Why does an event feel more or less distant than another event that occurred around the same time? Prior research suggests
that characteristics of an event itself can affect the estimated date of its occurrence. Our work differs in that we focused on
how characteristics of the time interval following an event affect people’s feelings of elapsed time (i.e., their feelings of how
distant an event seems). We argue that a time interval that is punctuated by a greater number of accessible intervening events
related to the target event (event markers) will make the target event feel more distant, but that unrelated intervening events
will not have this effect. In three studies, we found support for the systematic effect of event markers. The effect of markers
was independent of other characteristics of the event, such as its memorability, emotionality, importance, and estimated date,
a result suggesting that this effect is distinct from established dating biases.