One generation later, during the Farroupilha Rebellion launched by the people of Rio Grande do Sul against the Brazilian Empire, revolutionary forces to plan their attack the night before they were to take over Porto Alegre on 19 September 1835.

People involved in the traditionalist gaúcho (Rio Grande do Sul) movement in the 1960s named Guaíba the "cradle of the Ragamuffin War" (in Portuguese, Revolução Farroupilha).

Evidence indicates that the village of Pedras Brancas began in the second half of the 19th century, since the area was a necessary stopping point from inland Rio Grande do Sul and the capital.

According to the writer Fernando Worm, the Church of Nossa Senhora do Livramento was founded by imperial decree by Emperor Dom Pedro II on 17 February 1857.

The land for the church was donated by Isabel Leonor, daughter of Antônio Ferreira Leitão and wife of José Gomes Jardim, as part of a promise she had made to Mary in order that her and her child's lives would be protected.

The colony of Sertão Santana was created by an initiative of immigrants of primarily German heritage, who dedicated themselves to small-scale agriculture of products such as sweet potato, tobacco, rice, corn, and limited animal husbandry.

There are a number of large industrial companies with a presence in Guaíba, such as Celulose Riograndense, Sulfato Rio Grande, Santher, ThyssenKrupp among others as well as a Toyota distribution center.

The Municipal Secretary of Health is also a participant in programs to reduce infant mortality (Guaíba Abaça a Família), to lower rates of hypertension and diabetes, and to deliver specialized treatments to patients with STIs or AIDS, among others.