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A joint resolution by the House and Senate resolving that purchases of material for use in the construction of the Panama Canal should be purchased domestically from the lowest responsible bidder, unless such bids are deemed extortionate or unreasonable by the President.
Library of Congress Manuscript Division
1906-06-25
Contract between the Isthmian Canal Commission and the International Contracting Company arranging for the hiring, transportation, payment, and care of Chinese laborers to work on the construction of the Panama Canal. The contract sets out how many laborers are to be hired, the wages they will be paid, how they will be transported and managed, and what their living conditions will be, among other factors.
Library of Congress Manuscript Division
1906-06-29
Japanese businessman Kōjirō Matsukata addresses honorary commercial commissioners from the United States Pacific Coast. He expresses the admiration and appreciation that Japan has for the United States, and hopes that the friendship between the two nations can continue. In particular, Matsukata hopes that trade relations between the two countries will improve.
Library of Congress Manuscript Division
1908-11-01
Following his attack on the board of consulting engineers for the Panama Canal, Philippe Bunau-Varilla’s hopes of becoming an engineer on the project have been dashed. Bunau-Varilla had proposed first building a lock canal that would gradually be dug into a sea-level canal; this plan was rejected as extravagant and unfeasible. Current plans are for a sea-level canal to be dug, which will take fifteen years and cost $230,000,000.
Library of Congress Manuscript Division
1905-11-20
Secretary of War Taft sends President Roosevelt a report from the engineering committee of the Isthmian Canal Commission, and will give it to the Associated Press for publication after Roosevelt reads it. Taft also sends a statement from General George W. Davis to be considered with the letter from Ambassador John Barrett.
Library of Congress Manuscript Division
1905-02-25
In this journal article, George W. Crichfield proposes a plan for the completion of the Panama Canal. He begins by describing the environment of Panama and the current plans suggested by Admiral John Grimes Walker and the Isthmian Canal Commission before dissenting from these opinions due to his studies of the canal in January and February. Crichfield believes the canal should be divided into sections that are bid on by different contractors, as he does not think the Panama Canal should be in the hands of a single corporation. Based on his calculations, he recommends fifty-eight separate contracts. Crichfield also recommends that the canal is a tide-level canal rather than a lock canal. He disagrees with Brigadier General Peter C. Hains that African Americans are the best laborers for the job and instead recommends using people from the area. Crichfield encourages the government to guard against red tape and suggests the construction of the canal should be as serious as the prosecution of war: “The sooner it is finished the better.” Crichfield believes it is better to spend more and finish sooner than to spend less money but more time.
Library of Congress Manuscript Division
1905-01
A letter by Senator Edgar Truman Brackett to Treasury Secretary Leslie M. Shaw criticizing President Roosevelt’s decisions regarding the Panama Canal has been published. Brackett believes control of the canal has been unfairly stolen.
Library of Congress Manuscript Division
1904-11-02
Francis C. Travers encourages President Roosevelt to meet with Dominic I. Murphy and ask him to bring a letter from New York to the meeting. Travers tells Roosevelt Murphy is “one of the best men on this earth and should be supported.”
Library of Congress Manuscript Division
1904-12-10
In this article, Thomas G. Bush of Alabama discusses his thoughts on President Roosevelt, economic progress in the South, and race relations. Bush notes Roosevelt has appointed Republicans and Democrats for postmaster positions in the South and that the president is not in favor of social equality to African Americans. Additionally, Bush mentions Roosevelt’s hope that business development will grow in the South by the end of his term so that it will be an “equal sharer in the prosperity of the whole country.” Finally, Roosevelt believes the Panama Canal will help open up trading between the South and Asian countries.
Library of Congress Manuscript Division
1904-12-23
This episode of the television program You Are There dramatizes the events of October 14, 1912, when John Flammang Schrank attempted to assassinate Theodore Roosevelt in Milwaukee, Wisconsin. The program examines some elements of public opinion regarding Roosevelt’s decision to run for a third presidential term, in addition to mentioning several of Roosevelt’s main accomplishments and philosophies. The program was sponsored by the Prudential Life Insurance Company of America, and includes several advertisements for their services.
Theodore Roosevelt Association
1957
James Bronson Reynolds sends President Roosevelt the report of the Special Isthmian Commission including recommendations and appendices. Reynolds reports that the findings are unanimous, but encourages Roosevelt to transfer any results that he finds “indiscreet” from the public report to the private report.
Library of Congress Manuscript Division
1908-08-08
In his speech as temporary chairman of the Republican state convention in Connecticut, Senator Orville Hitchcock Platt reviews and praises the accomplishments of the Republican party during the last three terms. Platt also praises President Roosevelt, and vice-presidential nominee Charles W. Fairbanks, and believes that the Democrats’ attempts to make personal attacks on Roosevelt’s character will not be effective, as Roosevelt is a good, strong leader who was nominated by acclamation.
Library of Congress Manuscript Division
1904-09-12
John Bigelow, a former ambassador to France from the United States, has recently published a pamphlet on the Panama Canal. Bigelow criticizes the inflated costs of the project, as well as the slow pace of the work. The initial French plan consisted of an initial, preliminary canal which after its completion would be widened into the final form, but the United States rejected this plan in favor of completing the canal in one go.
Library of Congress Manuscript Division
1908
John Callan O’Laughlin sees no improvement in the Republican political situation and shares his thoughts on various issues with Theodore Roosevelt. He discusses the insurgents’ relationship with President William H. Taft and his recent appointments to the Supreme Court and other administrative agencies. Taft swung around to the tariff commission plan, recognizing it as an important issue for the upcoming campaign. O’Laughlin does not think the ship subsidy bill will pass, although there is an appropriation for constructing fortifications for the Panama Canal. The national committee will not meet next month. The administration knows Taft’s renomination depends upon Roosevelt’s approval or his refusal to be nominated. The Japan question is “muddled,” and there are various “pin pricks which cannot but be harmful” to the countries’ relationship. O’Laughlin disagrees with Senator Henry Cabot Lodge about Senator William Lorimer’s case and asks Roosevelt for a statement on the matter.
Library of Congress Manuscript Division
1910-12-31
President Roosevelt introduces John Campbell Greenway to Secretary of the Isthmian Canal Commission Bishop. Greenway, a former Rough Rider, is a mining executive in Minnesota and is visiting Panama to study the techniques used by the commission.
Library of Congress Manuscript Division
1907-11-27
Secretary of War Taft sends President Roosevelt a letter he received from Theodore P. Shonts, Chairman of the Isthmian Canal Commission, with a resolution from the commission widening the locks of the canal from 100 feet to 110 feet. While this will increase the cost of the canal and slightly reduce the capacity, Taft agrees with this decision in order to accommodate future ships, which will likely require the wider space.
Library of Congress Manuscript Division
1908-01-13
George W. Goethals, chief engineer of the Isthmian Canal Commission, reports on the increase in time and cost that will result in widening the locks in the Panama Canal. The Commission and engineers have spoken with the Navy General Board about their requirements and believe that the board should guide the requirements to ensure the canal can accommodate warships.
Library of Congress Manuscript Division
1908-01-11
Henry Riesenberg reports on the progress of the construction of the Panama Canal, which was taken up by the United States after the French failed to complete the project. While much criticism has been aimed at the project, work is steady and should be completed between 1915 and 1917. Riesenberg details the progress of construction, which far exceeds the previous French efforts, including information about waste removal, disease, sanitation, and lack of adequate housing in the Canal Zone.
Library of Congress Manuscript Division
1907-11-03
The Daily Telegraph reports on a speech by President Roosevelt in which he insisted on the peaceful nature of the Great White Fleet’s movement and reiterated his plans to regulate trusts via existing laws rather than attempting new legislation.
Library of Congress Manuscript Division
1907-10-03
The London Morning Post explains the current state of American presidential politics to its English audience, summarizing the nomination process, the controversy surrounding a possible third nomination for President Roosevelt, and the strengths and weaknesses of potential candidates from the Democratic and Republican parties. The writer also speculates on the possible political and military motivations behind the movement of the Great White Fleet.
Library of Congress Manuscript Division
1907-10-01