When the topic of the Panama Canal comes up, the last name mentioned is probably Balboa. Yet in 1513, Vasco Nunez de Balboa crossed the isthmus of Panama and discovered it to be only a narrow strip of land between the Atlantic and Pacific oceans. His discovery sparked serious interest by Holy Roman Emperor Charles V, who was also Charles I, King of Spain, in creating a passage across the isthmus.
Decades rolled by, and in 1848, the California gold rush caused a tremendous increase in the number of passengers and freight on the Panama Railroad, which crossed the isthmus. The event caught the interest of President Ulysses S. Grant, who had served as U.S. Army Captain in Panama in 1852. Despite his writing, “The horrors of the roads in the rainy season are beyond description,” he ordered a survey to find the best route for a canal across the isthmus. In January of 1875, a survey by the United States deemed the project in Panama too expensive and concluded Nicaragua was a more suitable location.
A similar French survey paved the way for Ferdinand de Lesseps, the Suez Canal builder, to begin constructing a sea-level canal in December of 1879. The French team faced a variety of problems, from floods to landslides, workforce shortages, and disease. De Lesseps was famous and was able to raise a considerable amount of money because of the enormous profits he had received with his construction of the Suez Canal. Despite the fact the Panama Canal was to be 40 percent as long as the Suez, digging in Panama would be more difficult. De Lesseps only actually visited the site a few times during the dry season. He was not aware of just how bad the climate was in Panama when it rained, nor did he understand how dramatically the Charges rivers overflowed in the rainy season. The jungle was a dangerous place because it was filled with poisonous snakes, and all sorts of creatures including spiders, large insects, and unfriendly animals. Yellow fever and Malaria were an ever-present danger.
In August of 1881, Dr. Carlos Finlay identified the mosquito as the carrier of yellow fever. Despite his findings, an epidemic of yellow fever panicked the workers, and some 300 French engineers requested to be dismissed. The request was denied. Four hundred workers succumbed to the disease. Meanwhile, racial tensions between the workers and dysentery spread through the camps. As work slowly progressed it became apparent to most engineers that a sea-level canal was impractical and that locks would need to be built. De Lesseps clung to his conviction that a sea-level canal could be built. After eight years with the canal only about two-fifths completed the company declared bankruptcy on May 15, 1889. When de Lesseps built the Suez Canal, it was a straight run through desert sand. In Panama, he faced rain, rocks, mountains, landslides, and diseases. In 1884 the death rate was two hundred per month making it increasingly more difficult to attract workers. De Lesseps becomes frustrated with the inefficiency of the excavation and stubbornly refuses to consider a system of locks. Allegations of fraud were brought against de Lesseps. In January 1893, de Lesseps and his son Carles were convicted of fraud and maladministration. The death toll reached 22,000, a total of $287 million dollars, and the investments of 800,000 people who believed in de Lesseps were wiped out. Work on the canal was suspended, and then on May 1st, 1889 de Lesseps and his son were charged with fraud. While de Lesseps and his son were sentenced to five years in prison the sentences were overturned and neither spent time in prison. The hero of the Suez Canal was broken and disgraced and died two years later.
After President William McKinley was assassinated in September of 1901, Teddy Roosevelt became president and declared the immediate need to build the Panama Canal. In March of 1904, the Isthmian Canal Commission was created to get a canal built as soon as possible. By November of that same year, 3,500 men were working hard on the canal. Yellow fever struck again, and William Gorgas was called in to eradicate the mosquitoes.
There was great unrest in Panama among feuding factions. Teddy Roosevelt used gunboat diplomacy to win over the Panamanians. Roosevelt indicated to the Panamanian rebels that if they revolted, he would order the U.S. Navy to intervein. He ordered the USS Nashville to Panama. Panama was feuding with Columbia; Roosevelt ended the conflict with his gunboat. Roosevelt said, “I took the Isthmus, started the canal, and left Congress not to debate the canal, but to debate me.” Roosevelt was in charge, and everyone knew it and they rejoiced. In his great book about the building of the canal author David McCullough wrote, “To the majority of those on the job his presence had been magical. Years afterward, the wife of one of the steam shovel engineers, Mrs. Rose van Hardevald, would recall, “We saw him…on the end of the train. Jan got small flags for the children, and told us about when the train would pass…Mr. Roosevelt flashed us one of his well-known toothy smiles and waved his hat at the children…” In an instant, she said, she understood her husband’s faith in the man. “And I was more certain than ever that we would not leave until it [the canal] was finished.” Two years before, they had been living in Wyoming on a lonely stop on the Union Pacific. When her husband heard of the work in Panama, he immediately wanted to go, because he told her, “With Teddy Roosevelt, anything is possible.” At the time neither of them had known quite where Panama was located.” – David McCullough, The Path Between the Seas: The Creation of the Panama Canal, 1870-1914.
Chief Engineer John Findley Wallace was frustrated by delays and resigned in 1905. In July 1905, new Chief Engineer John Frank Stevens, an extraordinarily successful railroad builder, arrived in Panama. Stevens has become famous for his engineering work in building railroads in several countries. He was especially esteemed for his building of the Great Northern Railroad. Steven’s first major obstacle was that he had to contend with the old equipment left over by the French. Much of it was badly rusted and unusable. He began by making the job site ready for work, including purchasing an additional 63 Bucyrus Steam shovels, significantly improving progress. After two years, William Steven is exhausted and resigns from the job. The new Chief Engineer, Colonel George Washington Goethals, takes over the project. Finally, in August of 1913, the dike between the Miraflores Locks and the Pacific Ocean is blown open to allow water from the Pacific Ocean to flow inland. The canal officially opened on August 15, 1914.
The United States of America had managed to build what some call the eighth wonder of the world. Against unbelievable hardships, and disease a canal was dug between the Atlantic and Pacific Oceans changing maritime traffic forever. Ship traffic immediately increased as more shippers took advantage of the time-saving by using the canal. In 1936, the Queen Mary navigated the canal. By 1970, 15,000 ships a year were using the canal.
In 1999 U.S President Jimmy Carter asserted his belief that the Panama Canal right belonged to the Panamanian people and turned it over to Panama for a price of one dollar. In the following years, the canal was enlarged, and fees for all ships, including U.S. warships, were raised. China is now present at both ends of the canal, creating fear that China intends to take over the canal. In December of 2024, President-elect Donald Trump declared he wanted the Panama Canal returned to the United States, to which Panamanian President José Raúl Mulino declared, ” As president, I want to express clearly that every square meter of the Panama Canal and its adjacent zone belongs to Panama, and will continue to do so,” Mulino said in a video statement, according to an English translation. “The sovereignty and independence of our country are not negotiable.” “The canal is not under direct or indirect control, neither by China, nor by the European community, nor by the United States, nor by any other power,” Mulino said. “As a Panamanian, I strongly reject any manifestation that distorts this reality.” Whether Trump will pursue his demand after his inauguration in January 2025, remains to be seen.