A continental divide or watershed does not have to be a place somewhere high up in the mountains. One of the most important watersheds in North America is near downtown Chicago, Illinois: the Chicago Portage. It is the main reason the third biggest city in the United States was built. History of the Chicago …
Category: 19th Century
Isthmus of Panama
In Panama, the shores of the Atlantic and Pacific Oceans are only about 60 km apart. This makes the isthmus a truly strategic location for global transportation. A hundred years ago the Panama Canal was opened and since then allows ships go directly from the Caribbean Sea to the Pacific. This obviously was not possible …