Career
After his graduation from the École Polytechnique in 1880 he worked in Algiers and Tunis on government projects for the improvement of railroads and harbors. In 1884 he became associated with the Panama Canal enterprise of Ferdinand de Lesseps, and was appointed chief engineer in 1885. While on this project he developed new engineering methods, such as his invention of an electric dredge for increased speed and economy of operation. Bunau-Varilla remained with de Lesseps until 1888, and when work on the canal later came to a standstill he was active in urging the United States to continue the project. He fought against the proposed canal through Nicaragua, and in 1902 he engineered the revolution which separated Panama from Colombia and permitted resumption of work on the canal. In 1903 he was appointed minister of the new republic of Panama to Washington and negotiated the treaty by which the United States acquired the rights to the Canal Zone. In 1904 he returned to Europe to become manager of the Madrid-Cáceres railroad. He also built the Congo railroad in West Africa, improved the navigable waters of Romania, and designed the first Paris subway system. Bunau-Varilla died in Paris, May 18, 1940.