Pictures Dated 19th September 2007

United States Men-Of-War passing through a lock, Panama Canal, Panama, 1926. Artist: Unknown

United States Men-Of-War passing through a lock, Panama Canal, 1926. The idea of building a canal between the Atlantic and Pacific Oceans was first planned by the French civil engineer and builder of the Suez Canal, Ferdinand de Lesseps. The French began work in 1880, but 9 years later the difficulties posed by the terrain, disease and spiralling costs doomed the project to failure. The United States bought the land in 1904 for $40 million, and proceeded to complete the 80 kilometre long canal between 1904 and 1914. The building of the canal cost the lives of an estimated 25, 000 workers due to accidents and tropical diseases. From An Outline of Christianity, The Story of Our Civilisation, volume 5: Christianity Today and Tomorrow, edited by RG Parsons and AS Peake, published by the Waverley Book Club (London, 1926).

© The Print Collector / Heritage-Images

'The Conquerors', Culebra Cut, Panama Canal, Panama, 1926. Artist: Unknown

'The Conquerors', Culebra Cut, Panama Canal, Panama, 1926. The Gaillard (or Culebra) Cut, is a man-made valley cutting through the continental divide in Panama. The cut forms part of the Panama Canal, linking Lake Gatun, and thereby the Atlantic Ocean, to the Gulf of Panama and the Pacific Ocean. It is 12.6 km (7.8 miles) long from the Pedro Miguel lock on the Pacific side to the Chagres River arm of Lake Gatun, with a water level 26 m (85 ft) above sea level. Construction of the cut was one of the greatest engineering feats to have been undertaken in its time; the immense effort required to complete it was justified by the great significance of the canal to shipping, and in particular the strategic interests of the United States. From An Outline of Christianity, The Story of Our Civilisation, volume 5: Christianity Today and Tomorrow, edited by RG Parsons and AS Peake, published by the Waverley Book Club (London, 1926).

© The Print Collector / Heritage-Images

A lock on the Panama Canal, Panama, 1926. Artist: Unknown

A lock on the Panama Canal, Panama, 1926. The idea of building a canal between the Atlantic and Pacific Oceans was first planned by the French civil engineer and builder of the Suez Canal, Ferdinand de Lesseps. The French began work in 1880, but 9 years later the difficulties posed by the terrain, disease and spiralling costs doomed the project to failure. The United States bought the land in 1904 for $40 million, and proceeded to complete the 80 kilometre long canal between 1904 and 1914. The building of the canal cost the lives of an estimated 25, 000 workers due to accidents and tropical diseases. From An Outline of Christianity, The Story of Our Civilisation, volume 5: Christianity Today and Tomorrow, edited by RG Parsons and AS Peake, published by the Waverley Book Club (London, 1926).

© The Print Collector / Heritage-Images