PANAMA CANAL TOUR

Panama has a rich and colorful history and one of the most important historical landmarks is the Panama Canal.

On August the 15th, 1914 the Panama Canal was officially opened by the passage of the ship SS Ancon. At the time of the inauguration of the canal, no single effort in the history of the Americas had exacted such a toll dollars or in human life. The American expenditures from 1904 to 1914 totaled $352,000,000, far more than the cost of anything the United States Government had built up to that point.

Between the French and the American Governments, expenditure on the canal totaled $639,000,000. It took 34 years from the initial effort in 1880 until the actual opening of the Canal in 1914. It is estimated that over 80,000 persons took part in the construction and that over 30,000 lives were lost in both the French and American efforts.

The history of the Panama Canal goes back to 16th century. After realizing the riches of Peru, Ecuador, and Asia, and counting the time it took the gold to reach the ports of Spain, it was suggested c.1524 to Charles V, that by cutting out a piece of land somewhere in Panama, the trips would be made shorter and the risk of taking the treasures through the isthmus would justify such an enterprise. A survey of the isthmus was ordered and subsequently a working plan for a canal was drawn up in 1529. The wars in Europe and the thirsts for the control of kingdoms in the Mediterranean Sea simply put the project on permanent hold.

Interested in a Tour of the Canal and a visit to the Canal Museum? Click here and let us know!

In 1534 a Spanish official suggested a canal route close to that of the now present canal. Later, several other plans for a canal were suggested, but no action was taken. The Spanish government subsequently abandoned its interest in the canal.

In the early 19th century the books of the German scientist Alexander von Humboldt revived interest in the project, and in 1819 the Spanish government formally authorized the construction of a canal and the creation of a company to build it. The discovery of gold in California in 1848 and the rush of would-be miners stimulated Americas interest in digging the canal Various surveys were made between 1850 and 1875 showed that only two routes were practical, the one across Panama and another across Nicaragua. In 1876 an international company was organized; two years later it obtained a concession from the Colombian government to dig a canal across the isthmus. The international company failed, and in 1880 a French company was organized by Ferdinand Marie de Lesseps, the builder of the Suez Canal.

In 1879, de Lesseps proposed a sea level canal through Panama. With the success he had with the construction of the Suez Canal in Egypt just ten years earlier, de Lesseps was confident he would complete the water circle around the world. Time and mileage would be dramatically reduced when travelling from the Atlantic to the Pacific ocean or vice versa. For example, it would save a total of 18,000 miles on a trip from New York to San Francisco.

Interested in a Tour of the Canal and a visit to the Canal Museum? Click here and let us know!

Although de Lesseps was not an engineer, he was appointed chairman for the construction of the Panama Canal. Upon taking charge, he organized an International Congress to discuss several schemes for constructing a ship canal. De Lesseps opted for a sea-level canal based on the construction of the Suez Canal. He believed that if a sea-level canal worked when constructing the Suez Canal, it must work for the Panama Canal.

In 1899 the US Congress created an Isthmian Canal Commission to examine the possibilities of a Central American canal and to recommend a route. The commission first decided on a route through Nicaragua, but later reversed its decision. The Lesseps company offered its assets to the United States at a price of $40 million.

The United States and the new state of Panama signed the Hay-Bunau-Varilla treaty, by which the United States guaranteed the independence of Panama and secured a perpetual lease on a 10-mile strip for the canal. Panama was to be compensated by an initial payment of $10 million and an annuity of $250,000, beginning in 1913. This strip is now known as the Canal Zone.

Interested in a Tour of the Canal and a visit to the Canal Museum? Click here and let us know!

Interested in crossing the Isthmus by train from Colon to Panama City? Click here and let us know!

Bibliography
Barrett, J. The Panama Canal, what it is, what it means. 1913.
Hammond & Lewin. The Panama Canal. 1966.
LaFeber, W. The Panama Canal, The crisis in historical perspective. 1978.