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| The Panama Canal stretches 49 miles from the Atlantic (left) to the Pacific. The French initially tried to construct an interoceanic canal in the 1880's, but lost 22,000 men to Yellow Fever and Malaria. U.S. construction on the Panama Canal began in 1906, with a projected schedule of ten years. In fact, with over 75,000 men working on the project, the Panama Canal was completed in 1914, well ahead of the deadline. The final cost to the United States for the Panama Canal was $352 million. Several dams were constructed to allow the use of lakes as waterways along the canal. The system of locks allow raising the ships some 75 feet to the level of the largest lake, Lake Gatun. |
