190-613: The idea of the Panama Canal dates back to 1513, when the Spanish conquistador Vasco Núñez de Balboa first crossed the Isthmus of Panama . This narrow land bridge between North and South America was a fine location to dig a water passage between the Atlantic and Pacific Oceans. The earliest European colonists recognized this, and several proposals for the construction of a canal were made. By
380-680: A commissary , housewares, and so forth. In 1952, the Panama Canal Company was required to go on a break-even basis in an announcement made in the form of the president's budget submission to the United States Congress. Though company officials had been involved in previewing the requirement, there was no disclosure in advance, even though the Bureau of the Budget directed that the new régime become effective on March 1. The company organization
570-470: A "gold" roll (short for payroll) classification, and a "silver" roll classification. The origins of this system are unclear, but it was the practice on the 19th-century Panama Railroad to pay Americans in US gold and local workers in silver coin. Although some Canal Zone officials compared the gold roll to military officers and the silver roll to enlisted men, the characteristic that determined on which roll an employee
760-677: A 6 miles (9.7 km) wide zone in which it could deploy troops with Colombian consent. On August 12, 1903, the Colombian Senate voted down the treaty 24–0. Roosevelt was angered by the Colombians' actions, especially when the Colombian Senate made a counteroffer that was more financially advantageous to Colombia. A Frenchman who had worked on his nation's canal efforts, Philippe Bunau-Varilla , represented Panamanian insurgents; he met with Roosevelt and with Secretary of State John Hay , who saw to it that his principals received covert support. When
950-511: A U.S. citizen parent without that parent needing to have been previously resident in the United States. The law is now codified under title 8, section 1403. It not only grants statutory and declaratory born citizenship to those born in the Canal Zone after February 26, 1904, of at least one U.S. citizen parent, but also does so retroactively for all children born of at least one U.S. citizen in
1140-568: A US-controlled canal across Central America was a vital strategic interest of the country. This idea gained wide circulation after the destruction of the USS Maine in Cuba on February 15, 1898. Reversing a Walker Commission decision in favor of a Nicaraguan canal, Roosevelt encouraged the acquisition of the French Panama Canal effort. George S. Morison was the only commission member who argued for
1330-764: A canal across the isthmus, with some favoring a canal across Nicaragua and others advocating the purchase of the French interests in Panama. Bunau-Varilla , who was seeking American involvement, asked for $ 100 million, but accepted $ 40 million in the face of the Nicaraguan option. In June 1902, the US Senate voted in favor of the Spooner Act , to pursue the Panamanian option, provided the necessary rights could be obtained. On 22 January 1903,
1520-543: A canal commission with researching possible construction; Nicaragua was chosen as the location both times. Although the Nicaraguan canal proposal was made redundant by the American takeover of the French Panama Canal project, increases in shipping volume and ship sizes have revived interest in the project. A canal across Nicaragua accommodating post- Panamax ships or a rail link carrying containers between ports on either coast have been proposed. Theodore Roosevelt believed that
1710-632: A canal. Numerous canals were built in other countries in the late 18th and early 19th centuries. The success of the Erie Canal through central New York in the United States in the 1820s and the collapse of the Spanish Empire in Latin America resulted in growing American interest in building an inter-oceanic canal. Beginning in 1826, US officials began negotiations with Gran Colombia (present-day Colombia, Venezuela, Ecuador, and Panama), hoping to gain
1900-533: A classic example of the era of gunboat diplomacy . The leaders of the new government in breakaway Panama felt they had no choice but to accept the canal treaty. Had the U.S. withdrawn its warships, the Colombian army would have returned to Panama and executed the members of the new government. "The notion that Roosevelt would abandon Panama at this point, that he would leave the junta to the vengeance of Colombia, that he would now suddenly turn around and treat with Bogota,
2090-470: A colony. Through the remainder of the 19th century, the United States landed troops several times to preserve the railway connection. At the same time, it pursued a canal treaty with Colombia (as New Granada was renamed). One treaty, signed in 1868, was rejected by the Colombian Senate , which hoped for better terms from the incoming Grant administration . Under this treaty, the canal would have been in
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#17328443203892280-523: A concession to build a canal. Jealous of their newly gained independence and fearing domination by the more powerful United States, president Simón Bolívar and New Granada officials declined American offers. After the collapse of Gran Colombia, New Granada remained unstable under constant government intrigue. Great Britain attempted to develop a canal in 1843. According to the New-York Daily Tribune , 24 August 1843, Barings Bank of London and
2470-707: A dam across the Chagres River in Gatún , near the Atlantic, and another on the Rio Grande , near the Pacific, to create an artificial lake accessed by locks. Digging less and avoiding unsanitary work and the danger of flooding was his priority, with an estimated lower cost of $ 100,000,000 (equivalent to $ 3,157,241,379 in 2023) and 50,000 lives saved, as mentioned in the motivation for his negative review of Lesseps' plan. The bankruptcy of
2660-482: A few years, accredited Canal Zone stamps were issued. After a transition period during which Panama took over the administration of postal service, Canal Zone stamps became invalid. The two-letter state abbreviation for mail sent to the Zone was CZ. Damp Proof "Canal Zone Matches" were manufactured by Jönköpings Westra Tändsticksfabrik, Sweden, expressly for the Panama Canal Company. Amateur radio licenses were issued by
2850-478: A nascent independence movement among the Panamanian people, led to a revolution in Panama and to the negotiation of the Hay–Bunau-Varilla Treaty , thus simultaneously securing independence for Panama and an opportunity for the U.S. to lead a renewed effort to construct the canal. Colombia's response to the Panamanian independence movement was tempered by an American military presence; this is often cited as
3040-461: A reservoir for the canal. The layout of the canal as seen by a ship passing from the Atlantic to the Pacific is: Thus, the total length of the canal is 80 km (50 mi). In 2017 it took ships an average of 11.38 hours to pass between the canal's two outer locks. Panama Canal Zone The Panama Canal Zone ( Spanish : Zona del Canal de Panamá ), also simply known as the Canal Zone ,
3230-556: A sea-level canal (like the Suez), but he visited the site only a few times, during the dry season which lasts only four months of the year. His men were unprepared for the rainy season, during which the Chagres River , where the canal started, became a raging torrent, rising up to 10 m (33 ft). The dense jungle was alive with venomous snakes, insects, and spiders, but the worst challenges were yellow fever , malaria , and other tropical diseases, which killed thousands of workers; by 1884,
3420-572: A sea-level canal, as had been attempted by the French and temporarily abandoned by them in 1887 for a ten locks system designed by Philippe Bunau-Varilla, and definitively in 1898 for a lock-and-lake canal designed by the Comité Technique of the Compagnie Nouvelle de Canal de Panama as conceptualized by Adolphe Godin de Lépinay in 1879. But in 1906 Stevens, who had seen the Chagres in full flood,
3610-691: A self-educated engineer who had built the Great Northern Railroad . Stevens was not a member of the ICC; he increasingly viewed its bureaucracy as a serious hindrance, bypassing the commission and sending requests and demands directly to the Roosevelt administration in Washington, DC. One of Stevens' first achievements in Panama was in building and rebuilding the housing, cafeterias, hotels, water systems, repair shops, warehouses, and other infrastructure needed by
3800-503: A serious threat to the Jim Crow system which resulted, however, only in minimal gains. American segregationist policies persisted as it related to housing and schooling. In the end, ties to communism destroyed the UPWA and as a result Local 713 collapsed. Nevertheless, Frank Gurridy describes this as diasporization, "diaspora in action, or the ways Afro-diasporic linkages were made in practice". In
3990-649: A settlement began and resulted in the Torrijos–Carter Treaties . On 7 September 1977, the treaty was signed by President of the United States Jimmy Carter and Omar Torrijos , de facto leader of Panama. This mobilized the process of granting the Panamanians free control of the canal so long as Panama signed a treaty guaranteeing the permanent neutrality of the canal. The treaty led to full Panamanian control effective at noon on 31 December 1999, and
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#17328443203894180-490: A sitting president. Whether contract employees or government workers would build the canal was controversial. Bids for the canal's construction were opened in January 1907, and Knoxville , Tennessee-based contractor William J. Oliver was the low bidder. Stevens disliked Oliver, and vehemently opposed his choice. Although Roosevelt initially favored the use of a contractor, he eventually decided that army engineers should carry out
4370-453: A steamship service would allow passengers and freight to continue to Colón. His agreement was repudiated by the Jackson administration, which wanted rights to build a canal. In 1841, with Panama in rebellion again, British interests secured a right of way over the isthmus from the insurgent regime and occupied Nicaraguan ports that might have served as the Atlantic terminus of a canal. In 1846,
4560-529: A treaty, in the name of the Société civile internationale du Canal interocéanique par l'isthme du Darien headed by general Étienne Türr, with the Colombian government, known as the Wyse concession, to build an interoceanic canal through Panama. The first attempt to construct a canal through what was then Colombia's province of Panama began on 1 January 1881. The project was inspired by the diplomat Ferdinand de Lesseps , who
4750-402: Is sometimes misinterpreted as the "99-year lease" because of misleading wording included in article 22 of the agreement. Almost immediately, the treaty was condemned by many Panamanians as an infringement on their country's new national sovereignty. This would later become a contentious diplomatic issue among Colombia, Panama, and the United States. President Roosevelt famously stated, "I took
4940-518: The Atlantic Ocean with the Pacific Ocean , cutting across the Isthmus of Panama , and is a conduit for maritime trade. Locks at each end lift ships up to Gatun Lake , an artificial fresh water lake 26 meters (85 ft) above sea level , created by damming up the Chagres River and Lake Alajuela to reduce the amount of excavation work required for the canal. Locks then lower the ships at
5130-553: The Culebra Cut (known as the Gaillard Cut from 1915 to 2000), which involved cutting 8 miles (13 km) across the continental divide down to 12 meters (39 feet) above sea level. By August 1907, 765,000 m (1,001,000 cu yd) per month was being excavated; this set a record for the rainy season; soon afterwards this doubled, before increasing again. At the peak of production, 2,300,000 m (3,000,000 cu yd)
5320-487: The Culebra Cut , valued at about $ 1.00 per cubic yard. The United States also paid the new country of Panama $ 10 million and a $ 250,000 payment each following year. In 1921, Colombia and the United States entered into the Thomson–Urrutia Treaty , in which the United States agreed to pay Colombia $ 25 million: $ 5 million upon ratification, and four $ 5 million annual payments, and grant Colombia special privileges in
5510-660: The Drake Passage , the Strait of Magellan or the Beagle Channel . It is one of the largest and most difficult engineering projects ever undertaken. Colombia , France, and later the United States controlled the territory surrounding the canal during construction. France began work on the canal in 1881, but stopped because of lack of investors' confidence due to engineering problems and a high worker mortality rate . The US took over
5700-752: The Hay–Herrán Treaty was signed by United States Secretary of State John M. Hay and Colombian Chargé Tomás Herrán . For $ 10 million and an annual payment, it would have granted the United States a renewable lease in perpetuity from Colombia on the land proposed for the canal. The treaty was ratified by the US Senate on 14 March 1903, but the Senate of Colombia unanimously rejected the treaty since it had become significantly unpopular in Bogotá due to concerns over insufficient compensation, threat to sovereignty, and perpetuity. Roosevelt changed tactics, based in part on
5890-593: The Illinois Central Railroad , as chief engineer of the Panama Canal Project. Overwhelmed by the disease-plagued country and forced to use often dilapidated French infrastructure and equipment, as well as being frustrated by the overly bureaucratic ICC, Wallace resigned abruptly in June 1905. The ICC brought on a new chairman, Theodore P. Shonts , and a new chief engineer was appointed, John Frank Stevens ,
History of the Panama Canal - Misplaced Pages Continue
6080-589: The Mallarino–Bidlack Treaty of 1846, and actively supported the separation of Panama from Colombia . Shortly after recognizing Panama, he signed a treaty with the new Panamanian government under terms similar to the Hay–Herrán Treaty. On 2 November 1903, US warships blocked sea lanes against possible Colombian troop movements en route to put down the Panama rebellion. Panama declared independence on 3 November 1903. The United States quickly recognized
6270-531: The Mallarino–Bidlack Treaty , negotiated between the US and New Granada, granted the United States transit rights and the right to intervene militarily in the isthmus. In 1848, the discovery of gold in California , on the West Coast of the United States, generated renewed interest in a canal crossing between the Atlantic and Pacific oceans. William Henry Aspinwall , who had won the federal subsidy to build and operate
6460-533: The Panama Canal Authority (ACP) assumed command of the waterway. The Panama Canal remains one of the chief revenue sources for Panama. Before this handover, the government of Panama held an international bid to negotiate a 25-year contract for operation of the container shipping ports located at the canal's Atlantic and Pacific outlets. The contract was not affiliated with the ACP or Panama Canal operations and
6650-525: The Republic of New Granada entered into a contract for the construction of a canal across the Isthmus of Darien (Isthmus of Panama). They referred to it as the Atlantic and Pacific Canal, and it was a wholly British endeavor. Projected for completion in five years, the plan was never carried out. At nearly the same time, other ideas were floated, including a canal (and/or a railroad) across Mexico's Isthmus of Tehuantepec . That did not develop, either. In 1846,
6840-515: The YMCA , with billiard, assembly and reading rooms, bowling alleys, darkrooms for camera clubs, gymnastic equipment, ice cream parlors, soda fountains and a circulating library . Member dues were ten dollars a year, with the remaining upkeep (about $ 7,000 at the larger clubhouses) paid by the ICC. The commission built baseball fields and arranged rail transportation to games; a competitive league soon developed. Semi-monthly Saturday-night dances were held at
7030-535: The cargo ship SS Ancon . The opening of the Panama Canal in 1914 caused a severe drop in traffic along Chilean ports due to shifts in maritime trade routes, despite the closure of the canal for nearly seven months after a landslide in the Culebra Cut on 18 September 1915. The burgeoning sheep farming business in southern Patagonia suffered a significant setback by the change in trade routes, as did
7220-690: The governor of the Panama Canal Zone was not usually a stepping stone to higher political office but a position given to US Army active duty general officers of the United States Army Corps of Engineers . The governor was also president of the Panama Canal Company. The Canal Zone had its own police force (the Canal Zone Police ), courts, and judges (the United States District Court for the Canal Zone ). Everyone worked for
7410-776: The 30 million cu yd (23 million m ) excavated by the French. As quickly as possible, the Americans replaced or upgraded the old, unusable French equipment with new construction equipment that was designed for a much larger and faster scale of work. 102 large, railroad-mounted steam shovels were purchased, 77 from Bucyrus-Erie , and 25 from the Marion Power Shovel Company . These were joined by enormous steam-powered cranes, giant hydraulic rock crushers , concrete mixers , dredges , and pneumatic power drills, nearly all of which were manufactured by new, extensive machine-building technology developed and built in
7600-702: The Americas in order to ease the voyage for ships traveling between Spain and Peru. The Spanish were seeking to gain a military advantage over the Portuguese. In 1668, the English physician and philosopher Sir Thomas Browne speculated in his encyclopedic work, Pseudodoxia Epidemica , that "some Isthmus have been eaten through by the Sea, and others cut by the spade: And if the policy would permit, that of Panama in America were most worthy
7790-492: The British and French West Indies, and these workers provided most of the manual labor on the canal. The Canal Zone originally had minimal facilities for entertainment and relaxation for the canal workers apart from saloons; as a result, alcohol abuse was a great problem. The inhospitable conditions resulted in many American workers returning home each year. A program of improvements was implemented. Clubhouses were built, managed by
History of the Panama Canal - Misplaced Pages Continue
7980-441: The Canal Zone before the law's enactment. When John McCain , born in the Zone in 1936 to U.S. parents, became the 2008 Republican Party presidential nominee , there was minor debate over whether he met the presidency's "natural-born Citizen" requirement. The U.S. Senate passed a non-binding resolution that he did. Frederick Wiseman made the film Canal Zone , which was released and aired on PBS in 1977. The Canal Zone
8170-599: The Canal Zone was through the Canal Zone Government with the canal operated by the Panama Canal Company until 1979 when the Panama Canal Commission took over its governance. The entire structure was under the control of the United States government with the secretary of the Army appointing the Panama Canal Company board of directors and the Canal Zone Government was entirely financed by the company. The office of
8360-467: The Canal Zone. In return, Colombia recognized Panama as an independent nation. The US formally took control of the canal property on 4 May 1904, inheriting from the French a depleted workforce and a vast jumble of buildings, infrastructure, and equipment, much of it in poor condition. A US government commission, the Isthmian Canal Commission (ICC), was established to oversee construction; it
8550-485: The Chagres River above Gatun Lake. Completed in 1935, the dam created Madden Lake (later Alajuela Lake), which provides additional water storage for the canal. In 1939, construction began on a further major improvement: a new set of locks large enough to carry the larger warships that the United States was building at the time and planned to continue building. The work proceeded for several years, and significant excavation
8740-529: The Chagres River, with channels to drain water away from the canal. However, the Gamboa dam was later found impracticable and the Chagres River problem was left unsolved. Construction of the canal began on January 1, 1881, with digging at Culebra beginning on January 22. A large labor force was assembled, numbering about 40,000 in 1888 (nine-tenths of whom were afro-Caribbean workers from the West Indies ). Although
8930-482: The Colombian government after 99 years without compensation. Ferdinand de Lesseps , who was in charge of the Suez Canal construction, headed the project. His enthusiastic leadership and his reputation as the man who had built the Suez Canal persuaded speculators and ordinary citizens to invest nearly $ 400 million in the project. However, despite his previous success, Lesseps was not an engineer. The construction of
9120-407: The Colombians being unable to put down the Panamanian rebellion and expel the United States troops occupying what today is the independent nation of Panama. On 6 November 1903, Philippe Bunau-Varilla, as Panama's ambassador to the United States, signed the Hay–Bunau-Varilla Treaty , granting rights to the United States to build and indefinitely administer the Panama Canal Zone and its defenses. This
9310-456: The Culebra excavation while a team of engineers began a comprehensive study of the project. They eventually settled on a plan for a two-level, lock-based canal. The new effort never gained traction, mainly because of US speculation that a canal through Nicaragua would render one through Panama useless. The most men employed on the new project was 3,600 (in 1896), primarily to comply with the terms of
9500-435: The French assets on the condition that an agreement was reached with Colombia. In March 1902, Colombia set its terms for such a treaty: Colombia was to be sovereign over the canal, which would be policed by Colombians paid for by the United States. The host nation would receive a larger percentage of the tolls than provided for in earlier draft treaties. The draft terms were quickly rejected by American officials. Roosevelt
9690-405: The French company assets, the Canal Zone was formally turned over by Panama on May 4, 1904, when American officials reopened the Panama City offices of the canal company and raised the American flag. This marked the beginning point for U.S. excavation and construction which concluded in August 1914 with the opening of the canal to commercial traffic. By order of President Theodore Roosevelt under
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#17328443203899880-442: The French effort and he was soon able to begin construction in earnest. Goethals divided the project into three divisions: Atlantic, Central and Pacific. The Atlantic Division, under Major William L. Sibert , was responsible for construction of the breakwater at the entrance to Bahía Limón , the Gatún locks and their 5.6 km (3.5 mi) approach channel, and the Gatun Dam . The Pacific Division (under Sydney B. Williamson,
10070-412: The French manager of the New Panama Canal Company, eventually managed to persuade Lesseps that a lock-and-lake canal was more realistic than a sea-level canal. The Comité Technique, a high level technical committee, was formed by the Compagnie Nouvelle to review the studies and work—that already finished and that still ongoing—and come up with the best plan for completing the canal. The committee arrived on
10260-448: The French property connected to the canal on May 4, 1904, when Lieutenant Mark Brooke of the United States Army was presented with the keys during a small ceremony. The new Panama Canal Zone Control was overseen by the Isthmian Canal Commission (ICC) during construction. The first step taken by the US government was to place all the canal workers under the new administration. The operation was maintained at minimum strength to comply with
10450-519: The French were willing to sell their holdings for $ 40 million. The recommendation became law on June 28, 1902, and the New Panama Canal Company was compelled to sell at that price. Although the French effort was effectively doomed to failure from the beginning due to disease and a lack of understanding of the engineering difficulties, it was not entirely futile. The old and new companies excavated 59,747,638 m (78,146,960 cu yd) of material, of which 14,255,890 m (18,646,000 cu yd)
10640-422: The Hotel Tivoli, which had a spacious ballroom. These measures influenced life in the Canal Zone; alcohol abuse fell, with saloon business declining by 60 percent. The number of workers leaving the project each year dropped significantly. The work done thus far was preparation, rather than construction. By the time Goethals took over, the construction infrastructure had been created or overhauled and expanded from
10830-534: The Isthmus in February 1896 and went immediately, quietly and efficiently about their work of devising the best possible canal plan, which they presented on 16 November 1898. Many aspects of the plan were similar in principle to the canal that was finally built by the Americans in 1914. It was a lock canal with two high level lakes to lift ships up and over the Continental Divide. Double locks would be 738 feet long and about 30 feet deep (225 m × 9 m); one chamber of each pair would be 82 feet (25 m) wide,
11020-407: The Isthmus, started the canal and then left Congress not to debate the canal, but to debate me." Several parties in the United States called this an act of war on Colombia: The New York Times described the support given by the United States to Bunau-Varilla as an "act of sordid conquest". The New York Evening Post called it a "vulgar and mercenary venture". The US maneuvers are often cited as
11210-400: The Lesseps project is described clearly, without ambiguity. It will be technical and financial, as Godin de Lépinay had planned. Unfortunately, his plan received no serious attention. Had it been adopted, the Panama Canal might well have been completed by the French instead of by the United States. Following the congress, the Compagnie Universelle du Canal Interocéanique de Panama, in charge of
11400-470: The PCWIEA summoned the Congress of Industrial Organizations (CIO) for representation and the establishment of a local union. In July of that year, the West Indian and Panamanian workers received a charter for Local 713 of the United Public Workers of America (UPWA)-CIO. Together, with the assistance of U.S. representatives for the Local, these black workers came together to secure material benefits for their livelihoods. They organized together in order to pose
11590-411: The Pacific coast of South America was offloaded at Panama City and hauled through the jungle to the Atlantic port of Nombre de Dios, close to present-day Colón . Although additional canal building proposals were made throughout the 16th and 17th centuries, they came to naught. The late 18th and early 19th centuries saw a number of canals built. The success of the Erie Canal in the United States and
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#173284432038911780-457: The Pacific mail steamships at around the same time, benefited from the gold discovery. Aspinwall's route included steamship legs from New York City to Panama, and from Panama to California, with an overland portage through Panama. This route with an overland leg in Panama was soon frequently traveled, as it provided one of the fastest connections between San Francisco, California, and the East Coast cities, about 40 days' transit in total. Nearly all
11970-414: The Pacific side is about a third of a degree east of the Colón end on the Atlantic side. Still, in formal nautical communications, the simplified directions "southbound" and "northbound" are used. The canal consists of artificial lakes , several improved and artificial channels, and three sets of locks . An additional artificial lake, Alajuela Lake (known during the American era as Madden Lake), acts as
12160-407: The Panama Canal Acts of 1902 and 1904 the secretary of War was made supervisor of canal construction and the second Isthmian Canal Commission made the governing body for the Canal Zone. Under the Panama Canal Act of May 24, 1912, President Woodrow Wilson issued Executive Order 1885, January 27, 1914, effective April 1, 1914, abolishing the previous governance and placing it under the direction of
12350-498: The Panama Canal Company/Government were not allowed to use the commissaries, exchanges, package stores, theaters, gas stations, and other facilities on the U.S. military installations. The treaty with Panama made no mention of the nationality status of the native inhabitants of the Zone. Pursuant to the principles of international law, they became non-citizen U.S. nationals unless they elected to retain their previous nationality. Children of non-citizen U.S. nationals generally acquired
12540-419: The Panama Railway) to cross the isthmus; it opened in 1855. This overland link became a vital piece of Western Hemisphere infrastructure, greatly facilitating trade. The later canal route was constructed parallel to it, as it had helped clear dense forests. An all-water route between the oceans was still the goal. In 1855, William Kennish , a Manx -born engineer working for the United States government, surveyed
12730-437: The Panama location. The purchase of the French-held land for $ 40 million was authorized by the June 28, 1902 Spooner Act . Since Panama was then part of Colombia , Roosevelt began negotiating with that country to obtain the necessary rights. In early 1903 the Hay–Herrán Treaty was signed by both nations, but the Senate of Colombia failed to ratify the treaty. Roosevelt implied to Panamanian rebels that if they revolted,
12920-439: The Post Office. After the strike of 1920, the black workers were banned from unionizing by the U.S. Canal officials. As a result, the Panama Canal West Indian Employees Association (PCWIEA) was created in 1924 to fill this vacuum of representation. The PCWIEA did not garner much support on the Canal Zone because of its restrictive membership policies and the haunting of the 1920 strike and its damaging consequences. However, in 1946,
13110-416: The President and under the supervision of the Secretary of War. Defense of the canal was the responsibility of the Secretary of War who retained control of troops with provisions for presidential appointment of an Army officer in wartime who would have "exclusive authority over the operation of the Panama Canal and the Government of the Canal Zone". The executive order noted in closing "that the supervision of
13300-424: The Secretary of War, with the entity designated as The Panama Canal. This Executive Order charged the Governor of the Panama Canal with "completion, maintenance, operation, government and sanitation of the Panama Canal and its adjuncts and the government of the Canal Zone". A number of departments were specified in the order, with others to be established as needed by the Governor of the Panama Canal with approval of
13490-426: The Suez Canal, essentially a ditch dug through a flat, sandy desert, presented few challenges. Although Central America's mountainous spine has a low point in Panama, it is still 110 meters (360.9 ft) above sea level at its lowest crossing point. The sea-level canal proposed by de Lesseps would require a great deal of excavation through a variety of unstable rock, rather than Suez's sand. Less-obvious barriers were
13680-437: The U.S. continuing the project. The U.S. first sought to construct a canal through Nicaragua instead. French engineer and financier Philippe-Jean Bunau-Varilla played a key role in changing American attitudes. Bunau-Varilla had a large stake in the failed French canal company and stood to profit on his investment only if the Panama Canal was completed. His extensive lobbying of American lawmakers, coupled with his support of
13870-582: The US Army Corps of Engineers. Gaillard was placed in charge of the canal's Central Division, which stretched from the Pedro Miguel locks to the Gatun Dam , and dedicated himself to getting the Culebra Cut (as it was then known) excavated. The scale of the work was massive. 6 thousand men worked in the cut, drilling holes in which a total of 27,000 t (60,000,000 lb) of dynamite were placed to break up
14060-614: The US Navy would assist their fight for independence. Panama declared its independence on November 3, 1903, and the USS Nashville impeded Colombian interference. The victorious Panamanians gave the United States control of the Panama Canal Zone on February 23, 1904, for $ 10 million in accordance with the November 18, 1903 Hay–Bunau-Varilla Treaty . The United States took control of
14250-400: The US army troops that were supporting the Panamanian rebels. The reason an army of conscripts was sent was that it was the best response the Colombians could muster, as Colombia still was recovering from a civil war between Liberals and Conservatives from October 1899, to November 1902, known as the " Thousand Days War ". The US was fully aware of these conditions and even incorporated them into
14440-451: The United States invaded Panama with virtually all of the military operations taking place within the Canal Zone including Operation Acid Gambit , the Raid at Renacer Prison among many others including operations at the entrance, exit and all of the locks. During its construction and into the 1940s, the labor force in the Canal Zone (which was almost entirely publicly employed) was divided into
14630-412: The United States to add to the zone any additional lands needed to carry on canal operations. The Panamanians were minded to disavow the treaty, but Bunau-Varilla told the new government that if Panama did not agree, the United States would withdraw its protection and make the best terms it could with Colombia. The Panamanians agreed, even adding a provision to the new constitution , at US request, allowing
14820-729: The United States to hand over the canal to Panama increased after the Suez Crisis in 1956, when the United States used financial and diplomatic pressure to force France and the UK to abandon their attempt to retake control of the Suez Canal , previously nationalized by the Nasser regime in Egypt. Panamanian unrest culminated in riots on Martyr's Day , 9 January 1964, when about 20 Panamanians and 3–5 US soldiers were killed. A decade later, in 1974, negotiations toward
15010-496: The United States. The railroad also had to be comprehensively upgraded with heavy-duty, double-tracked rails over most of the line to accommodate new rolling stock . In many places, the new Gatun Lake flooded over the original rail line, and a new line had to be constructed above Gatun Lake's waterline. Between 1912 and 1914 there was a controversy about the tolls for the canal . In 1907, Stevens resigned as chief engineer. His replacement, appointed by President Theodore Roosevelt,
15200-580: The Zone rather than in Panama. Merchants could not compete with the commissary's prices or quality; for example, it boasted that the meat it sold had been refrigerated every moment from the Chicago slaughterhouse to the moment it was passed to the consumer. By 1913, it consisted of 22 general stores, 7 cigar stores, 22 hostels, 2 hotels, and a mail-order division. It served high-quality meals at small expense to workers and more expensive meals to upper-echelon canal employees and others able to afford it. The commissary
15390-448: The absolute jurisdiction of Panama and partly by an "Area of Civil Coordination" (housing), which under the treaty was subject to elements of both U.S. and Panamanian public law. In addition, the 1977 treaty designated numerous areas and individual facilities as "Canal Operating Areas" for joint U.S.–Panama ongoing operations by a commission. On the effective date of the treaty, many of these, including Madden Dam , became newly surrounded by
15580-560: The attempt: it being but few miles over, and would open a shorter cut unto the East Indies and China". Given the strategic location of Panama, and the potential of its narrow isthmus separating two great oceans, other trade links in the area were attempted over the years. One early example of this was ill-fated Darien scheme , launched by the Kingdom of Scotland in 1698 to set up an overland trade route. Generally inhospitable conditions thwarted
15770-414: The bulk of the excavation of the canal, including appointing Major David du Bose Gaillard to oversee the most daunting project, the Culebra Cut through the roughest terrain on the route. Almost as important as the engineering advances were the healthcare advances made during the construction, led by William C. Gorgas , an expert in controlling tropical diseases such as yellow fever and malaria . Gorgas
15960-512: The canal concession and keep the machinery in working order. The US inherited a small workforce and an assortment of buildings, infrastructure and equipment, much of which had been neglected for fifteen years in the humid jungle environment. There were no facilities in place for a large workforce, and the infrastructure was crumbling. Cataloguing assets was a large job; it took many weeks to card-index available equipment. About 2,150 buildings had been acquired, many of which were uninhabitable; housing
16150-491: The canal debate. During the war, American warships in the Atlantic seeking to reach battle zones in the Pacific had been forced to round Cape Horn . Influential naval pundits, such as Captain Alfred Thayer Mahan , urged the construction of a Central American canal. In 1902, with the French efforts moribund, US president Theodore Roosevelt backed the Panama route, and Congress passed legislation authorizing him to purchase
16340-509: The canal remained a territory of the United States until 1977, when the Torrijos–Carter Treaties began the process of transferring territorial control of the Panama Canal Zone to Panama, a process which was finally completed on 31 December 1999. The Panama Canal continues to be a viable commercial venture and a vital link in world shipping, and is periodically upgraded. A Panama Canal expansion project started construction in 2007 and began commercial operation on 26 June 2016. The new locks allow
16530-509: The canal was completed in 1914, 401 years after Panama was first crossed overland by the Europeans in Vasco Núñez de Balboa 's party of conquistadores . The United States spent almost $ 500 million (roughly equivalent to $ 15.2 billion in 2023) to finish the project. This was by far the largest American engineering project to date. The canal was formally opened on 15 August 1914, with the passage of
16720-561: The canal. In 2017, it took ships an average of 11.38 hours to pass between the canal's two outer locks. The American Society of Civil Engineers has ranked the Panama Canal one of the Seven Wonders of the Modern World . The earliest record regarding a canal across the Isthmus of Panama was in 1534, when Charles V , Holy Roman Emperor and King of Spain, ordered a survey for a route through
16910-857: The case of the Panama Canal Zone, these linkages were made not only by the West Indian and Panamanian communities, but also between the Afro descended workers on the Zone and African Americans, on the mainland of the U.S., through the transnational struggle to dismantle the system of Jim Crow. Canal Zone housing was constructed in the early days of construction, as part of Stevens' plans. Housing constructed for couples and families consisted of structures containing four two-story apartments. The units had corrugated-iron roofs, and were uniformly painted gray with white trim. Constructed of pine clapboard , they had long windows and high ceilings, allowing for air movement. Better-paid employees were entitled to more square feet of housing,
17100-415: The child's birth, U.S. citizens who had previously resided in the United States. In 1934, the law was amended to allow for citizenship to be acquired at birth through either parent if the parent was a U.S. citizen who had previously resided in the United States. In 1937, a new law (Act of August 4, 1937, 50 Stat. 558) was enacted to provide for U.S. citizenship to persons born in the Canal Zone (since 1904) to
17290-502: The chosen plan, and only one of those had actually visited Central America. While the Americans abstained because of their own plan through Nicaragua, the five delegates from the French Society of Engineers all refused. Among them were Gustave Eiffel and Adolphe Godin de Lépinay [ fr ] , the general-secretary of the Société de Géographie , who was the only one to propose a lake-and-locks project. Designer in particular of
17480-597: The classic example of US gunboat diplomacy in Latin America, and the best illustration of what Roosevelt meant by the old African adage, "Speak softly and carry a big stick [and] you will go far." After the revolution in 1903, the Republic of Panama became a US protectorate until 1939. In 1904, the United States purchased the French equipment and excavations, including the Panama Railroad , for US$ 40 million, of which $ 30 million related to excavations completed, primarily in
17670-427: The collapse of the Spanish Empire in Latin America led to a surge of American interest in building an interoceanic canal. Beginning in 1826, US officials began negotiations with Gran Colombia (present-day Colombia , Venezuela , Ecuador and Panama ), hoping to gain a concession for the building of a canal. Jealous of their newly obtained independence and fearing that they would be dominated by an American presence,
17860-417: The company or the government in one form or another. Residents did not own their homes; instead, they rented houses assigned primarily based on seniority in the zone. When an employee moved away, the house would be listed and employees could apply for it. The utility companies were also managed by the company. There were no independent stores; goods were brought in and sold at stores run by the company , such as
18050-437: The concession and to maintain the existing excavation and equipment in saleable condition. The company had already begun looking for a buyer, with an asking price of $ 109 million. In the US, a congressional Isthmian Canal Commission was established in 1899 to examine possibilities for a Central American canal and recommend a route. In November 1901, the commission reported that a US canal should be built through Nicaragua unless
18240-477: The construction company to the Panama Canal Zone government. The outbreak of World War I caused the cancellation of any official "grand opening" celebration, but the canal officially opened to commercial traffic on 15 August 1914 with the transit of the SS Ancon . During World War II, the canal proved vital to American military strategy, allowing ships to transfer easily between the Atlantic and Pacific. Politically,
18430-575: The construction of tunnels and locks. A second Isthmian exploratory visit began on 6 December 1877, where two routes were explored in Panama, the San Blas route and a route from Bahía Limón to Panama City, the current Canal route. The French had achieved success in building the Suez Canal in the Middle East. While it was a lengthy project, they were encouraged to plan for a canal to cross the Panamanian isthmus. Wyse went to Bogotá and on 20 March 1878, signed
18620-437: The construction, maintenance, operation, sanitation, and protection of the canal. From 1903 to 1979, the territory was controlled by the United States, which had purchased the land from its private and public owners, built the canal and financed its construction. The Canal Zone was abolished in 1979, as a term of the Torrijos–Carter Treaties two years earlier; the canal itself was later under joint U.S.–Panamanian control until it
18810-623: The construction, whose president was Lesseps, acquired the Wyse Concession from the Société Civile. The engineering congress estimated the Lesseps project's cost at $ 214 million; on February 14, 1880, an engineering commission revised the estimate to $ 168.6 million. Lesseps further reduced this estimate twice, with no apparent justification: on February 20 to $ 131.6 million and on March 1 to $ 120 million. The congress estimated seven or eight years as
19000-611: The continental divide to connect Gatun Lake to the Pacific Panama Canal locks . On 10 October 1913, President Woodrow Wilson sent a signal from the White House by telegraph which triggered the explosion that destroyed the Gamboa Dike. This flooded the Culebra Cut, thereby joining the Atlantic and Pacific oceans via the Panama Canal. Alexandre La Valley (a floating crane built by Lobnitz & Company and launched in 1887)
19190-436: The corruption, and Jean Jaurès was commissioned by the French parliament to conduct an inquiry which was completed in 1893. It soon became clear that the only way to recoup expenses for the stockholders was to continue the project. A new concession was obtained from Colombia, and in 1894 the Compagnie Nouvelle du Canal de Panama was created to finish the canal. To comply with the terms of the contract, work began immediately on
19380-459: The death rate was over 200 per month. Public health measures were ineffective because the role of the mosquito as a disease vector was then unknown. Conditions were downplayed in France to avoid recruitment problems, but the high mortality rate made it difficult to maintain an experienced workforce. Workers had to continually widen the main cut through the mountain at Culebra and reduce the angles of
19570-399: The early days of the system, bosses could promote exceptional workers from silver to gold, but this practice soon ceased as race came to be the determining factor. As a result of the initial policy, there were several hundred skilled black and Southern European workers on the gold roll. In November 1906, Chief Engineer John Stevens ordered that most black people on the gold roll be placed on
19760-571: The economy of the Falkland Islands . Throughout this time, Ernest "Red" Hallen was hired by the Isthmian Canal Commission to document the progress of the work. In 1914, steam shovels from the Panama Canal were purchased and put to use in Chuquicamata copper mine of northern Chile. By the 1930s, water supply became an issue for the canal, prompting construction of the Madden Dam across
19950-527: The effort, and it was abandoned in April 1700. In 1788, Americans suggested that the Spanish should build the canal, since they controlled the colonies where it would be built. They said that this would be a less treacherous route for ships than going around the southern tip of South America, and that tropical ocean currents would naturally widen the canal after construction. During an expedition from 1788 to 1793, Alessandro Malaspina outlined plans for construction of
20140-502: The engineering and excavation work into three divisions: Atlantic, Central, and Pacific. The Atlantic Division, under Major William L. Sibert , was responsible for construction of the massive breakwater at the entrance to Bahía Limón , the Gatun locks , and their 3 + 1 ⁄ 2 -mile (5.6 km) approach channel, and the immense Gatun Dam. The Pacific Division, under Sydney B. Williamson (the only civilian member of this high-level team),
20330-460: The ensuing scandal, known as the Panama affair , some of those deemed responsible were prosecuted, including Gustave Eiffel . Lesseps and his son Charles were found guilty of misappropriation of funds and sentenced to five years' imprisonment. This sentence was later overturned, and the father, at age 88, was never imprisoned. In 1894, a second French company, the Compagnie Nouvelle du Canal de Panama,
20520-604: The exclusive control of the Commanding General, Panama Canal Department for the duration. The US Secretary of War stated that the air forces and anti-aircraft artillery covering the Canal Zone must be greatly augmented. Prior to 1939, the equipment of the Air Corps was generally outdated and of questionable value. Thereafter, air defense of the Zone underwent major expansions. Effective July 1, 1951, under an act of Congress dated September 26, 1950 (64 Stat. 1038), governance of
20710-458: The financing of the massive project, the canal was only partly completed. Interest in a U.S.-led canal effort picked up as soon as France abandoned the project. Initially, the Panama site was politically unfavorable in the U.S. for a variety of reasons, including the taint of the failed French effort and the unfriendly attitude of the Colombian government (at the time, the owner of the land) towards
20900-578: The first days of the Canal Zone, the ICC provided no food, and workers had to fend for themselves, obtaining poor-quality food at inflated prices from Panamanian merchants. When Stevens arrived in 1905, he ordered food to be provided at cost, leading to the establishment of the Canal Zone Commissary. The functions of the Commissary quickly grew, generally against the will of the Panamanian government, which saw more and more goods and services provided in
21090-651: The following 20 years. The treaty specifically categorized areas and facilities by name as "Military Areas of Coordination", "Defense Sites" and "Areas Subject to Separate Bilateral Agreement". These were to be transferred by the U.S. to Panama during certain time windows or simply by the end of the 243-month treaty period. On 1 October 1979, among the many such parcels so designated in the treaty, 35 emerged as enclaves (surrounded entirely by land solely under Panamanian jurisdiction). In later years, as other areas were turned over to Panama, nine more enclaves emerged. At least 13 other parcels each were enclosed partly by land under
21280-419: The gold that was shipped out of California went by the fast Panama route. Several new and larger paddle steamers were soon plying this new route, including private steamship lines owned by American entrepreneur Cornelius Vanderbilt that made use of an overland route through Nicaragua, and the unfortunate SS Central America . In 1850, the United States began construction of the Panama Railroad (now called
21470-538: The isthmus and issued a report on a route for a proposed Panama Canal. His report was published as a book entitled The Practicability and Importance of a Ship Canal to Connect the Atlantic and Pacific Oceans . In 1876, Lucien Napoléon Bonaparte Wyse and his chief assistant Armand Réclus, both officers and engineers of the French Navy , explored several routes in the Darien-Atrato regions and made proposals including
21660-405: The large-gauge canal between Bordeaux and Narbonne, the road between Sétif and Bougie , and of the railway lines connecting Philippeville to Constantine, Algeria , Algiers to Constantine, and Athens to Piraeus , he also supervised the construction of a rail link between Veracruz and Córdoba, Mexico , losing two-thirds of his workers to tropical disease. Godin de Lépinay's plan was to build
21850-409: The larger nation to intervene to preserve public order. The treaty was approved by the provisional Panamanian government on December 2, 1903, and by the US Senate on February 23, 1904. Under the treaty, Panama received US$ 10 million , much of which the United States required to be invested in that country, plus annual payments of US$ 250,000 ; with those payments made, as well as for the purchase of
22040-462: The late nineteenth century, technological advances and commercial pressure allowed construction to begin in earnest. Noted canal engineer Ferdinand de Lesseps , builder of the Suez Canal , led the initial attempt by France to build a sea-level canal. Beset by cost overruns due to the severe underestimation of the difficulties in excavating the rugged terrain, heavy personnel losses to tropical diseases , and political corruption in France surrounding
22230-407: The later American effort. The French lowered the summit of the Culebra Cut along the canal route by five meters (16 feet), from 64 to 59 metres (210 to 194 ft). An estimated 22,713,396 m (29,708,000 cu yd) of excavation, valued at about $ 25.4 million, and equipment and surveys valued at about $ 17.4 million were usable by the Americans. The 1848 discovery of gold in California and
22420-417: The loss of trade. Panama had laws restricting imports from the Canal Zone. Goods from the commissary would sometimes show up in Panamanian stores and in vendor displays, where Comisariato goods were deemed of high quality. Additionally, there were separate commissaries on the U.S. military installations that were available only to the U.S. military personnel and their dependents. Employees and dependents of
22610-527: The middle of a 20-mile zone, under American management but Colombian sovereignty, and the canal would revert to Colombia in 99 years. The Grant administration did little to pursue a treaty and, in 1878, the concession to build the canal fell to a French firm. The French efforts eventually failed, but with Panama apparently unavailable, the United States considered possible canal sites in Mexico and Nicaragua . The Spanish–American War of 1898 added new life to
22800-577: The new US envoy to Bogotá , Benjamin Bidlack , was surprised when, soon after his arrival, the New Granadans proposed that the United States be the guarantor of the neutrality of the isthmus. The resulting Mallarino–Bidlack Treaty allowed the United States to intervene militarily to ensure that the interoceanic road (and when it was built, the Panama Railroad as well) would not be disrupted. New Granada hoped that other nations would sign similar treaties, but
22990-453: The new nation of Panama ceded to the Americans the rights they wanted in the Hay–Bunau-Varilla Treaty . Over time, though, the existence of the Canal Zone, a political exclave of the United States that cut Panama geographically in half and had its own courts, police, and civil government, became a cause of conflict between the two countries. Major rioting and clashes occurred on May 21, 1958, and on November 3, 1959 . Demonstrations occurred at
23180-456: The new nation. This happened so quickly that by the time the Colombian government in Bogotá launched a response to the Panamanian uprising US troops had already entered the rebelling province. The Colombian troops dispatched to Panama were hastily assembled conscripts with little training. While these conscripts may have been able to defeat the Panamanian rebels, they would not have been able to defeat
23370-775: The one with the United States, which was ratified by the US Senate in June 1848 after considerable lobbying by New Granada, was the only one. The treaty led the U.S. government to contract for steamship service to Panama from ports on both coasts. When the California Gold Rush began in 1848, traffic through Panama greatly increased, and New Granada agreed to allow the Panama Railroad to be constructed by American interests. This first "transcontinental railroad" opened in 1850. There were riots in Panama City in 1856; several Americans were killed. US warships landed Marines , who occupied
23560-513: The only civilian division head) was responsible for the Pacific entrance to the canal, including a 4.8 km (3.0 mi) breakwater in Panama Bay, the approach channel, and the Miraflores and Pedro Miguel locks and their associated dams. The Central Division, under Major David du Bose Gaillard , was responsible for everything in between. It had arguably the project's greatest challenge: excavating
23750-552: The opening of the Thatcher Ferry Bridge, now known as the Bridge of the Americas , in 1962 and serious rioting occurred in January 1964. This led to the United States easing its controls in the Zone. For example, Panamanian flags were allowed to be flown alongside American ones. After extensive negotiations, the Canal Zone ceased to exist on October 1, 1979, in compliance with provisions of the Torrijos–Carter Treaties . In 1989,
23940-574: The operations of the Panama Canal under the permanent organization should be under the Secretary of War", thus establishing the essentially military arrangement and atmosphere for the canal and Canal Zone. On September 5, 1939, with the outbreak of war in Europe Executive Order 8232 placed governance of the Canal and "all its adjuncts and appurtenances, including the government of the Canal Zone" under
24130-515: The other 59 ft (18 m). There would be eight sets of locks, two at Bohio Soldado and two at Obispo on the Atlantic side; one at Paraiso, two at Pedro Miguel, and one at Miraflores on the Pacific. Artificial lakes would be formed by damming the Chagres River at Bohio and Alhajuela, providing both flood control and electric power. At this time, US President Theodore Roosevelt and the United States Senate were interested in establishing
24320-409: The other end. An average of 200,000,000 L (52,000,000 US gal) of fresh water is used in a single passing of a ship. The canal is threatened by low water levels during droughts. The Panama Canal shortcut greatly reduces the time for ships to travel between the Atlantic and Pacific oceans, enabling them to avoid the lengthy, hazardous route around the southernmost tip of South America via
24510-493: The passage of Panamax ships. A third, wider lane of locks was constructed between September 2007 and May 2016. The expanded waterway began commercial operation on 26 June 2016. The new locks allow transit of larger, Neopanamax ships. Annual traffic has risen from about 1,000 ships in 1914, when the canal opened, to 14,702 vessels in 2008, for a total of 333.7 million Panama Canal/Universal Measurement System (PC/UMS) tons . By 2012, more than 815,000 vessels had passed through
24700-486: The planning of the Panama intervention as the US acted as an arbitrator between the two sides. The peace treaty that ended the "Thousand Days War" was signed on the USS Wisconsin on 21 November 1902. While in port, the US also brought engineering teams to Panama with the peace delegation to begin planning the canal's construction before the US had even gained the rights to build the canal. All these factors would result in
24890-473: The president Simón Bolívar and New Granadan officials declined American offers. The new nation was politically unstable, and Panama rebelled several times during the 19th century. In 1836, U.S. statesman Charles Biddle reached an agreement with the New Granadan government to replace the old road with an improved one or a railroad, running from Panama City on the Pacific coast to the Chagres River , where
25080-566: The project attracted good, well-paid French engineers, retaining them was difficult due to disease. The death toll from 1881 to 1889 was estimated at over 22,000, of whom as many as 5,000 were French citizens. By 1885 it had become clear to many that a sea-level canal was impractical, and an elevated canal with locks was preferable; de Lesseps resisted, and a lock canal plan was not adopted until October 1887. By this time increasing mortality rates, as well as financial and engineering problems coupled with frequent floods and mudslides , indicated that
25270-464: The project in 1904 and opened the canal in 1914. The US continued to control the canal and surrounding Panama Canal Zone until the Torrijos–Carter Treaties provided for its handover to Panama in 1977. After a period of joint American–Panamanian control, the Panamanian government took control in 1999. It is now managed and operated by the Panamanian government-owned Panama Canal Authority . The original locks are 33.5 meters (110 ft) wide and allow
25460-475: The project was in serious trouble. Work continued under the new plan until May 15, 1889, when the company went bankrupt and the project was suspended. After eight years the canal was about two-fifths completed, and about $ 234.8 million had been spent. The company's collapse was a scandal in France , and the antisemitic Edouard Drumont exploited the role of two Jewish speculators in the affair. One hundred and four legislators were found to have been involved in
25650-515: The project. After two years of extensive work, the mosquito-spread diseases were nearly eliminated . Despite the monumental effort, about 5,600 workers died from disease and accidents during the US construction phase of the canal. Besides healthier and far better living conditions for the workers, another benefit given to American citizens working on the Canal was a medal for two years of service. Additional bars were added for each two-year period after that. Designed by Victor D. Brenner and featuring
25840-478: The purpose of this congress was only to launch fundraising by legitimizing Lesseps' own decision, based on the Lucien Bonaparte-Wyse and Armand Réclus plan, through a so-called international scientific approval, since he was convinced that a sea-level canal, dug through the mountainous spine of Central America, could be completed at least as easily as the Suez Canal. In reality, only 19 engineers approved
26030-422: The railroad station and kept the railroad service from being interrupted by the unrest. The United States demanded compensation from New Granada, including a zone 20 miles (32 km) wide, to be governed by US officials and in which the United States might build any "railway or passageway" it desired. The demand was dropped in the face of resistance by New Granadan officials, who accused the United States of seeking
26220-455: The railway, which was to prove crucial in transporting millions of tons of soil from the cut through the mountains to the dam across the Chagres River. Colonel William C. Gorgas had been appointed chief sanitation officer of the canal construction project in 1904. Gorgas implemented a range of measures to minimize the spread of deadly diseases, particularly yellow fever and malaria , which had recently been shown to be mosquito-borne following
26410-413: The rainy climate. In France, Lesseps kept the investment and supply of workers flowing long after it was obvious that the targets were not being met, but eventually the money ran out. The French effort went bankrupt in 1889 after reportedly spending US$ 287,000,000; an estimated 22,000 men died from disease and accidents, and the savings of 800,000 investors were lost. Work was suspended on May 15, and in
26600-410: The relative merits of both types in cost and time. Although the engineers voted eight to five in favor of a sea-level canal, Stevens and the ICC opposed the plan; Stevens' report to Roosevelt was instrumental in convincing the president of the merits of a lock canal and Congress concurred. In November 1906 Roosevelt visited Panama to inspect the canal's progress, the first trip outside the United States by
26790-598: The revolution came in November 1903, the United States intervened to protect the rebels, who succeeded in taking over the province, declaring it independent as the Republic of Panama . Bunau-Varilla was initially the Panamanian representative in the United States, though he was about to be displaced by actual Panamanians, and hastily negotiated a treaty , giving the United States a zone 20 miles (32 km) wide and full authority to pass laws to govern that zone. The Panama Canal Zone (Canal Zone, or Zone) excluded Panama City and Colón, but included four offshore islands, and permitted
26980-533: The rivers crossing the canal, particularly the Chagres , which flows strongly during the rainy season. Since the water would be a hazard to shipping if it drained into the canal, a sea-level canal would require the river's diversion. The most serious problem was tropical diseases , particularly malaria and yellow fever , whose methods of transmission were unknown at the time. The legs of hospital beds were placed in cans of water to keep insects from crawling up them, but
27170-457: The rock (which was then removed by as many as 160 trains per day). Landslides were frequent, due to the oxidation and weakening of the rock's underlying iron strata . Although the scale of the job and the frequent, unpredictable slides generated chaos, Gaillard provided quiet, clear-sighted leadership. Panama Canal The Panama Canal (Spanish: Canal de Panamá ) is an artificial 82-kilometer (51-mile) waterway in Panama that connects
27360-614: The rush of would-be miners stimulated US interest in building a canal between the oceans. In 1887, a United States Army Corps of Engineers regiment surveyed canal possibilities in Nicaragua. Two years later, the Maritime Canal Company was asked to begin a canal in the area and chose Nicaragua. The company lost money in the panic of 1893 , and its work in Nicaragua ceased. In 1897 and 1899, the United States Congress charged
27550-501: The signing of the Hay–Bunau-Varilla Treaty , which allowed for the construction of the Panama Canal within the territory by the United States. The zone existed until October 1, 1979, when it was incorporated back into Panama. In 1904, the Isthmian Canal Convention was proclaimed. In it, the Republic of Panama granted to the United States in perpetuity the use, occupation, and control of a zone of land and land underwater for
27740-469: The silver roll instead (a few remained in such roles as teachers and postmasters); the following month, the Canal Commission reported that the 3,700 gold roll employees were "almost all White Americans" and the 13,000 silver roll workers were "mostly aliens". On February 8, 1908, President Roosevelt ordered that no further non-Americans be placed on the gold roll. After Panamanians objected, the gold roll
27930-501: The slopes to minimize landslides into the canal. Steam shovels were used in the construction of the canal, purchased from Bay City Industrial Works, a business owned by William L. Clements in Bay City, Michigan . Bucket chain excavators manufactured by both Alphonse Couvreux and Wehyer & Richemond and Buette were also used. Other mechanical and electrical equipment was limited in capabilities, and steel equipment rusted rapidly in
28120-555: The stagnant water was an ideal breeding place for mosquitoes (carriers of the diseases). In May 1879, the Congrès International d'Etudes du Canal Interocéanique (International Congress for Study of an Interoceanic Canal), led by Lesseps, convened in Paris. Among the 136 delegates of 26 countries, 42 were engineers and made technical proposals before the congress. The others were speculators, politicians, and friends of Lesseps, for whom
28310-458: The status of their parents. For most nationality purposes under U.S. federal law, the Canal Zone was by considered to be foreign territory and the status persons acquired at birth was governed by Sec. 1993 of the Revised Statutes of the United States (Act of February 10, 1855, 10 Stat. 604), which granted them statutory U.S. citizenship at birth but only if their fathers were, at the time of
28500-454: The territory of Panama. Just after noon local time on 31 December 1999, all former Canal Zone parcels of all types had come under the exclusive jurisdiction of Panama. The 44 enclaves of U.S. territory that existed under the treaty are shown in the table below. The Panama Canal Zone issued its own postage stamps from 1904 until October 25, 1978. During the early years, United States postage stamps overprinted "Canal Zone" were used. After
28690-406: The then-current president they were popularly known as The Roosevelt Medal. A total of 7189 were ultimately issued, with a few people receiving as many as four bars. Certificates are available today. In 1905, a US engineering panel was commissioned to review the canal design, which had not been finalized. In January 1906 the panel, in a majority of eight to five, recommended to President Roosevelt
28880-492: The thousands of incoming workers. Stevens began the recruitment effort to entice thousands of workers from the United States and other areas to come to the Canal Zone to work. Workers from the Caribbean—called " Afro-Panamanians "—came in large numbers and many settled permanently. Stevens tried to provide accommodation in which the workers could work and live in reasonable safety and comfort. He also re-established and enlarged
29070-443: The time required to complete the canal; Lesseps reduced this estimate to six years (the Suez Canal had required ten). The proposed sea-level canal would have a uniform depth of 9 meters (29.5 ft), a bottom width of 22 meters (72.2 ft) and a width at water level of about 27.5 meters (90.2 ft); the excavation estimate was 120,000,000 m (157,000,000 cu yd). A dam was proposed at Gamboa to control flooding of
29260-459: The transit of larger Post-Panamax and New Panamax ships, which have greater cargo capacity than the original locks could accommodate. The idea of a canal across Central America was revived during the early 19th century. In 1819, the Spanish government authorized the construction of a canal and the creation of a company to build it. Although the project stalled for some time, a number of surveys were made between 1850 and 1875. They indicated that
29450-493: The two most-favorable routes were across Panama (then part of Colombia) and Nicaragua , with a third route across the Isthmus of Tehuantepec in Mexico another option. The Nicaraguan route was surveyed. After the 1869 completion of the Suez Canal , the French government believed that an apparently similar project to connect the Atlantic and Pacific Oceans could be carried out with little difficulty. In 1876 an international company, La Société internationale du Canal interocéanique,
29640-620: The unit in which allowances were expressed. Initially, employees received one square foot per dollar of monthly salary. Stevens from the first encouraged gold roll employees to send for their wives and children; to encourage them to do so, wives were granted a housing allowance equal to their husband's, even if they were not employees. Bachelors mostly resided in hotel-like structures. The structures all had screened verandas and up-to-date plumbing. The government furnished power, water, coal for cooking, ice for iceboxes, lawn care, groundskeeping, garbage disposal, and, for bachelors only, maid service. In
29830-524: The water from the lake. Gatun Lake would connect to the Pacific through the mountains at the Gaillard (Culebra) Cut. Unlike Godin de Lépinay with the Congrès International d'Etudes du Canal Interocéanique, Stevens successfully convinced Roosevelt of the necessity and feasibility of this alternative scheme. The construction of a canal with locks required the excavation of more than 17 million cu yd (13 million m ) of material over and above
30020-788: The work and appointed Major George Washington Goethals as chief engineer (under Stevens' direction) in February 1907. Stevens, frustrated by government inaction and the army involvement, resigned and was replaced by Goethals. The US relied on a stratified workforce to build the canal. High-level engineering jobs, clerical positions, skilled labor and jobs in supporting industries were generally reserved for Americans, with manual labor primarily by cheap immigrant labor. These jobs were initially filled by Europeans, primarily from Spain, Italy and Greece, many of whom were radical and militant due to political turmoil in Europe. The US then decided to recruit primarily from
30210-496: The work of Cuban epidemiologist, Carlos Finlay and American pathologist, Walter Reed . Investment was made in extensive sanitation projects, including city water systems, fumigation of buildings, spraying of insect-breeding areas with oil and larvicide, installation of mosquito netting and window screens, and elimination of stagnant water. Despite opposition from the commission (one member said his ideas were barmy), Gorgas persisted, and when Stevens arrived, he threw his weight behind
30400-415: The zone. Its border spanned two of the provinces of Panama : Colón and Panamá . The total area of the territory was 553 square miles (1,430 km ). Although it was under the control of the United States, the zone did not have formal boundary restrictions on Panamanians transiting to either half of their country, or for any other visitors. A Panama Canal fence did exist along the main highway, although it
30590-455: Was US Army Major George Washington Goethals of the US Army Corps of Engineers . Soon to be promoted to lieutenant colonel and later to general, he was a strong, West Point -trained leader and civil engineer with experience in canals (unlike Stevens). Goethals directed the work in Panama to a successful conclusion in 1914, two years ahead of the target date of 10 June 1916. Goethals divided
30780-412: Was a concession of the United States located in the Isthmus of Panama that existed from 1903 to 1979. It consisted of the Panama Canal and an area generally extending five miles (8 km) on each side of the centerline, but excluding Panama City and Colón . Its capital was Balboa . The Panama Canal Zone was created on November 18, 1903 from the territory of Panama ; it was established with
30970-401: Was a source of friction between the Canal Zone and Panama for several other reasons. It dominated sales of supplies to passing ships. The commissary was off limits to individuals who were not in the U.S. Military, employees of the Panama Canal Company, the Canal Zone Government and/or their dependents. This restriction was requested by Panama for the benefit of Panamanian storekeepers, who feared
31160-481: Was able to raise considerable funds in France as a result of the huge profits generated by his successful construction of the Suez Canal . Although the Panama Canal needed to be only 40 percent as long as the Suez Canal, it was much more of an engineering challenge because of the combination of tropical rain forests, debilitating climate, the need for canal locks, and the lack of any ancient route to follow. Lesseps wanted
31350-552: Was an early problem, and the Panama Railway was in a state of decay. However, much equipment (such as locomotives, dredges and other floating equipment) was still serviceable. Although chief engineer John Findley Wallace was pressured to resume construction, red tape from Washington stifled his efforts to obtain heavy equipment and caused friction between Wallace and the ICC. He and chief sanitary officer William C. Gorgas were frustrated by delay, and Wallace resigned in 1905. He
31540-498: Was being excavated per month (the equivalent amount of spoil from the Channel Tunnel every 3½ months). One of the greatest barriers to a canal was the continental divide , which originally rose to 110 metres (360.9 ft) above sea level at its highest point. The effort to cut through this barrier of rock was one of the greatest challenges faced by the project. Goethals arrived at the canal with Major David du Bose Gaillard of
31730-448: Was carried out on the new approach channels, but the project was canceled after World War II. After World War II, US control of the canal and the Canal Zone surrounding it became contentious; relations between Panama and the United States became increasingly tense. Many Panamanians felt that the Zone rightfully belonged to Panama; student protests were met by the fencing-in of the zone and an increased military presence there. Demands for
31920-531: Was controlling the diseases which had decimated workers and management alike under the original French attempt. The Americans' chief engineer John Frank Stevens (the second Chief Engineer of the American-led project after John Finlay Wallace resigned out of frustration with the bureaucracy in 1905) built much of the infrastructure necessary for later construction; slow progress on the canal itself led to his replacement by George Washington Goethals . Goethals oversaw
32110-536: Was created to take over the project. A minimal workforce of a few thousand people was employed primarily to comply with the terms of the Colombian Panama Canal concession, to run the Panama Railroad , and to maintain the existing excavation and equipment in salable condition. The company sought a buyer for these assets, with an asking price of US$ 109,000,000. In the meantime, they continued with enough activity to maintain their franchise. Phillipe Bunau-Varilla ,
32300-432: Was created to undertake its construction; two years later, it obtained a concession from the Colombian government (since Panama was a Colombian province) to dig a canal across the isthmus. On March 20, 1878, the Société Civile obtained an exclusive 15 years concession from the Colombian government to build a canal across the isthmus of Panama, which at the time was a Department of Colombia; the waterway that would revert to
32490-436: Was enthusiastic and ordered preliminary works started, his officials in Panama soon realized that such an undertaking was beyond the capabilities of 16th-century technology. One official wrote to Charles, "I pledge to Your Majesty that there is not a prince in the world with the power to accomplish this". The Spanish instead built a road across the isthmus. The road came to be crucial to Spain's economy, as treasure obtained along
32680-431: Was fully turned over to Panama in 1999. Proposals for a canal across the Isthmus of Panama date back to 1529, soon after the Spanish conquest. Álvaro de Saavedra Cerón , a lieutenant of conquistador Vasco Núñez de Balboa , suggested four possible routes, one of which closely tracks the present-day canal. Saavedra believed that such a canal would make it easier for European vessels to reach Asia. Although King Charles I
32870-472: Was generally divided into two sections, the Pacific side and the Atlantic side, separated by Gatun Lake. A partial list of Canal Zone townships and military installations: On 1 October 1979, the day the Panama Canal Treaty of 1977 took effect, most of the land within the former Canal Zone was transferred to Panama. However, the treaty set aside many Canal Zone areas and facilities for transfer during
33060-412: Was given control of the Panama Canal Zone, over which the United States exercised sovereignty. The commission reported directly to Secretary of War William Howard Taft and was directed to avoid the inefficiency and corruption that had plagued the French 15 years earlier. On 6 May 1904, President Theodore Roosevelt appointed John Findley Wallace , formerly chief engineer and finally general manager of
33250-439: Was imported from the United States because of local shortages. Even after 1918, both the designations and the disparity in privileges lingered. Until the end of World War II in 1945, the Panama Canal Zone operated under a Jim Crow society, where the category of "gold" represented White, U.S. workers and the title "silver" represented the non-White, non-U.S. workers on the Zone. There were even separate entrances for each group at
33440-459: Was in a hurry to secure the treaty; the Colombians, to whom the French property would revert in 1904, were not. Negotiations dragged on into 1903, during which time there was unrest in Panama City and Colón; the United States sent in Marines to guard the trains. Nevertheless, in early 1903, the United States and Colombia signed a treaty which, despite Colombia's previous objections, gave the United States
33630-402: Was located within the territory of Panama , consisting of the Panama Canal and an area generally extending 5 miles (8.0 km) on each side of the centerline, but excluding Panama City and Colón , which would have otherwise fallen in part within the limits of the Canal Zone. When artificial lakes were created to assure a steady supply of water for the locks, those lakes were included within
33820-551: Was not simply without foundation, but ridiculous to anyone the least familiar with the man or the prevailing temper in Washington. Nothing of the kind was ever even remotely contemplated at the White House or the State Department." The Americans' success hinged on two factors. First was converting the original French sea-level plan (which required extremely large excavations) to a more realistic lock -controlled canal. The second
34010-401: Was one of the first to recognize the role of mosquitoes in the spread of these diseases and, by focusing on controlling the mosquitoes, greatly improved worker conditions. On 7 January 1914, the French crane boat Alexandre La Valley became the first to traverse the entire length of the canal, and on 1 April 1914 the construction was officially completed with the hand-over of the project from
34200-487: Was only a safety measure to separate pedestrians from traffic, and some of the Canal Zone territory was beyond it. In Panama City, if there were no protests interfering with movement, one could enter the Zone simply by crossing a street. In 1903, the United States, having failed to obtain from Colombia the right to build a canal across the Isthmus of Panama , which was part of that country, sent warships in support of Panamanian independence from Colombia. This being achieved,
34390-483: Was placed was race. With very few exceptions, American and Northern European (White) workers were placed on the gold roll, and Black and southern European workers on the silver roll. Black Americans were generally not hired; Black employees were from the Caribbean, often from Barbados and Jamaica . White Americans seeking work as laborers, which were almost entirely silver roll positions, were discouraged from applying. In
34580-489: Was realigned into three main divisions; Canal Activity and Commercial Activity with the Service Activity providing services to both operating activities at rates sufficient to recover costs. Rate adjustments in housing and other employee services would be required and a form of valuation, compared to a property tax, would be used to determine each division's contribution to the Canal Zone Government. The Panama Canal Zone
34770-515: Was reopened to them in December 1908; however, efforts to remove non-American workers from the gold roll continued. Until 1918, when all employees began to be paid in U.S. dollars, gold roll employees were paid in gold, in American currency, while their silver roll counterparts were paid in silver coin, initially Colombian pesos . Through the years of canal construction, silver roll workers were paid with coins from various nations; in several years, coin
34960-481: Was replaced by John Frank Stevens , who arrived on July 26, 1905. Stevens quickly realized that serious investment in infrastructure was necessary and determined to upgrade the railway, improve sanitation in Panama City and Colón , renovate the old French buildings and build hundreds of new ones for housing. He then began the difficult task of recruiting the large labor force required for construction. Stevens' approach
35150-454: Was similarly responsible for the Pacific 3-mile (4.8 km) breakwater in Panama Bay , the approach channel to the locks, and the Miraflores and Pedro Miguel locks and their associated dams and reservoirs. The Central Division, under Major David du Bose Gaillard of the United States Army Corps of Engineers , was assigned one of the most difficult parts: excavating the Culebra Cut through
35340-501: Was summoned to Washington; he declared a sea-level approach to be "an entirely untenable proposition". He argued in favor of a canal using a lock system to raise and lower ships from a large reservoir 85 ft (26 m) above sea level. This would create both the largest dam (Gatun Dam) and the largest human-made lake (Gatun Lake) in the world at that time. The water to refill the locks would be taken from Gatun Lake by opening and closing enormous gates and valves and letting gravity propel
35530-426: Was taken from the Culebra Cut . The old company dredged a channel from Panama Bay to the port at Balboa , and the channel dredged on the Atlantic side (known as the French canal) was useful for bringing in sand and stone for the locks and spillway concrete at Gatún . Detailed surveys and studies (particularly those carried out by the new canal company) and machinery, including railroad equipment and vehicles, aided
35720-415: Was the first self-propelled vessel to transit the canal from ocean to ocean. This vessel crossed the canal from the Atlantic in stages during construction, finally reaching the Pacific on 7 January 1914. SS Cristobal (a cargo and passenger ship built by Maryland Steel , and launched in 1902 as SS Tremont ) on 3 August 1914, was the first ship to transit the canal from ocean to ocean. The construction of
35910-435: Was to press ahead first and obtain approval later. He improved drilling and dirt-removal equipment at the Culebra Cut for greater efficiency, revising the inadequate provisions in place for soil disposal. No decision had been made about whether the canal should be a lock or a sea-level one; the ongoing excavation would be useful in either case. In late 1905, President Roosevelt sent a team of engineers to Panama to investigate
36100-491: Was won by the firm Hutchison Whampoa , a Hong Kong–based shipping interest owned by Li Ka-shing . While globally the Atlantic Ocean is east of the isthmus and the Pacific is west, the general direction of the canal passage from the Atlantic to the Pacific is from northwest to southeast, because of the shape of the isthmus at the point the canal occupies. The Bridge of the Americas ( Spanish : Puente de las Américas ) at
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