Bird's eye view of the Maritime Canal of Nicaragua

       This eye striking 1901 map is by George Cram and Aaron Murray.  The map features most of Lake Managua and the surrounding areas but centers on Lake Nicaragua.  The map shows a canal with a series of locks and a dam winding its way through the Rivas Isthmus which separates the Lake from the Pacific Ocean by about 12 miles.  The map also shows the San Juan River which flows east from San Carlos all the way to San Juan del Norte or "Greytown" on the Caribbean Sea. The idea for this nonexistent canal was first officially proposed in 1825 by the Central American Republic and was presented to the U.S. Congress a year later looking for financial and architectural backing.  The U.S. put the idea on the back burner because they didn't believe in the stability of the newly formed Republic as well as didn't want conflict with the British who bore interest in the area as well. The latter of which resulted in the Clayton-Bulver Treaty of 1850 which prohibited both countries from gaining control over a perspective canal in the area.  Well, ok, all that is fine so why is this 1901 map relevant?  This map represents an inflection point with respect to the Panama Canal. Let's dig a little deeper.  In 1876 France organized the Geographical Society of Paris to seek cooperation with Central America in building an interoceanic canal which would connect the Atlantic and Pacific.  France sent Navy Lieutenant Lucien Wyse, grandson of Lucien Boapart, to explore the area for possible canal routes in 1877.  On March 20, 1878, Wyse negotiated the Wyse Concession Treaty with the Columbian government which granted France their canal plans.  The treaty guaranteed the canal back to Columbia after 99 years not knowing Panama would succeed from Columbia in 1903.  Meanwhile, the U.S. did start construction of the Nicaragua canal in 1890 by the American Maritime Canal Company.  The race was on to secure transoceanic privilege not unlike the quest for the Northwest Passage.  The U.S. deemed the use of the lake and the San Juan River the most practical because it would have fewer locks and lower construction cost than the Panama Project.  The Nicaragua Canal project was privately funded and ran out of money during the panic of 1893.  The building of the Panama Canal faced the same monetary fate in 1889 in addition to over 20,000 deaths at the hands of disease.  During this period Panama was a province of Columbia.  After backing the Panamanian rebellion against Columbia, the U.S. acquired rights to the canal under the Hay-Bunau-Varilla Treaty in 1903.  The Panama Canal was officially turned over to Panama December 31, 1999, under the Torrijos-Carter Treaty.

        As it is, this Lake and its geographical surroundings lend itself to intrigue.  It is the largest freshwater lake in Central America spanning some 3,000 square miles and the Pacific Ocean a short drive away.  One could imagine the backdrop of the Amerrisque and Huapi Mountains that part the sky from the lake to the east making up the Nicaraguan Highlands transition zone between the lake and the lowlands of the Mosquito Coast on the Atlantic.  The lakes were formed during the Cenozoic Period, which began about 66 million years ago which is broken into 3 eras.  The Quaternary is the most recent for which we live today.  What is really unique about these lakes is that they used to be salt water as part of the Pacific Ocean.  Techtronic plate action and volcano eruptions formed the isthmus and closed off these oceanic bays from the ocean.  Over time the basins were filled with fresh water and many species of marine life over millions of years adapted to the fresh water and still remain now as intrinsically unique.

The lake currently lies 107 feet above sea level.

      George Cram (1842-1928) was an American Cartographer and publisher.  He worked under General Ulysses Grant and General William Sherman in the union army during the Civil War.  He also produced atlases, township maps, railroad maps, mining maps etc.  The list is extensive.  This map was part of Cram's "Atlas of the World" which sold in variations from the 1880's to the 1950's. He invented cerography by which printing plates were made from wax making the process less expensive and more affordable to the general public. This particular map is a product of that process.