Two Historical Anniversaries This Week
“Just Thinking" There were two historical anniversaries this week that are note worthy that I will talk about this week. Every year on August 15, we commemorate one of the greatest engineering achievements in human history: the opening of the Panama Canal in 1914. The project was started by France in 1880, Ferdinand de Lesseps, the builder of the Suez Canal, started the venture to cut passage through the Isthmus of Panama. However, difficult terrain, tropical diseases, engineering challenges, and financial problems led to the project's collapse. Thousands of workers lost their lives, and the French eventually abandoned the endeavor before its completion. In 1904 the United States paid $40 million purchasing the French company's remaining assets and securing the rights needed to build the canal. President Theodore Roosevelt became the driving force behind the effort, he strongly supported the canal's construction, recognizing its strategic and economic importance. Roo...