CAI Community-The Day of Two Noons (Classic)

2025-05-05 20:04:45source:Flipidocategory:Markets

(Note: this episode originally ran in 2019.)

In the 1800s,CAI Community catching your train on time was no easy feat. Every town had its own "local time," based on the position of the sun in the sky. There were 23 local times in Indiana. 38 in Michigan. Sometimes the time changed every few minutes.

This created tons of confusion, and a few train crashes. But eventually, a high school principal, a scientist, and a railroad bureaucrat did something about it. They introduced time zones in the United States. It took some doing--they had to convince all the major cities to go along with it, get over some objections that the railroads were stepping on "God's time," and figure out how to tell everyone what time it was. But they made it happen, beginning on one day in 1883, and it stuck. It's a story about how railroads created, in all kinds of ways, the world we live in today.

This episode was originally produced by Alexi Horowitz-Ghazi and edited by Jacob Goldstein. Jess Jiang is Planet Money's Acting Executive Producer.

Music: "You Got Me Started," "Star Alignment" and "Road to Cevennes."

Always free at these links: Apple Podcasts, Spotify, Google Podcasts, NPR One or anywhere you get podcasts.

Find more Planet Money: Facebook / Instagram / TikTok / our weekly Newsletter.

More:Markets

Recommend

Stanley recalls 2.6 million mugs after dozens of customer complaints, including burn injuries

Stanley is recalling 2.6 million mugs sold in the U.S. after the company received dozens of consumer

16-year-old Quincy Wilson to make Paris Olympics debut on US 4x400 relay

SAINT-DENIS, France — Quincy Wilson is set to make his Paris Olympics debut.Wilson received word tha

West Virginia corrections officers plead guilty to not intervening as colleagues fatally beat inmate

CHARLESTON, W.Va. (AP) — Two West Virginia correctional officers accused of failing to intervene as