Panama: The Old Man & the Bridge

Maurice Hudson Thatcher is a gnarled, 92-year-old relic of Panama Canal construction days and still has a pioneer’s proprietary interest in the Canal Zone, which Teddy Roosevelt leased from Panama in 1903. The only living member of the Isthmian Canal Commission responsible for digging the waterway, Thatcher served five terms as a U.S. Congressman from Kentucky, had a powerful voice in canal legislation. Thatcher Highway and Thatcher Ferry in the zone bear his name, and last week Thatcher was pleased by a third honor: he arranged to have a new bridge named Thatcher Ferry Bridge. But in so doing, the old man touched off angry new sparks between the U.S. and the sensitive little Republic of Panama.

Until recently, the only link over the canal has been a cumbersome swing bridge at the Pacific end. In response to Panama’s urging, the U.S. spent $20 million on a new bridge rising 384 ft. above the canal three miles downstream. The question was what to call it. At a time when Washington is increasingly mindful of Panama’s “titular sovereignty,” and now flies the Panamanian flag next to the Stars and Stripes in the zone, one name that almost everybody liked was “Bridge of the Americas”—symbolizing Panama’s importance as a crossroads. But not Thatcher. In Washington, where he now lives, Thatcher lobbied until the House Appropriations Committee inserted a provision into a zone bill naming the structure Thatcher Ferry Bridge.

In no time at all, Panamanians were deep in name-calling of their own. “An insult to Panamanian sovereignty,” cried the Panamanian Students’ Federation. When Thatcher himself and U.S. Under Secretary of State George Ball turned up for the dedication, rioting Panamanian youths swarmed up the steel framework, waving Panamanian flags and shouting “Thatcher No, Americas Si!” Thatcher’s name was ripped from the bridge plaque. The rest of the dedication ceremony, including a scheduled speech by Thatcher, was hurriedly canceled. Still, everyone agrees, it is nice to have the bridge, whatever its name.