Panama Canal
France began work on the canal in 1881, but stopped due to engineering problems and a high worker mortality rate. The United States took over the project in 1904 and opened the canal on August 15, 1914. One of the largest and most difficult engineering projects ever undertaken, the Panama Canal shortcut greatly reduced the time for ships to travel between the Atlantic and Pacific Oceans, enabling them to avoid the lengthy, hazardous Cape Horn route around the southernmost tip of South America via the Drake Passage or Strait of Magellan.
William J. Oliver (industrialist)
When the United States government announced it would be hiring a contractor to build the Panama Canal, Oliver sent agents to Panama to investigate for a possible bid. He formed a partnership with New York-area contractor Anson Bangs, and the two compiled a bid of 6.75% of the canal's construction cost (the construction cost had been estimated as high as $465 million). When bids were opened on January 12, 1907, Oliver's bid was the lowest of the four submitted, slightly lower than George Pierce and Company's bid of 7.19%, and easily ahead of the bids submitted by MacArthur-Gillespie (12.5%) and the North American Dredging Company (28%).