The photographic story of one of the most iconic engineering feats in history, the building of the Panama Canal. Following from a failed earlier attempt in 1889 to construct a canal across the Isthmus of Panama, resulting in the deaths of 22,000 workers (mainly from tropical diseases), the works were completed in 1914. A vital sea passage was thereby created for oceangoing craft. Throughout the project images were taken of progress, the workers, key moments, the landscape and more.
Selected from an archive of over 10,000 images amassed by Ernest Hallen, official photographer of the project - this collection comprises:
164 historic photographs from the archive, each with explanatory and extensive text telling the compelling story of the construction: dredging, housing, internal government, engineering feats, failures, and final success. Filled with period detail, clothing, infrastructure and a unique sense of time and place. A unique and historically important collection of photographs, of value to historians, social historians and anyone with an interest in the history and development of Central America.
Illustrations: 164 full or half page black and white photographs.
