Standard Time System Adopted, 1883
Chicago, Cook County, Illinois
Marker Inscription
The Standard Time System in the United States adopted on this site - October 11, 1883
The Story
On October 11, 1883, railroad managers meeting in Chicago adopted the Standard Time system, dividing the country into uniform time zones. Until then, towns kept their own local solar time, a patchwork that made railroad scheduling and safety a nightmare. The new standard, put into effect that November, replaced dozens of local times with a handful of zones and reshaped how Americans lived by the clock.
Why it matters
Standard time was a quiet revolution of the railroad age, binding a continental nation to a shared clock and laying groundwork for the modern industrial economy.
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Related events
- · Adoption of Standard Time (October 11, 1883)
Themes & tags
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