The first building phase known as the French Period lasted ten years from 1881-1889.The American Period, 1904-1914, will be remembered for its audacity but, more than for its boldness and engineering innovation, it will recall the enormous price paid in human life.The French Period of the building of the Panama Canal simply carried forward and highlighted the hazards from the construction of the Railroad. Five hundred lives were lost for every mile of the length of the Canal, or a total of 25,000 deaths. I feel like the worked very hard in what they built.