-
1500
Pacific and Atlantic
Water passages dates back to at least the 1500s. -
Daniel Webster
In 1842, Secretary of State Daniel Webster sent a letter to Hawaiian agents. -
Plans
Planned sea-level canal in 1880. -
Project Fail
Funding was pulled from the project in 1888. -
America
Americans under the leadership of Samuel Dole deposed her in 1893. -
Dole, again
Americans under the leadership of Samuel Dole deposed her in 1893. -
Dole Leadership
Dole sent a delegation to Washington in 1894 seeking annexation. -
1895
The war originated in the Cuban struggle for independence from Spain. -
Annexed Hawaii
America's annexation of Hawaii in 1898 extended U.S. territory into the Pacific. -
Friendly Argument
United States annexed Hawaii in 1898 at the urging of President William McKinley. -
Spanish war
The Spanish-American War. -
One of them
Hawaii was made a territory in 1900. -
Money
U.S. purchased the French assets in the canal zone for $40 million in 1902. -
New Order
The new government in 1903 that gave them rights in perpetuity to the canal zone. -
The start
United States commenced building a canal across a 50-mile stretch of the Panama isthmus in 1904. -
Commerced
The project officially commenced with a dedication ceremony on May 4, 1904. -
Railroad
A railroad specialist named John Stevens took over as chief engineer in July 1905. -
Teddy Bear Man
President Roosevelt visited the area in November 1906. -
Blocks
Construction of the locks began with the pouring of concrete at Gatún in August 1909. -
Closing
The grand project began drawing to a close in 1913. -
Canal
Opened in 1914, oversight of the world-famous Panama Canal. -
Opened
The Panama Canal officially opened on August 15, 1914. -
Bolsterering
Bolstered by the addition of Madden Dam in 1935. -
State status
Hawaii and Alaska both became states in 1959. -
Transfered
Transferred from the U.S. to Panama in 1999.