45 # Principal of Temple Grove Ladies' Seminary (Saratoga Springs, NY). |
45 # Principal of Temple Grove Ladies' Seminary (Saratoga Springs, NY). |
46 # His pamphlet "A System of National Time for Railroads" (1870) |
46 # His pamphlet "A System of National Time for Railroads" (1870) |
47 # was the result of his proposals at the Convention of Railroad Trunk Lines |
47 # was the result of his proposals at the Convention of Railroad Trunk Lines |
48 # in New York City (1869-10). His 1870 proposal was based on Washington, DC, |
48 # in New York City (1869-10). His 1870 proposal was based on Washington, DC, |
49 # but in 1872-05 he moved the proposed origin to Greenwich. |
49 # but in 1872-05 he moved the proposed origin to Greenwich. |
50 # His proposal was adopted by the railroads on 1883-11-18 at 12:00, |
50 |
51 # and the most of the country soon followed suit. |
51 # From Paul Eggert (2016-09-21): |
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52 # Dowd's proposal left many details unresolved, such as where to draw |
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53 # lines between time zones. The key individual who made time zones |
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54 # work in the US was William Frederick Allen - railway engineer, |
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55 # managing editor of the Travelers' Guide, and secretary of the |
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56 # General Time Convention, a railway standardization group. Allen |
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57 # spent months in dialogs with scientific and railway leaders, |
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58 # developed a workable plan to institute time zones, and presented it |
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59 # to the General Time Convention on 1883-04-11, saying that his plan |
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60 # meant "local time would be practically abolished" - a plus for |
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61 # railway scheduling. By the next convention on 1883-10-11 nearly all |
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62 # railroads had agreed and it took effect on 1883-11-18 at 12:00. |
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63 # That Sunday was called the "day of two noons", as the eastern parts |
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64 # of the new zones observed noon twice. Allen witnessed the |
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65 # transition in New York City, writing: |
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66 # |
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67 # I heard the bells of St. Paul's strike on the old time. Four |
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68 # minutes later, obedient to the electrical signal from the Naval |
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69 # Observatory ... the time-ball made its rapid descent, the chimes |
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70 # of old Trinity rang twelve measured strokes, and local time was |
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71 # abandoned, probably forever. |
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72 # |
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73 # Most of the US soon followed suit. See: |
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74 # Bartky IR. The adoption of standard time. Technol Cult 1989 Jan;30(1):25-56. |
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75 # http://dx.doi.org/10.2307/3105430 |
52 |
76 |
53 # From Paul Eggert (2005-04-16): |
77 # From Paul Eggert (2005-04-16): |
54 # That 1883 transition occurred at 12:00 new time, not at 12:00 old time. |
78 # That 1883 transition occurred at 12:00 new time, not at 12:00 old time. |
55 # See p 46 of David Prerau, Seize the daylight, Thunder's Mouth Press (2005). |
79 # See p 46 of David Prerau, Seize the daylight, Thunder's Mouth Press (2005). |
56 |
80 |