In 1825, a group of American businesspeople announced the .
formation of a canal building company, with interests in constructing a .
canal system across the Isthmus. This project was to take place in an .
area now called Panama. The endeavor was filled with controversy. .
Though the canal itself was not built until the early 1900's every step .
toward the building and ownership, was saturated with difficulty. .
Walter LaFeber illustrates the dilemmas in a historical analysis. In .
his work he states five questions that address the significance of the .
Panama Canal to United States. This paper will discuss the historical .
perspective of the book's author, address pertinent three questions and .
give a critique of LaFeber's work, The Panama Canal. .
For proper historical analysis one must understand the .
importance of the Canal. The Panama Canal and the Canal Zone (the .
immediate area surrounding the Canal) are important areas used for .
trade. Even before the canal was built there were to large ports on .
both sides of the Isthmus. Large amounts of cargo passed through the .
Isthmus by a railroad that connected the two ports. The most important .
cargo was the gold mined in California before the transcontinental .
railroad was completed in the United States. It has strategic .
significance because of its location, acting as a gateway connecting the .
Pacific and Atlantic oceans. This allows for rapid naval deployment .
between fleets in either ocean. These two facets make the Panama Canal .
very important in the region. .
LaFeber notes that Panamanian nationalism played a large role in .
the creation of the canal and, consequently, the cause for the area's .
constant instability. The first expression occurred in the late 1800's .
with Panamanian struggle for independence from Columbia. The United .
States eager to build the canal, and control its operation, used and .
backed Panamanian nationalist. During the Roosevelt administration, not .
