How Did President Roosevelt's Decision To Build The Panama Canal
In 1901, when President McKinley was assassinated, Theodore Roosevelt became president and continued to practice the policies of imperialism. He first used U.S. influence to help settle the Russo-Japanese War, which began in 1904 because both Russia and Japan wanted to control Korea. Japan captured Korea and also invaded Manchuria, which was controlled by Russia at the time.
Eventually, Japan wanted to stop the fighting, due to the loss of lives and resources. The Japanese asked President Roosevelt to mediate the conflict, and in 1905, representatives of Russia and Japan met. Roosevelt used his personal charm to help them negotiate a compromise.They signed a treaty, and Roosevelt received the 1906 Nobel Peace Prize for his efforts. …show more content…
The idea of a canal connecting the Atlantic and Pacific oceans had been discussed for some time. Such a canal would cut travel time for military and commercial ships. Ships would no longer have to go all the way around South America in order to get from one ocean to the other.
The narrow Isthmus of Panama was a logical place to cut a canal. Political problems stood in the way, though, because Panama was a province of Colombia. When Colombia did not agree to the canal, the United States used its military presence to help Panama to rebel against Colombia and gain independence.
After Panama became independent, the United States got Panama’s permission to build the canal. Construction of the Panama Canal was one of the world’s greatest engineering accomplishments. Work began in 1904 and took 10 years. In 1913, there were 43,400 workers on the project, which consisted of very hard and dangerous work. Seventy-five percent of the workers were blacks from the British West Indies.
On August 15, 1914, the canal opened for business, and it was a success from the start. More than 1,000 ships passed through during its first year. However, due to the United States’ support of Panama’s uprising against Colombia, relations between the United States and Latin America had become strained, and would remain that way for
Eventually, Japan wanted to stop the fighting, due to the loss of lives and resources. The Japanese asked President Roosevelt to mediate the conflict, and in 1905, representatives of Russia and Japan met. Roosevelt used his personal charm to help them negotiate a compromise.They signed a treaty, and Roosevelt received the 1906 Nobel Peace Prize for his efforts. …show more content…
The idea of a canal connecting the Atlantic and Pacific oceans had been discussed for some time. Such a canal would cut travel time for military and commercial ships. Ships would no longer have to go all the way around South America in order to get from one ocean to the other.
The narrow Isthmus of Panama was a logical place to cut a canal. Political problems stood in the way, though, because Panama was a province of Colombia. When Colombia did not agree to the canal, the United States used its military presence to help Panama to rebel against Colombia and gain independence.
After Panama became independent, the United States got Panama’s permission to build the canal. Construction of the Panama Canal was one of the world’s greatest engineering accomplishments. Work began in 1904 and took 10 years. In 1913, there were 43,400 workers on the project, which consisted of very hard and dangerous work. Seventy-five percent of the workers were blacks from the British West Indies.
On August 15, 1914, the canal opened for business, and it was a success from the start. More than 1,000 ships passed through during its first year. However, due to the United States’ support of Panama’s uprising against Colombia, relations between the United States and Latin America had become strained, and would remain that way for