Panama Canal 2

Part of Teddy Roosevelt’s dream of making America a global power was realized through the construction of the Panama Canal. The French began construction in 1880 but nine years and about 20,000 lives later they realized their plans were flawed and abandoned the project. Panama declared independence and the United States decided to continue the work on the canal that the French could not. First the U.S. controlled the diseases that claimed so many workers …showed first 75 words of 1547 total…

…showed last 75 words of 1547 total…engineer Army lieutenant George Washington Goethals had the training and confidence to make this dream happen. He saved the U.S. millions of dollars and cleaned up the city of Panama. Now ships can travel through the canal and experience the locks system. Not many can say they have experienced the pain and suffering that the construction workers did. Yet when it was all over they had a sense of pride and dignity in them.