Opening of the Panama Canal (1914)

Hello there. My name is Teddy Roosevelt. I was once the president of a big country called the United States. I loved big adventures and I had a big, big idea. I saw that big boats had a big, big problem. To get from one ocean to another, they had to go all the way around a giant piece of land. It took so long. Way down and all the way back up. I thought, what if we could make a shortcut. A special road just for boats. A water road right through the land. It would be a huge job, but it would help everyone.

So we started the biggest digging project ever. Dig, dig, dig. We scooped up dirt and rocks to make a path for the water. But there was a tricky part. The land was not flat. It had tall hills. How would the boats get up the hills. We built something amazing called locks. They are like water elevators for boats. A boat would float into a big box, and we would fill it with water. Whoosh. The water would lift the boat up, up, up. Then, on the other side, another water elevator would take it down, down, down. It was like a fun, magical ride for the giant ships.

Finally, the day came. On August 15th, 1914, our water road was ready. We called it the Panama Canal. The very first boat, named the SS Ancon, sailed right through. Toot toot. It was so exciting. Everyone cheered. I lived a long, adventurous life, and though I am not here anymore, my big idea still helps boats travel quickly from ocean to ocean. It shows that when we work together on a big idea, we can connect the whole world.