The Panama Canal was built to allow ships to travel between the Atlantic and Pacific oceans without having to sail around South America. Theodore Roosevelt pushed for the canal's construction through Panama, the narrowest point, after Colombia refused to sell the necessary land. Over 45,000 people worked for 10 years to build the 50-mile canal, which included locks to raise and lower ships and overcome Panama's terrain. Thousands of workers died from malaria and yellow fever during construction before the canal opened in 1914.

1. +
The Building of the Panama Canal
By Carson K
Heritage Minute

2. +
The Panama Canal was built so that
ships wouldn’t have to travel around
South America to get to the west
coast of the United States.
They could save a lot of time and
money if they could somehow go
through it.

3. +
The Panama Canal was built so that
ships wouldn’t have to travel around
South America to get to the west
coast of the United States.
They could save a lot of time and
money if they could somehow go
through it.

4. +Theodore Roosevelt, who was president
from 1901 -1909 thought a way to solve
this problem would be to build a canal at
the narrowest point in Central
America, which was Panama.

5. +
 Panama was part of the South American
country of Columbia. Columbia would not
sell the land needed to build the canal to
the United States.

6. +
 President Roosevelt helped Panama win its freedom from
Columbia, and the new leaders of Panama agreed to
allow the United States to build the canal.
 On November 17, 1903 the Hay-Bunau-Varilla Treaty
granted the US exclusive control over the canal zone.

7. +
The Construction Of The Canal
 In the construction of the Panama Canal, more than
45,000 people worked for 10 years on the canal.
 The length of the canal is 15 miles.
 More than 4,000 wagons were used for the removal
of the excavated material.

8. +
The Disease In The Building Of The
Canal
 Since Panama is a hot, humid
climate, mosquitos carrying Malaria
and Yellow Fever killed 20,000 people
during the building of the canal.

9. +
The Locks
A series of locks was used to make the
canal more easily navigable. It was a way
of raising and lowering ships as they
passed through the canal.

10. +
The SS Ancon was the first ship
to travel through the Panama
Canal on August 14, 1914. It
carried a cargo of cement.

11. +
The US owned the Panama Canal
until 1999, when on December 31st
it was given back to the people of
Panama.

12. +
The Building Of The Panama Canal
By Carson K
Heritage Minute