California Legislature—2013–14 Regular Session

House Resolution No. 44

Introduced by Assembly Member Medina

June 5, 2014

House Resolution No. 44—Relative to the Panama Canal.

WHEREAS, The Country of Panama is located at the strategic
nexus of two globally important trade corridors forming both a
land bridge connecting North and South America, and controls the
Panama Canal, which links the North Atlantic Ocean, through the
Caribbean Sea, with the North Pacific Ocean; and

WHEREAS, With the backing of the United States, Panama
seceded from Colombia in 1903 and signed a treaty with the United
States allowing for the construction of the canal; and

WHEREAS, In 1904 the United States took over construction
of the canal from the French, and opened it as a transcontinental
passage on August 15, 1914. Ownership of the Canal transferred
from the United States to Panama in 1999. The Panama Canal is
a true engineering marvel of the early 20th Century, lifting ships
26 meters up to and down from Gatun Lake through the use of
electric mini-locomotive “mules;” and

WHEREAS, The construction of the Panama Canal cost
approximately four hundred million dollars ($400,000,000) and
resulted in the loss of over 25,000 lives, but opened a route across
the Isthmus of Panama through the ports at Panama City and Colón
that saves ships, which must navigate between the Pacific and
Atlantic Oceans to reach their ports of destination, days at sea and
13,000 kilometers of travel; and

WHEREAS, Plans were made for a grand celebration to mark
the official opening of the Panama Canal on August 15, 1914,
including the launching of an international fleet of warships on
New Year’s Day 1915, from Hampton Roads, Virginia, which
would then have traveled through the Panama Canal and arrived
in San Francisco for the opening of the Panama-Pacific
International Exposition, a world’s fair- like celebration; and

WHEREAS, The beginning of World War I caused the
cancellation of the grand festivities at the canal, and a more modest
ceremony was held whereby a simple cargo boat, the SS Ancon,
piloted by Captain John A. Constantine, made the first official
canal transit, without the anticipated crowd of international
dignitaries in attendance; and

WHEREAS, The Panama-Pacific International Exposition took
place as planned between February 20 and December 4, 1915,
providing both an opportunity to celebrate the completion of the
Panama Canal and for San Francisco to showcase its recovery
from the 1906 earthquake. While the Palace of Fine Arts is the
only building still standing from the exposition, among the exhibits
at the exposition highlighting the new east-west route were the
first steam locomotive purchased by Southern Pacific Railroad,
which is now on display at the California State Railroad Museum
in Sacramento, the Liberty Bell, which traveled by train on a
nationwide tour from Pennsylvania, and a telephone line that was
established from the exposition to New York, enabling people
across the country to hear the Pacific Ocean; and

WHEREAS, In 1913 the United States Post Office issued a set
of four postage stamps to commemorate San Francisco’s
Panama-Pacific International Exposition with designs depicting a
profile of Vasco Núñez de Balboa (1¢), the Pedro Miguel Locks
of the Panama Canal (2¢), the Golden Gate (5¢), and the discovery
of San Francisco Bay (10¢), and reissued the stamps in 1914 and
1915. The United States Congress also authorized the San
Francisco Mint to issue a series of five commemorative coins
consisting of the 1915S silver Panama-Pacific half-dollar and four
gold coins; and

WHEREAS, The Panama-California Exposition was held at
Balboa Park in San Diego, California, from March 9, 1915, to
January 1, 1917, to celebrate the opening of the Panama Canal,
and to highlight San Diego’s location as the first American port
of call for northbound ships that passed westward through the
Panama Canal. Several of the buildings constructed for the
Panama-California Exposition, including the Cabrillo Bridge, the
California Bell Tower, the California State Exposition Building,
and other related buildings that are maintained by the San Diego
Museum of Man, still stand today as historic landmarks and as
symbols of the 100-year history California shares with Panama
and as symbols of trade; and

WHEREAS, California’s two-trillion-dollar economy is the
eighth largest economy in the world, and has benefited from
increased international trade provided for by the use of the Panama
Canal, contributions from immigrants from Panama, and new
investments by foreign businesses and entrepreneurs; and

WHEREAS, Now after operating for almost 100 years, over 13
thousand ships use the Panama Canal annually, making it one of
the main maritime trade routes, and connecting more than 140
maritime routes through 1,700 ports and 160 countries, which are
primarily used by the United States, China, Chile, Japan, and South
Korea; and

WHEREAS, Panamanians approved an ambitious plan, which
is estimated to cost five billion three hundred million dollars, to
double the capacity of the canal by 2015, strengthening the global
goods movement network and supporting direct trade between
Panama and the United States; now, therefore, be it

Resolved by the Assembly of the State of California, That on the
occasion of the 100th anniversary of the completion of the Panama
Canal and the 495th anniversary of the founding of Panama City,
there is a cause for reflection and celebration of the unique and
beneficial relationship between the United States and Panama, and
there is a call for a renewed commitment to enhancing the
economic, cultural, and trade relationships between the State of
California and the Country of Panama; and be it further

Resolved, That the Chief Clerk of the Assembly transmit copies
of this resolution to the President of Panama and to the author for
appropriate distribution.