Congress decided on a Panamanian route in 1902, when a French company offered its abandoned canal project there for a low price. A cutaway plan of the canal showed how locks would resolve problems of the terrain by lifting ships through the higher elevations and adjust for the 10-foot difference between the Atlantic and Pacific sea levels.
Geography and Map Division, Library of Congress
Profile of the Panama Canal, map by The Americana Company and Bormay & Co., 1904
Creating the Panama Canal
Congress was central to creating the Panama Canal, one of the Progressive Era’s furthest-reaching strategic, trade, and technological achievements. In the 1890s Congress investigated potential routes for a canal linking the Atlantic and Pacific Oceans, deeming it essential for commerce and defense. After Congress authorized the purchase of a canal project initiated by France on the Isthmus of Panama, the Senate approved a treaty to acquire the Canal Zone in 1904. Appropriating $375 million for construction, Congress established a commission to oversee the project, which was completed in 1914.
Congress decided on a Panamanian route in 1902, when a French company offered its abandoned canal project there for a low price. A cutaway plan of the canal showed how locks would resolve problems of the terrain by lifting ships through the higher elevations and adjust for the 10-foot difference between the Atlantic and Pacific sea levels.
Geography and Map Division, Library of Congress
