One day long

ago, specifically
March 12, 1898,
the USS Oregon
left from
California to
Cuba. Since
there was no
short way to
Cuba the ship
had to go all the
way around the
tip of South
America. The trip
was 14,000 miles long and took over 60
days. By the time they arrived the war with
Cuba had already been declared.
 =Nicaragua

= Panama

After the boat

incident, most
people in the
US agreed we
needed a
shorter route to
get from the
west to the east and vice-versa. They were
debating if they should build a canal in
Nicaragua or Panama. Ultimately they
decided Panama would be the best place
because they already had a railroad there.
The French had the idea to build a canal in
Panama before us. They tried their hand at
it but it didnt go to well. It had a really
uncomfortable climate for them and the
workers wanted a higher pay than the
company could pay. So eventually they
went bankrupt and the plan flopped. Luckily
they left all their progress and assets.
Soon Teddy roosevelt came along and
thought Hey, that was a pretty good idea
and we could actually pull that off. Teddy
then contacted the French and bought their
assets. Thus the building of the Panama
Canal started in 1904 with 40,000 workers
on site.
The Panama Canal finished in 1914. 5,000
workers died on the job, but thats okay,
when you compare it to the 20,000 the
French lost. Today, after many
negotiations, Panama now owns the canal
and has military stationed on it. It is
considered the most important man-made
waterway in the world.