The Path Between the Seas | Teaching Key Figures

Character Descriptions

This section provides a short description of all the major characters in the book. This can be printed out as a study guide for students, used as a "key" for leading a class discussion, or you can jump to the quiz/homework section to find worksheets that incorporate these descriptions into a variety of question formats.

Characters

Ferdinand de Lesseps - This individual is renowned for building the Suez Canal.

Philippe Banau-Varilla - At age 26, this individual is put in charge of operations at the Culebra and Pacific end of the canal project in 1884.

Theodore Roosevelt - Upon retiring in 1909, this individual is acknowledged as the indispensable force behind the American Canal Zone.

John Hay - This distinguished secretary of state served under a president who was assassinated and his successor.

John Stevens - This rough-and-tumble western railroad man serves as chief engineer of the U.S. Panama...
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