Panamal Canal, Building of the

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PANAMAL CANAL, BUILDING OF THE

After ten years of intensive construction, the Panama Canal was officially opened to shipping on August 14, 1914. In addition to a multitude of engineering challenges, the building of the Panama Canal survived political turmoil and environment hazards. It is considered by many historians to be one of the world's greatest engineering accomplishments. Led by a group of American engineers, the completion of the canal fulfilled the dream of a shorter shipping lane between the Atlantic and Pacific oceans.

In 1534 King Charles I of Spain introduced the concept of a Central American canal. The Spanish government was eager to find a sea route between the two oceans that would allow them to ship the gold and silver mined along the Pacific coast of their South American colonies. Land travel to the Atlantic seaports was significantly hampered by the mountainous terrain and muddy jungle trails. The king commissioned a study of the Isthmus of Panama region to determine the feasibility of constructing a water passageway. The local Spanish governor, however, dismissed the survey, and nothing was done.

The discovery of gold in California in the late 1840s revived interest in a canal between the Atlantic and Pacific oceans. The Gold Rush of 1849 stimulated a massive migration of settlers from the eastern and Midwest regions of the United States to California. Many of these settlers traveled by sea along the Atlantic coast, crossed the Isthmus of Panama on foot, and completed their journey to California by ship along the Pacific coast. The momentum for a canal was intensified when the American government finished a railroad across the Isthmus of Panama in 1855.

By then the United States and England had already began surveying routes for a canal in Nicaragua and Panama. In 1850 the two countries signed the Clayton-Bulwer Treaty, which stated the canal would not fall under the control of either country upon its completion. During the Spanish-American War (1898) the United States recognized the need for a sea lane that would allow its fleet to pass from the Pacific to Atlantic Oceans. The United States focused its efforts on gaining full control of the proposed canal and convinced England to waive their claim by signing the Hay-Pauncefote Treaty in 1901.

The Hay-Herran Treaty of 1903 between Colombia and the United States gave the United States a 10-mile wide strip of land across the Isthmus of Panama. In exchange, the United States would pay $10 million and an annual payment of $250,000 to the Colombian government. Although Congress ratified the treaty, the Colombian government rejected it in hopes of receiving a higher payment.

Its recalcitrance angered many Panamanian business owners, and the local canal supporters began a successful revolution against Colombia. The United States, which had indirectly supported the revolution, immediately recognized the new government and signed the Hay-Bunau-Varilla Treaty with the Republic of Panama in 1904. This treaty included all the provisions that the initial treaty offered to Columbia, but it also provided the United States with a renewable 99-year lease.

The construction of the canal was actually begun in 1882 by a French company led by Ferdinand de Lesseps, who in 1869 had successfully constructed the Suez Canal. After a disastrous seven years of work, the company went bankrupt. Diseases such as yellow fever and malaria took the lives of 22,000 workers.

Twenty years later the United States was determined not to repeat Lesseps' failures. Although the United States was granted ownership of the canal zone in 1904, actual construction did not begin for another two and a half years.

In this interval, Colonel William Gorgas (1854–1920) made a significant contributions to the future construction effort by improving disease prevention. In 1891 Dr. Ronald Ross, a British army surgeon, found that certain types of mosquitoes transmitted malaria through their bites. A similar discovery was made by Dr. Walter Reed, an American army surgeon, who traced the source of yellow fever to the bite of a specific type of mosquito. Colonel Gorgas, who was chief sanitary officer in Havana, used these new medical discoveries to develop detailed sanitary procedures that greatly enhanced resistance to tropical diseases. Gorgas ordered breeding grounds for mosquitoes, like ponds, swamps, and lakes, to be drained or covered with oil to prevent the mosquito's eggs from hatching. Screened windows and doors were installed on all buildings. By the time the canal's construction began in 1906, yellow fever had been eliminated from Panama. Gorgas' methods were also successful at combating malaria, although the process was much slower compared to the conquest of yellow fever. By 1914 only seven workers had died from disease. Colonel Gorgas' guidelines and the medical research on which they were based saved the lives of countless workers and helped ensure the success of the canal's engineering efforts.

President Theodore Roosevelt (1901–1909) established the Isthmian Canal Commission to lead the construction project and he appointed John F. Stevens as the Commission's chief engineer. The project's organizational efforts were extremely demanding because of the scope and size of the construction efforts. The Commission recruited qualified workers from all over the world. Buildings were erected to house the workers; facilities were built to store heavy-duty earth moving equipment, which was shipped to the area from all corners of the globe. The ten-mile wide canal zone established a government with jurisdiction over its own police force and court system. When chief engineer Stevens resigned from the project in 1907, President Roosevelt appointed Colonel G.W. Goethals (1858–1928). Under Colonel Goethals the leadership of the construction efforts shifted from independent contractors to the United States Army Corp of Engineers.

Construction of the 40-mile long canal lasted ten years. Two hundred and forty million cubic yards of earth were dug up—the equivalent amount of earth needed to construct 70 Egyptian pyramids. More than 100 steam shovels were used and thousands of workers survived landslides, heavy rains, and an earthquake. The construction of the canal was completed on October 10, 1913, at a cost of $380 million. The canal was officially opened on August 15, 1914.

By 1964 Congress went on record in favor of establishing a new treaty to govern control of the canal. Relations between the United States and Panama were shaken during the 1960s, when Panamanians voiced their anger at the initial terms of Panama's treaty with the United States. Riots occurred and anti-American resentment continued to fester throughout Panama. In 1977 President Jimmy Carter (1977–1981) signed two treaties with the government of Panama. On October 1, 1979, the Canal Zone ceased to exist as a formal U.S. entity, and the area was returned to Panamanian civil authorities. The United States and Panama share control over the canal itself until December 31, 1999, when Panama becomes the sole proprietor.

See also: Spanish-American War