<h1> PANAMA CANAL</h1>
This webpage is devoted to the Panama Canal, one of the most important pieces of ingeneering built this century. There is something very important during its building which was done by the United States, which is that technically it was the north american country which influenced the popular revolt and with its marine ships unabled colombian troops to arrive to the conflict area. This means that the province of Panama was stolen by Teddy Rossevelt so that he could build his canal, without respecting Colombia, a free and sovereign country.

A cruise entering the Pedro Miguel Lock

History of the Canal

In 1534, Charles I of Spain ordered the first survey of a proposed canal route through the Isthmus of Panama. More than three centuries passed before the first construction was started. The French labored 20 years, beginning in 1880, but disease and financial problems defeated them.

In 1903, Panama and the United States signed a treaty by which the United States undertook to construct an interoceanic ship canal across the Isthmus of Panama. The following year, the United States purchased from the French Canal Company its rights and properties for $40 million and began construction. The monumental project was completed in ten years at a cost of about $387 million. Since 1903 the United States has invested about $3 billion in the Canal enterprise, approximately two-thirds of which has been recovered.

The building of the Panama Canal involved three main problems -- engineering, sanitation, and organization. Its successful completion was due principally to the engineering and administrative skills of such men as John F. Stevens and Col. George W. Goethals, and to the solution of extensive health problems by Col. William C. Gorgas.

The engineering problems involved digging through the Continental Divide; constructing the largest earth dam ever built up to that time; designing and building the most massive canal locks ever envisioned; constructing the largest gates ever swung; and solving environmental problems of enormous proportions.The price for this masterpiece of ingeenering was of 500 lives for every mile of the canal.

Now, more than 80 years after the first official ocean-to- ocean transit of the waterway, the United States and Panama have embarked on a partnership for the management, operation and defense of the Panama Canal. Under two new treaties signed in a ceremony at OAS headquarters in Washington, D.C., on September 7, 1977, the Canal will be operated until the turn of the century under arrangements designed to strengthen the bonds of friendship and cooperation between the two countries. The treaties were approved by Panama in a plebiscite on October 23, 1977, and the U.S. Senate gave its advice and consent to their ratificaton in March and April 1978. The new treaties went into effect October 1, 1979.

Map of the Panama Canal

General Information

The location of the Panama Canal is in a strategic location, the canal a 51 mile waterway is a dramatic short cut between the Atlantic and Pacific oceans. By using the canal rather than going around the tip of South America, a ship can save up to 8,000 miles when traveling from New York city to San Francisco if he chooses to go through the canal. The time and energy saved when using the canal is the reason of why the canal is a necesary passage through the Americas.

In the late 1800s the United States launched into the international world affairs, looking forward to gain control of new markets and foreign territories. Speaking to the Republican convention in1900, vice-presidential candidate Teddy Roosevelt reflected the growing wish of Americans to play a new role as world power:

"We stand on the thresholdof a new century big with the fate of mighty nations. It rests with us now to decide whether in the openinig years of that century we shall march forward to fresh triumphs or whether at the outset we shall cripple ourselves for the contest. Is america a weakling, to shrink from the work of the great powers? No. The young giant of the west stands on a continent and clasps the crest of an ocean in either hand. Our nation, glorious in you and strength, looks into the future with eager eyes and rejoices. . .to run a race"

Theodore Roosevelt

The United States was in the look out to control the canal that would shortly be bulit in Central America, either the Panama Canal or the Nicaragua Canal. The United States and Brittain had signed a treaty shortly before in which this to powerfull nations would make their way through to gain control of the canal, the Panama Canal was started first and therefore it was checked out by these two nations. But mean while the Panama Canal was being built Britain had some trouble, its colonies in Africa had set a rebelion and Britain was distracted from the Canal. Seeing that Britain couldn't take care of the Canal the United States proceded itself to take the control over the Canal. The canal was being built by a French company that went into the bankrupt when the building of the canal was halfway through, The united States bught the legal rights for the construction of the canal, now the negotiation phase began. The U.S wanted to build the canal and afterwords manage it, Colombia asked for too much money to give the U.S this rights, the same money the U.S was not willing to pay. Things where different with Panama people, they wanted to make the deal, so they set forward into forming a rebel to become independent, they had several advantages such as: the distraction of Colombia because it was fighting the war of the 1000 days, the backup that the U.S ships that "coincidentialy" had arrived to Panama gave to the Panama sea ports, and above all the backup of the U.S. Thats how Colombia lost Panama & it's canal.

Controversy

Why did the U.S. had to help the panamanian revolt? Even though they do not accept it, it is obvious that the US helped finance this revolt so they could keep the canal. The United States was so greedy she couldn´t accept those lands belonged to Colombia and because they had a powerful army, she wanted to steal it by force. The US had to respect that the province of Panama belonged to Colombia, and if she was that interested in constructing the canal she would of negotiated directly with Colombia. Another important point was that Colombia was the rightfull owner of the isthmus and if they raised the price of the land to the United States, they were in full right to do it because they were the rightful owner. No matter how mad the US would of gotten, if they wanted to raise the price 10 times they could of done it. If panamanians revolted against the colombian government, it wasn´t american business to interfere blocking all colombian ships trying to crush the revolt. That revolt was local business and the US should of butt out. No matter how strong a country is, it has to respect its neighbor no matter how weak he is. I bet you that if Colombia wouldn´t of had the 1000 day war, the South Americans would of crushed the rebellion, and the USS Nashville would be a really cool scuba diving wreck visited by thousands of colombian divers yearly.

Photo Gallery

Both the Panama and U.S. flags fly in front of the Panama Canal Administration Building located on the side of Ancon Hill overlooking the townsite of Balboa. At the bottom of building's 113 steps is the Goethals Monument, built to honor Canal construction-day Chief Engineer Col. George Washington Goethals. A palm-lined boulevard stretches in front of the memorial. In the background is Panama City, capital of the Republic of Panama.

An aerial view of Gatun Locks, at the north end of the Canal, clearly shows its two lanes and three chambers. Southbound vessels are approaching from the Atlantic to be raised 26 meters (85 feet) in three steps to the level of Gatun Lake. The large vessels dwarf the centerwall Control House. A close look reveals the high mast lighting, and, on the left, the Gatun lighthouse.

Gatun Lake, a high-level lake whose surface is 26 meters (85 feet) above sea level, was formed by the construction of Gatun Dam on the Atlantic side of the Isthmus near the mouth of the Chagres River. Panama's lakes and rivers are fed by tropical rains that fall copiously in the highlands during the 8-month rainy season between mid-April and mid-December. Vessels travel some 37.8 kilometers (23 ˝ miles) through Gatun Lake between Gatun Locks and Gaillard Cut. The jungle-covered islands are the tops of hills left sticking out when the area was flooded.

A bulk carrier transits Gaillard Cut, the part of the Panama Canal that slices through the Continental Divide. Originally named Culebra (snake) Cut for the nature its curves, it was renamed for Col. David DuBose Gaillard, the engineer who supervised its construction. The Cut is approximately 12.8 kilometers (8 miles) long and, during the 1960's was widened from its original 91.5 meters to 152.4 meters (300 feet to 500 feet). The currently ongoing Gaillard Cut widening program is widening it still further to increase safety and Canal Capacity and facilitate vessel transit scheduling.

Vessels transit southbound at Pedro Miguel Locks, where they are being lowered 9.5 meters (31 feet) in one step from the 26-meter (85-foot) level of Gatun Lake to the 16.5-meter (54-foot) level of Miraflores Lake. In the foreground, a Panama Canal tug stands by to assist. The centerwall Control House can be seen between the two ships, and the tall poles of the high mast lighting are also visible. To the left, on the west bank, is the Panama Canal's Pedro Miguel Locks fire station.

Southbound vessels occupy both west and east lanes at Miraflores Locks, where they are being lowered 16.5 meters (54 feet) from the level of Miraflores Lake to sea level in the Pacific Ocean. Farther back, an east lane vessel is still being lowered behind the closed locks gates. When water levels in the two chambers are equalized, the gates will open and the vessel will move forward. On the centerwall are two working electric locks locomotives and, farther back, is the locks Control House. High mast lighting is also visible.

"Raddison Diamond," one of the world's newest and most modern cruise ships, as it transits southbound in the east chamber of Miraflores Locks.

In Miraflores Locks, an international flotilla of 12 yachts from an around the world rally of 39 yachts transits southbound. Small vessels like these are grouped and tied together for their locks transit and are guided by hand lines rather than by the electric locks locomotives.

The Century Hope, a PANAMAX vessel, one of a class of vessels having beams of 30.48 meters (100 feet) and over, transits southbound in the east lane of Miraflores Locks, demonstrating the tight squeeze to fit through the 33.5-meter-wide (110-foot) locks chamber. Four electric locks locomotives can be seen positioning the bow of the vessel, and others are attached at the stern. Vessels move through the locks under their own power but depending on size, use as many as eight locomotives, four on each side to guide them through the locks. On the left, the Control House stands on the centerwall. On the right is the raised viewing pavilion, part of the Orientation Service Center that welcomes more than 350,000 visitors each year. High mast lighting fixtures also show prominently.

A profile of the Panama Canal (not to scale) shows its principal installations -- its three sets of locks (Gatun, Pedro Miguel and Miraflores), Madden and Gatun dams that form Madden and Gatun Lakes, Miraflores Lake and the terminal cities of Colon on the Atlantic and Panama City on the Pacific.

History of this HTML

This HTML was designed by Daniel Serebrenik and Camilo Tamayo between the months of February and March for a history project assigned by Mr. Probasco due the eleventh of March. We decided to due a webpage because it is a fresh and original idea and our theme was the Panama Canal because it relates the United States with Colombia, our country (unfortunately, in an umpleasant way) and also because we wanted to learn about this majestic piece of engineering.

(Of the record, Mr Probasco, you won, American Airlines did not strike)