Among the greatest projects of humanity that have contributed to progress in the world, the Panama Canal stands out and continues to generate admiration. This engineering triumph was possible thanks to thousands of people from all over the world who, under the leadership of American visionaries, made the centuries-old dream of uniting the two great oceans come true.
A Dream Come True More Than Three Centuries Later
In 1534, Charles V of Spain ordered the first study on a proposal for a canal route through the Isthmus of Panama. More than three centuries passed before the first construction effort began. The French worked for 20 years, starting in 1880, but illness and financial problems ruined the project.
In 1903, Panama and the United States signed a treaty where the United States would undertake the construction of an interoceanic canal for ships through the Isthmus of Panama. The following year, the United States purchased its rights and properties from the French Panama Canal Company for $40 million and began construction. The project was completed in 1914 at a cost of approximately $387 million.
The Great Challenges During Construction
The great engineering challenges included digging through the Continental Mountain Range, building the largest dam in the world at the time, designing and constructing the most imposing lock canal ever imagined, building the largest floodgates, and solving daunting health problems, as was the eradication of yellow fever that killed thousands of people since the French project.
The Treaties That Transferred the Canal to Panama
The Torrijos-Carter Treaties signed on September 7, 1977 that then came into force in 1979, allowed the Panama Canal Commission to replace the old Panama Canal Company, which together with the old Canal Zone and its government disappeared.
The Panamanian Canal Starting in the Year 2000
The Republic of Panama assumed full responsibility for the administration, operation and maintenance of the Panama Canal at noon on December 31, 1999.
Likewise, the new Panamanian administration began to work on the process of expanding the canal to enable larger merchant ships to pass through the waterway. This process led to the construction and inauguration in June 2016 of the Third Set of Locks, another historic milestone for world Engineering.
The Most Important Tourist Destination in Panama
The Panama Canal is one of the pillars of the country’s tourism industry. In most cases it is the first place on the agenda of tourists arriving in Panama, welcoming almost 1 million people annually.
The Miraflores Visitor Center, on the Pacific side, inaugurated in 2003, offers the Visitor the opportunity to watch the transit of large ships through the Miraflores Locks, as well as interactive experiences. On the Atlantic side is the Agua Clara Locks Visitor Center, a huge structure with privileged views of the new locks and Gatun Lake.
