Panama Railroad Scripophily
The Panama Railroad was completed in 1855. It had the title of the “first transcontinental railroad” because the famous U.S. Transcontinental railway did not exist until 1869, when the rails finally connected to each other at Promontory Summit, Utah.
The Panama Railroad was a considerable improvement in travel, especially when it came to carrying mail through the Panama jungle. Many people, such as a gentleman by the name of Theodore Judah died of tropical disease because of crossing the Panama. The only other way to get supplies from one coast to the other was to sail around Cape Horn by boat and this was a dangerous task. Many individuals having to cross by land or boat would find themselves becoming ill with the ailments of the tropic.
Eventually, the Panama Railroad became a publicly traded company. In the 19th century, shares in a railroad company mostly consisted of stocks. Eventually, the Panama Railroad reached a share price of $295 per share. That made the railroad the highest priced stock at one time. And now, Panama Railroad stock certificates are highly sought after collector’s items. These are great collectible investments that anyone into Scripophily, the collecting of stocks and bonds, can appreciate.
The sheer beauty of these old documents fascinates any collector, but it is the history behind them that makes them even more interesting. In this case, the Panama Railroad is full of it. For instance, there is an estimated 5,000 to 10,000 people who died in the construction of the railroad. The company never had an official count, so it may be higher or lower. Such diseases as Cholera, yellow fever, and malaria struck down the workers who had died during the construction of this massive railroad that connected the Atlantic Ocean to the Pacific Ocean. There were workers from the U.S., Colombia, China, Europe, the Caribbean, and there were also some African slaves included in the construction.
The railway continued to thrive and in the process many stock certificates were signed and issued to shareholders. But it was in 1979 that the railway declined because the U.S. government handed over control to Panama’s government. But after a large rehabilitation project in 2000 and 2001, the single track railroad with some double tracks integrated made it possible for shipping to occur again.
And now there are individuals seeking out the many Panama Railway stock certificates that were issued in the heyday of the railway.
These stock certificates can be found with varying numbers of shares. A Panama Railway stock certificate from 1865 would have the number of shares handwritten in a box at the top of the certificate. By 1881, these certificates would have the number of shares the certificate was worth printed at the printing press. In a way, the 1881 certificate resembles currency. Some of the 1865 certificates had the face of Abraham Lincoln printed upon them since he was the president until April 15, 1865 when he was assassinated.
Some of these stock certificates have stamps placed directly upon them. This makes them interesting to stamp collectors as well as stock certificate collectors.
These stock certificates are not just interesting because of the Panama Railroad history, but because of the history and the interesting facts around the certificates themselves.
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