The Panama Canal. For quite a long time, travel between the Atlantic Ocean to the Pacific Ocean required a long trip. A canal in Panama would shorten the voyage between the two oceans greatly. This was the basis of the idea unto creating the Panama Canal. In 1881, a private French company had previously attempted to construct such a canal as well. The project would last twenty years and would later eventually be scrapped due to financial problems. In the end the French had ended up spending close to 300,000,000 on the project. I find it quite ironic that even with such a long amount of time and a large sum of money that the project was eventually scrapped . In the early 1900 's, The Panama Canal was one of the few massive projects the U.S.A.
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'Why build a canal? ' you may ask. During the early 19th century, the development of machine technology and logistics allowed the construction of the Panama Canal to become possible. At this era, ports played a vital role in commerce. They were the gateway to foreign goods and trade. Establishing a canal that can bridge the long and tedious voyage around the Americas between the Pacific Ocean and the Atlantic Ocean would greatly improve commerce for the United States. In addition to the benefit of having an increased economy, the canal can be also considered to be nationally and militarily significant. The American control over the Panama Canal ensured the domination of the Atlantic Ocean and the Pacific Ocean. In the 1820 's, rail was the largest industry in the United States. Its development created new ways to transport goods and the development of a water-based transport and trade route seemed attractive at that time. With the construction of the Panama Canal, a perfectly planned route was needed to ensure efficiency of the canal. With the success of the construction of the railroad system in the United States, American engineers were optimistic about the Panama Canal …show more content…
I find it interesting on how the public reacted to this engineering feat. Many people flocked to its location, most were writers and journalists trying to document and report back their findings to the public. In 1910 to 1913, it was estimated that approximately 68,000 visitors had come to see the Panama Canal. Many of these were tourists. The locals later established many tourist traps and tourist spots to attract more tourists to the canal. Songs were even written about the Panama Canal. To create the route of the canal, thousands of kilograms of TNT were used to pave the way of the canal. Although with this, increased the chances of dirt collapsing back into the newly blown hole-- completely filling the canal once more. Yellow Fever and Malaria were one of the main problems of the workers during its construction, but was later controlled to a tolerable level. Heavy machinery was also required to increase the speed of construction. Workers and equipment from around 50 countries gathered to construct the canal. I find that very interesting, it takes an extreme amount of logistics to construct a project of this size and yet it was
'Why build a canal? ' you may ask. During the early 19th century, the development of machine technology and logistics allowed the construction of the Panama Canal to become possible. At this era, ports played a vital role in commerce. They were the gateway to foreign goods and trade. Establishing a canal that can bridge the long and tedious voyage around the Americas between the Pacific Ocean and the Atlantic Ocean would greatly improve commerce for the United States. In addition to the benefit of having an increased economy, the canal can be also considered to be nationally and militarily significant. The American control over the Panama Canal ensured the domination of the Atlantic Ocean and the Pacific Ocean. In the 1820 's, rail was the largest industry in the United States. Its development created new ways to transport goods and the development of a water-based transport and trade route seemed attractive at that time. With the construction of the Panama Canal, a perfectly planned route was needed to ensure efficiency of the canal. With the success of the construction of the railroad system in the United States, American engineers were optimistic about the Panama Canal …show more content…
I find it interesting on how the public reacted to this engineering feat. Many people flocked to its location, most were writers and journalists trying to document and report back their findings to the public. In 1910 to 1913, it was estimated that approximately 68,000 visitors had come to see the Panama Canal. Many of these were tourists. The locals later established many tourist traps and tourist spots to attract more tourists to the canal. Songs were even written about the Panama Canal. To create the route of the canal, thousands of kilograms of TNT were used to pave the way of the canal. Although with this, increased the chances of dirt collapsing back into the newly blown hole-- completely filling the canal once more. Yellow Fever and Malaria were one of the main problems of the workers during its construction, but was later controlled to a tolerable level. Heavy machinery was also required to increase the speed of construction. Workers and equipment from around 50 countries gathered to construct the canal. I find that very interesting, it takes an extreme amount of logistics to construct a project of this size and yet it was