en.wikipedia.org/wiki/William_Walker_(filibuster)
1 correction found
Since there was no inter-oceanic route between the Atlantic and Pacific Oceans at the time
This is inaccurate for the mid-1850s: the Panama Railroad was completed in January 1855 and already provided an Atlantic-Pacific crossing.
Full reasoning
By the time of Walker's Nicaraguan campaign (1855–1857), there was an inter-oceanic route across the Isthmus of Panama.
The Panama Railroad was completed on January 27–28, 1855. The Panama Canal Museum Collection notes that the final spike was driven just after midnight on January 27, 1855, and that "The following day, on January 28, a train crossed the Isthmus for the first time." Another historical overview states that rail tracks linked the Atlantic and Pacific Oceans for the first time when the Panama Railway was completed in 1855.
So the Nicaragua transit route was certainly important, but it is incorrect to say there was no inter-oceanic route between the Atlantic and Pacific at that time.
2 sources
- 10 Trains That Changed the World | HISTORY
Rail tracks linked the Atlantic and Pacific Oceans for the first time when the Panama Railway was completed in 1855.
- This day in history: Completion of the Panama Railroad - Panama Canal Museum Collection Blog
Just after midnight on January 27, 1855, the final spike for the Panama Railroad line was driven at Culebra... The following day, on January 28, a train crossed the Isthmus for the first time.