Running head: HISTORY OF THE PANAMA CANAL 1
The United States Army Engineer Corps, and their involvement in the construction of the Panama Canal
Alex Hull
12H Construction Supervisor Advanced Leaders Course
HISTORY OF THE PANAMA CANAL 2
Abstract
There are few things in history that have affected the way the modern world operates such as the Panama Canal. On May 4, 1904 the United States of America purchased and took control of a failed French effort to build a canal and passage way across the Isthmus of Panama. Sanitation, hygiene, and the overwhelming amount of work that had to
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Extensive studies were done by Stevens and his fellow engineers and it was determined that a lock and dam style canal should be created. Using this system would in turn create the largest dam and man-made reservoir of its time. Stevens was able to convince the ICC and the President that this was the best system and construction was started on it. Equipment was a major problem at this time. The French had left behind most of their equipment but it was both old and outdated, or in disrepair. 102 new rail mounted steam powered shovels, cranes and giant hydraulic rock crushers were made in the U.S. and shipped to Panama. After 2 years of serving as the Chief Engineer the job proved to be too much for Stevens. He promptly resigned in the spring of 1907. Major George W. Goethals was chosen to take control of the Panama Canal Zone. He was a West Point graduate, and an Army Corps of Engineers Officer. (Tegler, 2013)President Roosevelt was tired of engineers resigning their position and told Major Goethals that if he was to resign his position he would be Court Martialed. Major Goethals plan was to split the construction of the canal into three sections, The Atlantic, The Pacific, and The Central divisions. These three sections were all supervised by an Engineer from the Army Corps of Engineers. Major William L Sibert took control of the Atlantic Section. His job was to construct the massive break water at the entrance to Limon Bay, The Gatun Locks and its three and a half mile approach channel, as well as construct the Gatun Dam. The Pacific Division was led by Sydney B. Williamson, the only civilian supervisor left on the project. He was responsible for the breakwater
The United States believed that by using economic expansion method they could expand and explore their economy; their economy was dependent on foreign trade due of increasing agriculture and manufacturing exports. America paid money to Panama to get control of the Panama Canal. It begun in 1904 and completed in 1914. They did this because they needed strong power over the world to protect its trading interests and it also empowered America to expand its economy and military influence. US believed that control over sea was the answer to the world preemi...
Spearheaded by the efforts of President Teddy Roosevelt, the canal was built so travel time and distance between the opposing American coasts could be drastically shortened. Its construction was approved with the Hay-Pauncefote Treaty negotiated with Great Britain in 1901. Colombia, which controlled the area, was given an offer of $10 million plus an additional $250,000 annually for a 99-year lease but refused it, wanting more money and claiming it infringed on their sovereignty (Divine 691). Roosevelt, angered by Colombia’s defiance, backed Panamanian rebels who would quickly declare independence in late 1903 with the aid of the U.S. Navy (Divine 692). The same lease offer was now tendered to the newly found Republic of Panama and they accepted after the Hay-Bunau-Varilla Treaty was signed in 1903; the treaty would give the U.S. control of a 10-mile wide canal zone across the Isthmus of Panama (Divine
The chief builder of the Erie Canal was DeWitt Clinton, a powerful man who was to become the governor of New York. In 1816, Clinton petitioned New York legislature to let him build the canal, which was a success(Erie). The construction of the canal took about eight years, however many hardships such as floods, and malaria plagued construction.
...dered the construction of the Panama Canal which connected the Atlantic Ocean to the Pacific Ocean.
Have you ever wondered why both the Panama Canal and the Great Wall of China are such iconic land marks for the countries they are in? It’s because of the magnitude of effort that took to create such massive structures. Hard work, blood, tears, sweat and certainly patience played part in the creation of such marvels. However the purpose behind each structure and the challenges builders faced during their construction is what truly sets them apart.
Over the course of the Spanish-American war , the obvious need for a canal came apparent.The canal would stregthen the navy, and it would make easier defense of the islands in the Atlantic and Pacific Oceans. The problem of where to build the canal came into play. Congress rejected Nicaragua and Panama was an unwilling part of this project. The course of the building was shifted to Colu...
Reconstruction has been brutally murdered! For a little over a decade after the Civil War, the victorious North launched a campaign of social, economic, and political recovery in South. Martial law was also implemented in the South. Eventually, the North hoped to admit the territory in the former Confederacy back into the United States as states. The 13th, 14th, and 15th Amendments freed the African Americans, made them citizens, and gave them the right to vote. Despite this, Reconstruction was unfortunately cut short in 1877. The North killed Recosntruction because of racism, negligence, and distractions.
Since the start of Teddy Roosevelt's presidency, he wanted to imperialize the United States. He believed that building a canal in Latin America would be a good way to imperialize. It would connect the Atlantic and the Pacific Oceans and would be much quicker and more efficient than having to go around the bottom tip of South America in the Tierra del Fuego. Roosevelt was determined to build this canal and would keep pushing for it until he got his way. He faced many obstacles, but his determination enabled him to overcome them. With much help, he would build one of the most important canals in the western hemisphere.
The History of the Panama Canal The Panama Canal is called the big ditch, the bridge between two continents, and the greatest shortcut in the world. When it was finally finished in 1914, the 51-mile waterway cut off over 7,900 miles of the distance between New York and San Francisco, and changed the face of the industrialized world ("Panama Canal"). This Canal is not the longest, the widest, the deepest, or the oldest canal in the world, but it is the only canal to connect two oceans, and still today is the greatest man-made waterway in the world ("Panama Canal Connects). Ferdinand de Lesseps, who played a large role in building the Suez Canal in 1869 (Jones), was the director of the Compagnie Universelle Du Canal Interoceanique de Panama ("Historical Overview").
In conclusion, there were constantly problems arising during the construction of the Erie Canal. Even though the Erie Canal definitely helped boost economic activity and industrialization in Upstate New York, it also caused more and more people becoming reliable on the government. It also helped bring morality and ethics into their everyday decisions. The major hope of the Erie Canal was to make the United States a better country, but there were obviously paradoxes that came along with that goal.
Concluding, the significance of the Columbian exchange greatly impacted what we know of life today. The major impacts that have shaped what we know of the world today happened during the Colombian exchange. The major impacts of the Colombian exchange was Christianity that led to the rise of the Catholic Church, new food crops and domesticated animals that improved the Europeans and American living, new military technology such as weapons and horses, slavery of the natives and Africans and diseases that drastically harmed the different ethnic groups. Colombian Exchange between the old world and the new world still holds a drastic impact on the world today. If we didn’t have these influences then the world would be completely changed. Trading still continues today and has made an impact all over the world.
The culture and political structures of Panama as we know it today has evolved from an incredibly diverse and interesting history. Geographically, Panama lies on an isthmus, a strip of land that essentially connects the greater landmasses of North and South America. It is believed that volcanic activity in the late Pliocene era closed the former Central American Seaway that had separated the two continents. The climatic implications of this landform are incredible, allowing for the redistribution of oceanic currents and the formation of the Gulf Stream of the Atlantic of today.
The canal was the best thing that ever happened to Panama. The Panama Canal was started under President Roosevelt and completed by his successor, William Howard Taft. The canal was built across an isthmus, a narrow body of land that connects two larger land areas, which connects North and South America. In some places in Panama the isthmus is only 50 miles across. The French started the canal in the late 1800’s. They had just built the then famous Suez Canal with relative ease. The Suez Canal, unlike the Panama Canal, was a straight canal on level ground, in a relatively dry climate. The French had failed in building the Panama Canal because of the tropical climate, in which deadly tropical diseases consumed their workers, and because of the mountain range in which they could not cut through. He had planned to build the canal in the way of the Suez Canal, straight and sea level. You can see the trouble with trying to cut out that much land, through the mountain range, making it at sea level. The Americans tried their hand in the early 1900’s. Three main people helped made the canal a success. Teddy Roosevelt was one of those people; he saw the military importance of a canal. He called for the cruiser, Oregon, to sail around South America from San Francisco to Cuba so it could be present in the battle at Santiago Bay. The entire journey took ten weeks. He was the driving force in getting the permission to build the canal because he realized the importanc...
Walter LaFeber illustrates the dilemmas in a historical analysis. In his work he states five questions that address the significance of the Panama Canal to United States. This paper will discuss the historical perspective of the book's author, address pertinent three questions and give a critique of LaFeber's work, The Panama Canal. For proper historical analysis one must understand the importance of the Canal.
The current size, inherent values, and economic status of the United States owes greatly to the paramount figures and events that took place during the Early National Period of the country. However, while there is no doubt that such events- and the figures behind them- were of great importance and have molded the country into the pristine product that it is today, the various construction projects of that time have gone largely unnoticed. Canals, being one of the most prominent advances in transportation, are prime examples of forgotten catalysts of the American nation. The construction of canals- particularly the Erie Canal- during the 19th century played a key role in the geographic, economic, and cultural development of the country by allowing an easier and faster mode of transport, and contributing greatly to the preservation of the Union during the Civil War.