Central Standard Time, a time zone in North America that is six hours behind Coordinated Universal Time (UTC-6). Used in parts of the United States, Canada, and Mexico during standard time periods.
Acronym formed from 'Central Standard Time' in the late 19th century when railroad companies standardized time zones across North America. The system was officially adopted in 1883 to coordinate train schedules across vast distances.
Before time zones existed, every town kept its own local solar time, making railroad scheduling a nightmare with thousands of different 'times' across the country. The creation of CST and other time zones represents one of the first examples of global technological standardization driven by transportation needs.
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