Panama facts and facts about panamas, from the Random Facts shelf.
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There was a nation of Central America in the early 19th century, consisting of the present day nations of Guatemala (which included the former state of Los Altos), Honduras, El Salvador, Nicaragua, Costa Rica (which included a region which is nowadays part of Panama), and a portion of the modern Mexican state of Chiapas.
The Gros Michel was the world's main export banana until a fungus called Panama disease wiped out plantations in the 1950s, and the Cavendish replaced it.
Reggaeton developed in Puerto Rico and Panama.
The Panama Canal opened on August 15, 1914.
The Panama Canal uses locks to lift ships about 85 feet up to Gatun Lake and then lower them back down to sea level.
In 1928, adventurer Richard Halliburton swam the length of the Panama Canal and paid a toll of 36 cents based on his weight.
France tried to build the Panama Canal in the 1880s but gave up after thousands of workers died, mostly from diseases like malaria and yellow fever.
US Army doctor William Gorgas led a mosquito control campaign that made building the Panama Canal possible.
The US handed control of the Panama Canal to Panama on December 31, 1999.
An expansion of the Panama Canal opened in 2016 so it could handle much larger ships.
Because of the shape of Panama, ships going from the Atlantic to the Pacific actually travel southeast.
It takes a ship about 8 to 10 hours to pass through the Panama Canal.
A 2023 drought forced the Panama Canal to limit how many ships could pass through.