Designed by French urban planner Alfred Agache, it was built on an embankment in 1926 during the administration of Mayor Antônio Prado Júnior.

[1][2] It originally extended from Rio Branco and Beira Mar avenues to Glória Street, but was reduced to accommodate the Marechal Deodoro da Fonseca Square.

[1][2] In 1922, the sculptor Heitor Usai produced a bust of Alfredo Agache on behalf of the Association of Brazilian Artists (Associação dos Artistas Brasileiros), the Engineering Club (Clube de Engenharia) and the Brazilian Council of Architecture and Urbanism (Conselho de Arquitetura e Urbanismo do Brasil).

[3] Inaugurated on October 21, 1938, the monument to Adolfo Varnhagen was created in celebration of the centenary of the foundation of the Brazilian Historic and Geographic Institute (Instituto Histórico e Geográfico Brasileiro), where he served as first secretary.

[5][6] The square has six sculptures in Carrara marble; four of them represent the seasons: summer, fall, winter and spring.

They were based on the sculptures Circé by Laurent Magnier and L’Hiver by Jean-Baptiste Théodon, located in the Gardens of Versailles in France.

Wife of Elias Reis e Silva, she became famous for her musical career in Brazil and in Buenos Aires for performing Italian repertoire.

[3] Count of Affonso Celso, also a founding member of the Brazilian Academy of Letters, was born in Minas Gerais.