The French Attempt to Construct a Canal at Panama

Following the success of the Suez Canal, Compagnie Universelle du Canal Interoceanique incorporated under French law on March 3, 1881, for the purpose of building a canal through Panama—the first attempt at construction of a waterway to cross the Panamanian isthmus. Within eight years, on February 4, 1889, the company was declared bankrupt and dissolved. Five years later, a second French company was created which continued nominal work until the United States took control of the project in 1904. The French effort at Panama, regarded as a failure, was relegated to being a footnote in the history of the construction of the canal. This paper chronicles the efforts, challenges, and ultimate downfall of the French endeavor at the Panama Canal. It calls attention to the achievements and lessons learned from the French experience, which later benefitted the American enterprise at the same location.