Panama Canal Museum

The Role of the West Indians: 1904-1914

Featured at the 2008 Panama Canal Society Reunion, now available as a Traveling Exhibit

The Role of the West Indians showcases 50 images of Panama Canal West Indian workers taken during the construction era by Ernest “Red” Hallen (1875-1947), the official photographer of the Isthmian Canal Commission and the Canal Zone from 1907-1937. In the words of author James L. Shaw, Hallen “climbed over, under, and around construction work at Panama to record with his camera every phase and detail of progress on the new waterway.” The Panama Canal, considered an engineering wonder of the world, has long been touted as an American achievement. Yet without the labor of thousands of workers from around the Caribbean, the Panama Canal could not have been built. This exhibit pays tribute to those workers who worked under almost insurmountable odds to dig the canal, lay track for the Panama Railroad, build the locks and miter gates, eradicate yellow fever, and contribute endless support in other jobs without which the canal could not have been built. Known as the “Silver Roll,” this was the non-American workforce whose contributions to the construction projects and to the functioning of life in the Canal Zone. They worked steadfastly under challenging conditions, secure in the knowledge that they were contributing to one of the world’s most spectacular engineering feats. They sought solace in their religion and in social activities organized by their fellow West Indians. The exhibit was curated by President Emeritus, Charles W. Hummer, who is a retired Panama Canal engineer, Chief of the Dredging Division, and third generation Canal Zone resident. Hummer was assisted by museum director, Elizabeth Neily.

• Map of the Caribbean Islands showing the islands where the West Indians came from.