PANAMA AND PANAMA CANAL By Zack Shriver PANAMA

PANAMA AND PANAMA CANAL! By: Zack Shriver

PANAMA IS IN THE WESTERN HEMISPHERE

PANAMA

GEOGRAPHY PANAMA IS THE SOUTHERNMOST PART OF CENTRAL AMERICAN NATIONS. IT IS SOUTH OF COSTA RICA AND NORTH OF COLUMBIA. PANAMA IS BORDERED BY THE CARRIBEAN SEA, COLUMBIA, PACIFIC OCEAN AND COSTA RICA. PANAMA CITY IS THE CAPITAL OF PANAMA CITY IS WHERE THE PANAMA CANAL MEETS THE GULF OF PANAMA.

PANAMA MAP

SIZE AND POPULATION PANAMA IS A LITTLE SMALLER THAN SOUTH CAROLINA IT HAS AN AREA OF 78, 200 SQ KM PANAMA WAS ESTIMATED TO HAVE A POPULATION OF 3, 232. 00 IN 2005

ETHNIC GROUPS PANAMA CULTURE IS VERY DIVERSE. ABOUT 70% OF PANAMANIANS ARE MIXED AMERINDIAN AND WHITE OR MIXED WHITE AND BLACK. CHINESE MAKES UP ABOUT 150, 000 PANAMANIANS.

LANGUAGES PANAMA HAS TWO PRIMARY LANGUAGES: SPANISH AND ENGLISH. OVER 90% OF THE PEOPLE ARE SPANISH SPEAKING. ENGLISH IS A COMMON SECOND LANGUAGE. MANY PEOPLE OF PANAMA CAN SPEAK BOTH SPANISH AND ENGLISH.

RELIGION ROMAN CATHOLICS MAKE UP AROUND 82% OF THE RELIGION IN PANAMA. SOME OF THE OTHERS RELIGIONS IN PANAMA ARE: LUTHERAN, DOUTHERN BAPTIST, AND METHODIST.

TRANSPORTATION IN 2002 THEY ESTIMATED THAT THERE WERE 11, 592 KM OF ROADS IN PANAMA. MOST OF THE AGRICULTURE PRODUCTS ARE TRANSPORTED BY MOTOR VEHICLES. OTHER TRANSPORTATIONS ARE BY TRAINS AND SHIPS. IN 2004 THERE WERE ABOUT 105 AIRPORTS IN PANAMA

PANAMA FLAG DESCRIPTION: IS DIVIDED INTO 4 QUARTERS UPPER- IS WHITE WITH A BLUE STAR UPPER OUTER- RED LOWER- BLUE LOWER OUTER- WHITE WITH A RED STAR

PANAMA FLAG

EVENTS IN PANAMA! IN 1899 A PLAGUE HIT PANAMA, IT WAS CALLED THE YELLOW FEVER. IN 2012 A FLOOD AND EARTH QUAKE HIT PANAMA CAUSING A LOT OF DAMAGES, INJURIES AND EVEN DEATHS.

HISTORY SIR FRANCIS DRAKE SAILED AND ATTACKED A SPANISH SHIP NEAR PANAMA WAS EXPLORED BY COLUMBUS AND BY BALBOA IN THE EARLY 1500’S. PANAMA IS THE MAJOR SHIPPING POINT BETWEEN SOUTH AND CENTRAL AMERICA. PANAMA JOINED COLUMBIA IN THE 1820’S WHEN THE CENTRAL AMERICA WENT AGAINST SPAIN. PANAMA BECAME INDEPENDENT WITH THE HELP OF THE UNITED STATES IN 1903.

PANAMA CANAL

HISTORY OF THE PANAMA CANAL SPAIN WAS THE FIRST TO LOOK INTO HAVING A CANAL BUILT. KING CHARLES WANTED TO FIND A FASTER WAY TO GET BETWEEN THE ATLANTIC AND PACIFIC. HE ASKED FOR THE ISTHMUS TO BE SURVEYED. A PLAN WAS DRAWN UP IN 1529 FOR A CANAL BUT NOTHING HAPPENED. OTHER SURVEYS WERE DONE FROM 1850 -1875 2 ROUTES WERE EXPLORED: 1. ACROSS PANAMA 2. ACROSS NICARAGUA

TWO STAGES OF THE DEVELOPMENT OF THE PANAMA CANAL: STAGE 1 TOOK PLACE BETWEEN 1881 -1881 BY A FRENCH COMPANY THAT WAS RAN BY FERDINANS DE LESSEPS STAGE 2 TOOK PLACE BETWEEN 1904 -1914 BY THE UNITED STATED.

STAGE 1 OF THE PANAMA CANAL FERDINAND DE LESSEPS PROPOSED A SEA LEVEL CANAL THROUGH PANAMA IN 1879. HE WAS PUT IN CHARGE OF THE CONSTRUCTION OF THE CANAL BUT IN 1888 HIS COMPANY WENT UNDER. AROUND 22, 000 FRENCH LIVES WERE LOST AND THE FRENCH GOVERNMENT WAS FORCED TO RESIGN.

PANAMA CANAL IN 1889 PRESIDENT MCKINLEY CREATED A CANAL COMMISSION AND EXPLORED THE NICARAGUA ROUTE. IN 1901 MCKINLEY WAS ASSASSINATED AND ROOSEVELT WANTED THE PANAMA ROUTE AFTER HEAVY LOBBYING FROM THE FRENCH. A SEA LEVEL PLAN WAS DRAWN UP AND WITHDRAWN IN 1906 DUE TO MALARIA AND YELLOW FEVER.

DELAY OF THE CANAL BEING BUILT: A BREAK OUT OF MALARIA AND YELLOW FEVER CAUSED A DELAY IN THE CANAL BEING BUILT. MOSQUITOES WERE THE CAUSE OF THE MALARIA AND YELLOW FEVER. IT TOOK 3 YEARS TO GET RID OF THE MOSQUITOES CAUSING THESE DEADLY DISEASES. THEY FINALLY WERE ABLE TO GET RID OF THE MOSQUITOES USING 300 TONS OF SULFUR, 120 TONS OF INSECTICIDE, AND 700, 000 GALLONS OF KEROSENE

HAY-BUNAU-VARILLA WAS INVOLVED IN BUILDING OF THE PANAMA CANAL WITH FERDINAND DE LESSEPS BEFORE HIS COMPANY WENT UNDER. BUNAU VARILLA PROVIDED FINANCIAL SUPPORT TO PANAMA’S INDEPENDENCE FROM COLOMBIA. HAY-BUNAU-VARILLA NEGOTIATED WITH THE U. S. OVER THE CANAL

HAY-BUNAU-VARILLA TREATY IT WAS A TREATY BETWEEN THE UNITED STATED AND PANAMA. THE TREATY ESTABLISHED THE PANAMA CANAL ZONE AND CONSTRUCTION OF THE CANAL. IT WAS SIGNED ON NOVEMBER 18, 1903. THE TREATY WAS NAMED AFTER 2 NEGOTIATORS, PHILLIPE-BUNAU-VARILLA WHO WERE THE FRENCH DIPLOMATIC OF PANAMA AND THE UNITED STATES SECRETARY OF STATE JOHN HAY.

HAY-BUNAU-VARILLA TREATY THE TREATED DETAILS WERE WORKED OUT IN WASHINGTON, D. C. AND NEW YORK CITY. THE TREATY GAVE RIGHTS OF THE CANAL ZONE TO THE UNITED STATES. IN RETURN THE UNITED STATES PAID PANAMA UP TO 10 MILLION DOLLARS AND A RENTAL PAYMENT OF 250, 000 DOLLARS.

STAGE 2: PANAMA CANAL ZONE CONSTRUCTION STARTED IN FEBURUARY 1904 WITH THE HELP OF THE UNITED STATES. IT TOOK 10 YEARS TO COMPLETE BUT WAS FINALLY FINISHED ON AUGUST 15, 1914.

PANAMA CANAL BY USING THE PANAMA CANAL, 7, 872 MILES ARE SAVED BECAUSE IT PREVENTS SHIPS FROM HAVING TO GO AROUND THE TIP OF SOUTH AMERICA

PANAMA CANAL

PANAMANIAN MONEY PANAMA HAD ITS OWN MONEY. THE BALBOA IS THE OFFICIAL CURRENCY OF PANAMA. IT WAS NAMED AFTER A SPANISH EXPLORER NAMED VASCO NUNEZ DE BALBOA. THE BALBOA REPLACED THE COLOBIAN PESO. THE BALBOA IS EQUAL TO THE UNITED STATES DOLLAR. TODAY PANAMA USES US MONEY. PANAMANIAN MONEY WAS VERY DIFFERENT A LONG TIME AGO. THE COINS HAD PICTURES OF SOLDIERS AND SHIPS

PANAMA MONY:

PANAMA MONEY:

ECONOMY: PANAMA STARTED OUT WITH ROOT CROPS THEN RAISED CATTLE. THEY EXPORTED MEAT AND HIDES. TODAY THEY PRODUCE SUGAR AND BANANAS ECONOMY IN PANAMA IS STILL PRETTY BAD. HOUSES ARE WORN DOWN, MANY WITHOUT AIR CONDITION. MANY PEOPLE DO NOT HAVE ENOUGH MONEY FOR HOUSING.

TRADE AND LABOR: PANAMA RELIES ON TANSIT AND TRANSHIPPING. PANAMA EXPORTS COFEE, BANANAS, BEEF AND HARDWOODS. A LOT OF THE WORLDS GOODS PASS THROUGH PANAMA ALSO TRANSPORTS PETROLEUM EVEN THOUGH IT DOES NOT HAVE ANY OIL FIELDS. PANAMA LABOR IS 18% AGRICULTURE, 18% INDUSTRY AND 67% SERVICE.

FISHING PANAMA WATERS HAVE FISH AND SEAFOOD. CHIRIQUI RIVER HAS FRESHWATER FISH THE CARIBBEAN AND PACIFIC HAVE DEEP WATER FISH: AMBERJACK, BARRACUDA, RED SNAPPER

BANANA TREE IN PANAMA

PANAMA ENVIRONMENT PANAMA HAS A LOT OF FOREST HILLS AND MOUNTAIN RANGES. IT HAS MORE THAN 300 RIVERS, MOST OF THEM FLOW INTO THE PACIFIC OCEAN. PANAMA HAS LOTS OF RAIN FOREST SOME PANAMA MAMMALS: ANTEATER, ARMADILLO , BATS, AND DEER. SOME PANAMA REPTILES: ALLIGATORS PANAMA ENVIRONMENT PROBLEMS: EROSION OF SOIL, DEFORESTATION, AND AIR POLLUTION

PANAMA ENVIRONMENT SOIL EROSION IN PANAMA OCCURS AT A RATE OF 2, OOO TONS PER YEAR. PANAMA DEFORESTATION RATE IS 1. 6% PER YEAR. MOST OF THE AIR POLLUTION IN PANAMA IS FROM THE OIL INDUSTRY.

CLIMATE IN PANAMA: TROPICAL, WET AND DRY 1900 MM PRECIPITATION YEARLY WET SEASON IS MAY-DECEMBER DRY SEASON IS FROM JANUARY – APRIL AVERAGE YEARLY TEMP IS 86 DEGREE F

THINGS TO DO IN PANAMA PANAL CANAL ITSELF BEACH RESORTS ISLANDS RUINS MOUNTAINS WATER SPORTS, TENNIS, GOLF, HORCE RACING NATURE TREKS, HISTORY TOURS

TOURISM IN PANAMA: PANAMA HAS A LOT OF GREAT PLACES TO VISIT. THE BEACHES ARE VERY POPULAR. SOME OTHER PLACES TO VISIT ARE: LAS BOVEDAS, THE NATIONAL INSTITUTE OF CULTURE BUIDLING, AND THE CATHEDRAL AT PLAZE DE LA CATHEDRAL.

PANAMA BEACHES

FORT SAN LORENZO ANOTHER INTERESTING PLACE TO VISIT IS FORT SAN LORENZO THIS FORT WAS ORGINALLY BUILT IN THE 16 TH CENTURY. IT IS A OLD FORT THAT WAS BUILT WHEN KING PHILIP II RULED SPAIN. HE ORERED THIS FORT TO BE BUILT TO OVERLOOK THE MOUTH OF RIO CHARGES. THIS IS AN AREA THAT A LOT OF SHIPS CAME THROUGH. IT PROVIDED A GREAT WAY TO VIEW SHIPS COMING IN.

FORT SAN LORENZO

SPORTS IN PANAMA HAS MANY SPORTS. THEY HAVE EXCELLED IN BOXING, BASEBALL, BASKETBALL AND FOOTBALL. PANAMA CITY HAS TWO STADIUMS: THE NATIONAL STADIUM (ROD CAREW STADIUM) AND THE ROMMEL FERNANDEZ STADIUM. THEY ALSO HAVE THE ROBERTO DURAN GYMNASIUM.

ROD CREW BASEBALL STADIUM

PANAMA I CHOSE TO DO MY RESEARCH ON PANAMA BECAUSE MY GRANDPARENTS LIVED IN PANAMA. THEY LIVED IN FORT CLAYTON. MY GRANDPA WAS IN THE MILITARY THERE. MY DAD WAS BORN IN PANAMA, IN THE GORGAS HOSPITAL IN ANCON, CANAL ZONE.

FORT CLAYTON

GORGAS HOSPITAL IN ANCON, CANAL ZONE

RESOURCES: “Panama City. ” Wikipedia. Feb. 22, 2013. <http: //en. wikipedia. org/wiki/Panama_City> “Panama Canal. About. com Geography. Feb. 22, 2013. <http: //geography. about. com/od/specificplacesofinter ests/a/panamacanal. htm? p=1> “Panama. ” Encyclopedia. com. Feb. 22, 2013. http: //www. encyclopedia. com/topic/Panama. aspx

RESOURCES: “Panama. ” Infoplease. Feb. 22, 2013. <http: //www. infoplease. com/ipa/A 0107870. html Simons, Lewis M. “Panama’s Rite of Passage. ” National Geographic. November 1999. : 57 -65.