WARWICK, RI — At 2 a.m. tomorrow morning, while all but the night owls and insomniacs are fast asleep, clocks will Spring Forward an hour for Daylight Saving Time.
Some clocks in some devices still requiring human input, such as simple alarm clocks and car radios and entertainment hubs, will still be showing winter time an hour behind everything, unless you intervene.
People taking note of winter sunsets during walks and outdoor chores will have already noticed the incremental creep of sundown times, allowing an extra few minutes on trails and fields before flashlights are required.
On Jan. 1, 2026, Rhode Islanders saw sunset at 4:26 p.m.
On Feb. 1, 2026, sunset had begun happening at about 5 p.m. February ended with another half an hour added to the daylight, with sunset happening at 5:34 p.m.
Today, March 7, sunset will be at 5:42 p.m.
Sunday, after we Spring Forward an hour, actual sunset will have begun happening just one objective minute later, at 5:43 p.m. Subjectively, though, which is to say, by your adjusted watch, it’ll start happening at 6:43 p.m.
Spring Forward: Jest, Or Clever Policy?
The idea of Spring Forward, Fall Back, and Daylight Saving Time was introduced by Ben Franklin, who suggested in a letter to the Journal of Paris in 1784 titled: “An Economical Project for Diminishing the Cost of Light” that it would make the best use of daylight hours.
National Geographic.com’s “The Strange and Surprising History of Daylight Saving Time”, points out the satirical nature of Franklin’s piece, but hints at the possibility that the US Ambassador to France, an renowned advocate of thrift, saw the merit in the idea but cloaked it in humor. Maybe when we Spring Forward Sunday, we’ll all be in on the joke. Maybe we’re the butt of it.
Author: Rob Borkowski
Rob has worked as reporter and editor for several publications, including The Kent County Daily Times and Coventry Courier, before working for Gatehouse in MA then moving home with Patch Media. Now he's publisher and editor of WarwickPost.com. Contact him at editor@warwickpost.com with tips, press releases, advertising inquiries, and concerns.
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