Building the Panama
Canal
1903-1914
Without a doubt, one of America's finest moments of the 20th Century was the
building of the Panama Canal. the dream of connecting the Atlantic and Pacific Oceans is as old as exploration itself and is what inspired Columbus in his voyages of discovery (of course he didn't even know the Pacific Ocean existed, he was just trying to get a new trade route to India).
Having explored the Western Hemisphere, the search for the 'westward passage' turned to building a waterway to connect the oceans. Although several different routes foe construction of a canal were considered, the distance across Panama was the shortest and in the end that fact among others swayed the scales in its favor.
Many countries including Britain and France in addition to the United States gave serious thought to somehow connecting the oceans. In fact, the France in a private effort under Ferdinand DeLessups actually spent 10 years and millions of dollars in an abortive attempt to construct an inter oceanic canal at Panama. The main villain in thwarting the efforts of the French was the tiny Mosquito which carried the deadly disease malaria.
In 1903, the United States under the leadership of Theodore Roosevelt not only began the construction of the canal, but also played an instrumental role in the creation of the country of Panama itself (when Columbia refused to allow a canal to be built across it's province of Panama, the United States assisted in the Panama revolution and quickly signed a very one sided treaty with the new country to construct the canal).
The links below will launch a self running presentations that will give you a brief overview of the history of the construction of the Panama Canal.
I have broken the history of the Canal into two different presentations, the first dealing with how it was that the canal came to be built by the United States across the isthmus of Panama rather than by someone else in a different location in Central America and the second dealing with the actual construction of the canal itself by the United States.
All of the pictures, charts and information are from my own collection of Panama Canal memorabilia which includes: several personal scrapbooks of original construction pictures I have acquired over the years, Panama Canal Company Reviews and Spillways, and personal family pictures.
I have also created an EDUCATIONAL LESSON PLAN which is appropriate for use in either MIDDLE OR HIGH SCHOOL AMERICAN HISTORY. Click on the Lesson Plan link below to download a PDF file containing the printable plan, actives and resources.
1903-1914
Without a doubt, one of America's finest moments of the 20th Century was the
building of the Panama Canal. the dream of connecting the Atlantic and Pacific Oceans is as old as exploration itself and is what inspired Columbus in his voyages of discovery (of course he didn't even know the Pacific Ocean existed, he was just trying to get a new trade route to India).
Having explored the Western Hemisphere, the search for the 'westward passage' turned to building a waterway to connect the oceans. Although several different routes foe construction of a canal were considered, the distance across Panama was the shortest and in the end that fact among others swayed the scales in its favor.
Many countries including Britain and France in addition to the United States gave serious thought to somehow connecting the oceans. In fact, the France in a private effort under Ferdinand DeLessups actually spent 10 years and millions of dollars in an abortive attempt to construct an inter oceanic canal at Panama. The main villain in thwarting the efforts of the French was the tiny Mosquito which carried the deadly disease malaria.
In 1903, the United States under the leadership of Theodore Roosevelt not only began the construction of the canal, but also played an instrumental role in the creation of the country of Panama itself (when Columbia refused to allow a canal to be built across it's province of Panama, the United States assisted in the Panama revolution and quickly signed a very one sided treaty with the new country to construct the canal).
The links below will launch a self running presentations that will give you a brief overview of the history of the construction of the Panama Canal.
I have broken the history of the Canal into two different presentations, the first dealing with how it was that the canal came to be built by the United States across the isthmus of Panama rather than by someone else in a different location in Central America and the second dealing with the actual construction of the canal itself by the United States.
All of the pictures, charts and information are from my own collection of Panama Canal memorabilia which includes: several personal scrapbooks of original construction pictures I have acquired over the years, Panama Canal Company Reviews and Spillways, and personal family pictures.
I have also created an EDUCATIONAL LESSON PLAN which is appropriate for use in either MIDDLE OR HIGH SCHOOL AMERICAN HISTORY. Click on the Lesson Plan link below to download a PDF file containing the printable plan, actives and resources.
Why
Panama?
Construction of the
Canal
Panama Canal Lesson
Plan
American History, grades 7-12
American History, grades 7-12
under
development
under
development
under
development
Home -Ewald - Suzy - Ned - Tyler
::: Made with CoffeeCup : Web Design Software & Website Hosting :::