The Path Between the Seas: The Creation of the Panama Canal, 1870-1914 Paperback – October 15, 1978

I learned a lot and its a very good read! I recommend it. It was amazing story I wasn't sure I would be interested

I enjoyed learning about how the canal works, the significant challenges to its success, and the people who overcame those challenges. However, the writing isn’t as clean as most of McCullough’s work. For example, there were a lot of unnecessary tangents that seemed to serve no purpose and transitions between paragraphs were often missing. This made the book a bit clunky to read at times, but still well researched and interesting.

A must-read book for anyone planning a trip through the canal. The complexity of the project — from engineering to politics to financing — is astounding. McCullough never fails to deliver with his thorough research and engaging writing style. This book has a big cast of characters but his style makes it easy to keep them straight.

Captivating

David McCullough takes all his books very seriously. No detail is too small. Even the minuscule unworthy details are footnoted as if he is reluctant to give up even one morsel. Maybe some of details should have been omitted for the sake of pacing. I almost gave up on the book toward the middle when all the "back and forth" negotiations of the financial dealings were over-explained.None the less, this is a very interesting book about the unbelievable undertaking of splitting a continent in two, about joining two oceans nature never intended to be merged. What boldness, imagination, arrogance, bravado, and confidence the men of this era had. It is amazing to just read in awe as they undertake this insane venture without pause for people or environment or capital. This project could never happen today.25,000 people died building this canal, trillions of dollars were spent, war was waged over it's domain, and when it was done, it was utterly forgotten. Forgotten because of its efficiency. Forgotten because it was so perfectly functional there was nothing to report.Briefly, after their success with the Suez Canal in Egypt the French undertook the much more difficult task of building the Panama Canal. They were overconfident and unprepared for the challenges of building a canal in the tropics. Mosquito borne deceases such as Yellow Fever and Malaria decimated the mostly black Caribbean laborers but killed with out difference the French engineers as well. Understandings of mosquito borne deceases in the 1887 were just emerging. Graft, decease, mud slides, cost overruns, and public skepticism finally drove the French to abandon this privately financed project after 10 years of work.The French left the buildings, railroads, and equipment sitting in the jungle to rott. Enter Teddy Roosevelt. Never one to back down from a challenge, President Roosevelt bought the property, railroad, and equipment from the French and took up the task. It could be one of the United States greatest achievements that no one knows about.It was a hard concept to grasp at the time, but decease caused by mosquito was a very radical idea. People refused to believe it. At the time, Malaria and Yellow Fever were thought to be a product of poor sanitation. Innovative Americans took the little research they had available and eliminated the decease problem before any workers arrived. Mr. McCullough is excellent here talking about the science behind the spread of decease and how it was shut down. Miraculous really.Roosevelt sold the idea to the American people and put the best men in charge. He gave them what they wanted and stayed out of their way. There was a change of leadership half way through and the project was actually finished after Roosevelt had passed away. It was an American public project but the canal was open for all people of all countries and the fees paid were the same for American boats as for all others. We were a magnanimous group of Americans back then.The Panama Canal makes me very proud to call myself an American.

interesting story. Have about 100 pages left to read. It gets a bot tedious here and there - way too much detail about people and circumstances that appear irrelevant to the story of breaking through this chunk of mid-America, which is an incredible story of human effort as well as ignorant ambition.

David McCullough is an amazing author. He does a fantastic job of researching his subject and then tells the story in a mesmerizing way.In The Path Between the Seas, Mr. McCullough breaks the story of the building of the Panama Canal into three stages. He starts with the first attempt, by the French. This ended in disaster. In the second stage of the story, America helped the Panamanians revolt against Columbia. Then McCullough concludes with the details of how the canal was finally built.Reading about the French attempt reminded me of the manager from the Dilbert comic strip. So many decisions were made by people who had little expertise or knowledge. Estimates for the cost were almost pulled out of the air. Then sometimes these estimates would be divided in half, just because.In 1879, a vote was taken to authorize the expenditures of funds to build a sea level canal, which would prove nearly impossible. Of the 74 who voted yes, only 19 were engineers and only one of them had been to Panama. It was not surprising that the French spent so much money and accomplished so little.After the French fiasco, the project was dropped for a while. Then the Americans took up the challenge. I was surprised to learn that it was backing the Panamanian revolt that turned much of Latin America against the United States. Since the founding of the United States of America in the late 1700s, people to the south had looked to the US as an example in their struggles against European powers.But President Theodore Roosevelt wanted a canal. He was upset that the Columbian government was slow to give him what he wanted. So this rough rider hinted to the Panamanians that they would be protected if they revolted. They revolted and President Roosevelt sent in the troops. Latin America came to distrust the big power to the north that would more and more would push its nose into their affairs.In 1904, the US started building their attempt at a sea level canal. The design included a canal with a series of locks and a lake in the middle. This would save a huge amount of effort. John Stevens was put in charge. As a long time railroad man, he recognized the problem wasn't so much digging a ditch problem, but a transportation problem of moving all the dirt. He spent time laying the foundation for moving the dirt. He put down heavier rails and placed orders for over a hundred locomotives with thousands of cars. Once this system was in place, the sea level canal become a reality.This is a great book to read. I was fascinated to learn more about life in Panama and the world a hundred years ago. David McCullough makes the story of the canal a real page turner.