The growth of this centre was facilitated by the railway, transporting cargo and people from São Paulo Interior to the port of Santos.

The village is located amidst the Serra do Mar coastal forests, in the south coast, at the highest point of the area, and hence it came to be known as “a place to view the sea” in Tupi-Guarani language.

The Mata Atlantica around the town provides ample opportunities for hiking into the forest of the Parque Estadual da Serra do Mar where orchids and bromelias are major attractions.

[11]: 139+ Vila de Paranapiacaba was established during the middle of the 19th century; it was designed according to the prison model style developed by Jeremy Bentham.

The construction of this zig-zag railway line in the hilly local terrain was considered a feat by the British engineers and workers at the time.

[12] In the 1980s, a working steam engine from the turn of the 20th century ran several times a day, originally used to pull inclined trains from the coast.

[15] The parish church, Capela do Alto da Serra or Igreja matriz de Paranapiacaba, opened for the first time on August 8, 1884.

[8] The objective of this project is to preserve the natural, cultural, and industrial heritage and ensure economic progress of the town in particular and the region as a whole.

By 2008, the conservation efforts of the WMW team were successful in restoring Casa Fox (the Archive), the Castelinho (now a museum), the Lyra Serrano Club, and the Old Market.