Burning of Colón The Burning of Colón , or the Panama Incident , was a major event of the Colombian Civil War in 1885 . Panamanian rebels loyal to Pedro Prestan destroyed the city by committing arson before retreating after a battle with federal Colombian troops . The episode also included a landing by United States Navy sailors and marines from two warships after the rebels seized American citizens . Incident . In the late 1800s Colombia ' s political situation was in turmoil as revolution and riots plagued the country . In 1885 another revolution began which spilled into the Isthmus of Panama . On or about March 16 the rebel leader Pedro Prestan occupied the small port of Colón on the Gulf Coast where he was waiting for a shipment of weapons by the American merchant ship " Colon " of the Pacific Mail Steamship Company . On March 26 , Captain John M . Dow , representing the Pacific Mail Steamship Company in Colon , received a letter from the Panamanian sub - Secretary of State that the offloading of any weapons intended for rebels was strictly prohibited . On the following day , Captain Dow received another letter from Secretary General Gomina which advised that he had assumed the position of commander - in - chief of civil and military affairs and should any of the weapons be removed from the " Colon " than the agent responsible for their delivery might attempt to seek asylum from the American or French naval forces present . Dow then informed the United States consul Mr . Wright who relayed orders from the consul - general Mr . Adamson not to allow any weapons to be offloaded without the permission of the consulate or Captain James O ' Kane of the steamer USS " Galena " , which happened to be in port at the time . So on March 29 , when the " Colon " arrived at Colon with fifty - two packages marked " M " , Captain Dow assumed command and ordered that nothing be taken off the ship . This angered Pedro Prestan when he came to pick up his delivery and Dow and three others were then taken under arrest by militia men , one of the captives was a United States Navy lieutenant named Judd . When Captain Kane learned of the arrests , negotiations began between the two parties . Prestan wanted his guns and the Kane wanted the American citizens to be released but the captain could not use force as it meant risking the lives of the prisoners . Rebel forces included at least 100 men , around twenty of whom accompanied Prestan at all times and fortified a small position within the city streets . The remaining men were based outside of town at Monkey Hill . The rebels had an old cannon as well and threatened to open fire on the " Galena " if she came in towards the shore . Prestan also declared that if he was forced to retreat , he would destroy the city with dynamite . For several hours , until the next day , the negotiations proceeded and the Americans refused to give Prestan the cargo of weapons . Meanwhile , Captain Dow and the other prisoners were taken to the Panamanian base to be executed by a firing squad . Soon after Mr . Right ordered that the weapons be given up as it was the only means of releasing the hostages . Unknowingly , Captain Kane was distracting the rebels while the Colombian Army approached Colon . Eventually Prestan became alarmed and he ordered his men to begin burning the city . Shortly thereafter the Colombians launched their attack . For a few hours the Panamanians held their position while the city burned around them until they were finally routed during the last Colombian charge . A detachment of about 100 marines and sailors from the " Galena " then landed at the request of the Colombian government and 600 more men and two cannons from the USS " Tennessee " arrived within the next few days . Admiral James Edward Jouett assumed command of American forces which was tasked with protecting American property . This was hard because the fire quickly spread throughout Colon , causing great damage . Several of the destroyed buildings were American or European owned and damages amounted to the millions though compensation was never paid . Colon burned for days and the American garrison withdrew without doing much to save the city . United States citizens were also evacuated along with other foreign nationals . The American government responded to the incident by sending men to occupy both Colon , for a second time , and the city of Panama . There were no American casualties but between the Panamanians and the Colombians , eighteen people were killed and many more were wounded in action or hurt by the fire .