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.
History of the Panama Canal
French engineer and financier Philippe-Jean Bunau-Varilla played a key role in changing U.S. attitudes. Bunau-Varilla had a large stake in the failed French canal company, and stood to make money on his investment only if the Panama Canal was completed. Extensive lobbying of U.S. lawmakers coupled with his support of a nascent independence movement among the Panamanian people led to a simultaneous revolution in Panama and the negotiation of the Hay–Bunau-Varilla Treaty which secured both independence for Panama and the right for the U.S. to lead a renewed effort to construct the canal. Colombia's response to the Panamanian independence movement was tempered by U.S. military presence; the move is often cited as a classic example of the era of gunboat diplomacy.