Cardenas was a township in the old
Panama Canal Zone
The Panama Canal Zone ( es, Zona del Canal de Panamá), also simply known as the Canal Zone, was an unincorporated territory of the United States, located in the Isthmus of Panama, that existed from 1903 to 1979. It was located within the terr ...
. Built on a site that was originally intended for
Panama Canal Company
The Panama Canal Zone ( es, Zona del Canal de Panamá), also simply known as the Canal Zone, was an unincorporated territory of the United States, located in the Isthmus of Panama, that existed from 1903 to 1979. It was located within the terr ...
housing, it was originally founded to house
Federal Aviation Administration
The Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) is the largest transportation agency of the U.S. government and regulates all aspects of civil aviation in the country as well as over surrounding international waters. Its powers include air traffic m ...
personnel.
It housed 425 FAA personnel.
Later, the 120 housing units built for the FAA were supplemented by 11 homes for staff members of the Middle America Research Unit (MARU), a medical research laboratory of the National Institute of Health (NIH).
Overview
Its only access from the main road system (specifically, Gaillard Highway) was on a road which started from
Corozal. The main
cemetery
A cemetery, burial ground, gravesite or graveyard is a place where the remains of dead people are buried or otherwise interred. The word ''cemetery'' (from Greek , "sleeping place") implies that the land is specifically designated as a buri ...
for the Panama Canal Zone, the
Corozal American Cemetery, was located along this road. Past the cemetery was the
LDS Church
The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints, informally known as the LDS Church or Mormon Church, is a Nontrinitarianism, nontrinitarian Christianity, Christian church that considers itself to be the Restorationism, restoration of the ...
meetinghouse. The road continued to climb as it went past these until cresting a hill, with Cardenas located on the back slope of the hill. The Jungle on three of its sides were part of various military bases, mostly
Fort Clayton
Fort Clayton was a United States Army base in the former Panama Canal Zone, later part of the Republic of Panama.
Base
Fort Clayton was located northwest of Balboa, Panama, with the Panama Canal located nearby. It closed in 1999 pursuant ...
and Albrook Air Force Base.
There were no stores or other services located in Cardenas, apart from one community center. In 1971, the site was characterized as "the most isolated community in the canal zone with respect to recreational facilities."
Boy Scout Troop 14 had its meetings at the Cardenas Community Center.
An abandoned road linked Cardenas to the Clayton-Albrook Road and was used by kids living in Cardenas to access Clayton, Curundu and Albrook by bicycle.
References
{{reflist
Panama Canal Zone Townships