Online Panama Canal History Museum
By August 15, 1914 the Panama Canal
was officially opened by the passing of
the SS Ancon. At the time, no single
effort in American history had exacted
such a price in dollars or in human
life. The American expenditures from
1904 to 1914 totaled $352,000,000, far
more than the cost of anything built by
the United States Government up to that
time. Together the French and American
expenditures totaled $639,000,000. It
took 34 years from the initial effort in
1880 to actually open the Canal in 1914.
It is estimated that over 80,000 persons
took part in the construction and that
over 30,000 lives were lost in both
French and American efforts. In the Year
2014 we celebrated the 100th Anniversary
of the Panama Canal with a new section
of historic and new images.