A brief rewind of the history daylight saving time

This weekend marks that time of year when we all “fall back,” gain an hour of sleep and, for some, lose their sanity.

Daylight saving time has been messing with America’s clocks for more than a century. It began during World War I. The idea was to save coal and boost productivity. Congress passed it, then scrapped it, then brought it back during World War II.

Farmers fought daylight saving time when it first arrived in 1918, because it messed with their milking schedules. And that same year, Chicago was one of the first major cities to embrace the time shift, eager to keep factory hours in sync with East Coast business.

But have you ever wondered why we still do it? And how Chicago, helped set the clock for the rest of the country?

WGN’s Erin McElroy rewinds to find out how all this st