The Panama Canal officially opened to international shipping in 1914.
The canal created a navigable route across the Isthmus of Panama, linking the Atlantic and Pacific oceans. Ships using it could avoid the much longer voyage around Cape Horn at the southern tip of South America, reducing travel time, fuel use and operating costs.
The first official transit took place on 15 August 1914, when the cargo and passenger ship Ancon passed through. The opening occurred just after the First World War began, so the canal’s wider commercial impact developed over time. The United States administered the canal for much of the twentieth century; Panama assumed full control on 31 December 1999.