve coal during the war. Other countries quickly followed, including the United States in 1918.

Interestingly, Americans disliked it so much that it was repealed just a year later—until it returned during World War II as “War Time.”

A Surprisingly Chaotic Time in History

Before the U.S. standardized time changes, things got… weird.

Different cities and states set their own rules. In some places, neighboring towns even used different clocks, which caused headaches for trains, businesses, and travelers trying to coordinate schedules.

Imagine scheduling a meeting in the next town and realizing their clocks are an hour different.

Fun (and Weird) Facts About Daylight Saving Time

Here are a few real tidbits that make the whole thing even more interesting:

• Only about 40% of the world’s countries actually use Daylight Saving Time. 

• In the U.S., Hawaii and most of Arizona don’t observe it at all. 

• Farmers are often blamed for DST, but historically many farmers actually opposed it because animals don’t follow clocks—cows still want to be milked at the same time every day.

• The time change happens at 2:00 a.m. because it causes the least disruption to travel, businesses, and church schedules.

• Golf courses reportedly love Daylight Saving Time because extra evening sunlight means more tee times and millions in additional revenue.

And one more detail many people get wrong: the correct name is Daylight Saving Time—not “Savings.”

Does It Actually Save Energy?

Originally, the goal was to reduce the need for artificial lighting. The logic was simple: if people are awake while the sun is still out, they use less electricity.

Today, the energy savings appear to be small, but the extra daylight in the evening still encourages outdoor activity, recreation, and even fewer nighttime traffic accidents.

How to Actually Take Advantage of It

Instead of just losing an hour of sleep, this weekend can be a small reset moment.

Open the blinds earlier. Let sunlight do the lighting. Take a walk after dinner instead of turning on every light in the house. Even simple habits—like unplugging unused electronics or using natural light when possible—can reduce energy use and your environmental footprint.

And if you’re like most people, the brighter evenings also bring something else: motivation. Longer days tend to mean more time outside, more activity, and a general sense that spring is finally on the way.

One Last Reminder

Before you go to bed Saturday night:

• Change your clocks.

• Check your smoke detector batteries.

• And maybe go to bed a little earlier.

Because when the sun sets later on Sunday evening, you’ll probably forget that missing hour ever existed.