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HISTORY The town of Balboa, founded by the United States during the construction of the Panama Canal, was named after Vasco Núñez De Balboa , the Spanish conquistador credited with discovering the Pacific Ocean. The name was suggested to the Canal Zone authorities by the Peruvian ambassador to Panama. Prior to being drained, filled and leveled by the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers, the hilly area north of Panama City was home to a few subsistence ranches and unused marshlands. The town of Balboa, like most towns in the Canal Zone, was served by Canal Zone Government-operated schools, post office, police and fire stations, commissary, cafeteria, yacht club, service center and recreational facilities. Balboa's children were educated at the Balboa Elementary School, Balboa High School , and the private St. Mary's School. The town was also home to two private banks, a credit union, a Jewish Welfare Board, several Christian denomination churches, civic clubs, a masonic temple and a YMCA. Until 1979 when the Canal Zone was abolished under the terms of the Panama Canal Treaties, the town of Balboa was the administrative center of the Canal Zone , a U.S. territory. The Panama Canal's Administration Building, former seat of the Canal Zone Government and Panama Canal Company, is located in Balboa Heights and currently houses the Panama Canal Administration (ACP). CURRENT HIGHLIGHTS Balboa is now governed by the mayor of Panama City as part of the corregimiento of Ancón. Since its incorporation into the Republic of Panama, Balboa has been redeveloped to enhance the port's capacity and to adapt to private ownership of houses and commercial enterprises. Sightseeing highlights for anyone visiting Balboa include the Administration Building, the Goethals Memorial, the Prado, the somewhat well preserved architecture of the Canal Zone era, and two handicrafts markets. As it was during the Canal Zone ( 1904 - 1979 ), Balboa is the seat of the Panama Canal 's administrative offices and the port of Balboa, one of Panama's main ports. The population as of the 1990 census was 1,214. |
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