1. Time Zones
The world is broken into 24 Standard Time zones. This 
system was created by a Canadian engineer, Sir Sanford 
Fleming. Fleming worked for the Canadian Pacific Railway. 
He realised that there needed to be a system that 
standardized time so that modern transportation and 
communications could function efficiently.
Prior to Fleming’s system each town and city determined 
its own local time based on the sun’s position overhead. 
This meant that every community had a different time. 
This was particularly odd when looking at towns that were 
close together, like Newcastle and Bowmanville. 
Standard time would ensure that each “time zone” shared 
the same time throughout, without local variation.
Fleming determined that each time zone would be 
approximately 15° and that there would be 24, one for 
each hour of the day. Standard time would allow for 
easier scheduling of trains and for much easier 
communications via telegraph and telephone as well as 
radio.

2. Fleming chose the Prime Meridian, 0° longitude, to be the base point for his Standard Time 
Zones. Each 15° of longitude to the west results in the clock being set back 1 hour and for each 
15° to the east the clocks go ahead 1 hour. The time zones meet at the 180° line of longitude, 
the International Date Line.
Sometimes time zones do not follow the exact line of longitude, varying to either side to 
accommodate national or physical boundaries or local communities. There are some places 
which fall into the middle of a time zone and those, usually islands, chose to alter their time by 
a ½ hour instead of a full hour.
Daylight Savings Time was created to provide more daylight hours so that farmers could 
harvest later into the evening. While no more sunshine is created, the change in time moves 
the sunshine to more useable hours for northern latitudes. In the spring time “springs 
forward” and then “falls back” in the autumn. This hour shift provides better timing for 
farmers and it also allows for conservation of energy through using fewer lights in the evening.