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Obverse Design
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Inscribed along the border, starting at the bottom left it says
"FOR TWO YEARS CONTINVOVS SERVICE ON THE PANAMA CANAL" (note the Roman style lettering
which renders the letter "U" as "V"). Along the bottom border,
with a divider on either side is the recipient's name, "A.C. VAN BROCKLIN" in the
example shown above. The center of the medal has a three-quarter bust of President
Theodore Roosevelt. Near the bottom of the bust in the field on the right in small
letters is the name of the designer "V.D. BRENNER". The medal has a loop attached
on either side of the top.
Attached to the top of the medal by the two loops are the two year bars. The bars
are somewhat rectangular with arrows on either side. The middle of the bar
says "TWO YEARS" in large letters. The arrows are ornate with a fan-like design
in each arrow. The top and bottom of each arrow has a
small hole, for a total of
four holes (two at each end). The bar has a raised edge along the rim and around each hole.
One-link chains on either side go through these holes and attach the lower bar to
the to the medal below and the upper bar above. The upper bar is attached
to the lower bar below and the header above.
Attached to the top of the upper bar is the header piece. The header
is somewhat oval shaped with a middle point. It has an ornate line design on
it which features s-curves and looped lines. The bottom of the header has two small
holes, used to attach the header to the upper bar.
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Reverse Design
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Inscribed along the border, starting at the bottom left it says
"PRESENTED BY THE PRESIDENT OF THE VNITED STATES" (note the Roman style lettering
which renders the letter "U" as "V"). Along the bottom border,
with a divider on either side is "No" and the medal serial number, some
space, and then the years of service. In the example above it says
"No 2108 1906-08".
The center of the medal has a bird's eye view of the finished Culebra Cut, steamers passing
through, Gold Hill on the left and Contractor's Hill on the right.
Above the horizon is the motto "THE LAND DIVIDED THE WORLD UNITED".
In the bottom center appeared the shield of the Canal Zone showing a Spanish Galleon
going through the canal.
The back of the two year bars are plain. They are engraved with the "No",
the two year bar serial number and then the years of service. In the example above,
the upper bar says "No 1291 1908-10". Note that different font sizes
were used for the engravings on the two different bars above.
The back of the header is plain, but features a hinged pin for attaching the medal to the
owner's clothing.
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Metal
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Bronze.
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Weight
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About 23.9 grams.
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Size and Shape
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Round, 30.5 mm in diameter for the medal itself. The header is 30.6 mm wide, the bars are
32.2 wide. The medal with two bars and header is about 70 mm high.
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Dates Issued
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1909-1915.
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Issuer
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United States Congress.
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Mintage
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7,423 total; per the Canal Record, 1,100 were issued with two bars only.
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Rarity
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Rare.
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Manufacturer
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United States Mint, Philadelphia.
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Other Catalog Numbers
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None known.
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Varieties
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Issued with header (no bars), one bar, two bars, three bars and four bars.
Also found as a medal alone, with the header removed, and found unissued
with no name or years of service inscribed.
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Function
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Issued to recognize those who worked to dig the canal, and issued only to those canal diggers.
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Historical Notes
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President Theodore Roosevelt and his wife spent three days on the Isthmus in mid-November 1906,
to inspect the building of the Canal. This was the first time a President of the United States
had traveled outside the country while in office. On the evening of November 17th from a
bandstand in Panama, President Roosevelt announced "I shall see if it is not possible to provide
some memorial, some mark, some badge, which will always distinguish the man and woman who,
for a certain space of time, had done his work well on the Isthmus." Upon his return to the
United States, President Roosevelt proposed to congress that they recognize the Canal Diggers
with the award of a medal. It was given to all American citizens who had at least two years
of satisfactory continuous service with the Canal construction forces or the Panama Railroad
between May 4, 1904 and December 31, 1914. For each additional two years of service, a bar
was given to the medal holder. Work on the canal (under the French) before May 4, 1904 did not
qualify, nor work as a non-citizen of the United States, nor did military service in the Canal
Zone. This was a strictly civilian award, and if it was earned by military personnel while
a civilian, was not to be worn on their uniform.
The medal was designed in November 1908 by F.D. Millet, an artist who later went down with
the S.S. Titanic. Victor D. Brenner was the "medalist" who prepared the plaster model and
apparently finalized the
design. It is his name that appears on the medal next to the portrait of President Roosevelt.
Victor D. Brenner and
President Roosevelt became friends while President Roosevelt was sitting for his likeness
for the Roosevelt Medal. Both men shared a great admiration for Abraham Lincoln, so President
Roosevelt commissioned the young sculptor to design a new cent commemorating the 100th
aniversary of Lincoln's birthday. That design was used for
the 1909 Lincoln cent. Brenner's design for the cent reverse was used until 1958, and his design
for the obverse is still in use to this day. The engraving on the medals and bars was done
by Mr. Alva Nelson of New York City.
Bronze scrap metal in the form of staybolts from the equipment abandoned on the Isthmus
by the French was used in making these bronze medals. The February 1909
Canal Record announced that 1000 pounds of French scrap had been sent to the Philadelphia
Mint for this purpose. Later it was noted that the 1000 pounds
was sufficient for all the medals and bars that were minted.
The first batch of 2264 medals and bars covering service between May 4, 1904 and the end of
1908 arrived in Panama on September 3, 1909 on the steamship Colon (according to The Canal
Record). Distribution of the medals began immediately.
A total of 7,423 medals were struck of which 7,391 were issued. The balance were reserved
as replacements for recipients who lost their original medal.
The Roosevelt Medal was also commonly referred to as the Panama Service Medal and Isthmian
Canal Medal.
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Population Count
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Per a tabulation in the a 1915 Canal Record, 1,100 medalists earned exactly two bars
(1,661 earned the second bar, but 561 of those continued on to earn more bars).
Recent sales include:
- Auction sale on ebay on March 13, 2007 for $651.00.
Number 1186 (for 1906-08), issued to W. Claus.
- Private sale in 2004 for an unknown price.
Number 2108 (for 1906-08), issued to A.C. Van Brocklin.
- Auction sale on ebay on July 15, 2002 for $587.99.
Number 333 (for 1905-07), issued to J.C. Forman.
- Auction sale on ebay on January 7, 2001 for $640.00.
Number 1839 (for 1906-08), issued to J.F. Cato.
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