The Port of Paranagua is the seaport for the Brazilian state Parana’s capital, Curitiba. The city of Paranagua is the state’s oldest, having been founded in 1648. It is famous for its outstanding port facilities. Located on the Paranagua Bay at the foot of the Serra do Mar, it is a short 29 kilometers from the Atlantic Ocean. In 2005, over 139 thousand people called the Port of Paranagua home.

The first settlement began in the mid-1500s on the island of Cotinga, but it was little more than a base for exploration and searching for gold. In the 1570s, Sao Paulo residents won the land bordering the Taguare River from the indigenous Carijo and established a village there. People continued to come to the early Port of Paranagua hoping to find gold in the area. In 1585, Portuguese explorers officially founded the town.

In 1640, a military government was established in the Port of Paranagua under Captain Gabriel de Lara. In two years, the village won the status of a town. The Province of Parana and its Port Authority was established in 1854. In 1880, the railway station was built, bringing additional commerce to the city. Today’s Port of Paranagua was officially established in 1935.

By the middle of the 20th Century, the Port of Paranagua was a thriving commercial center based on the export of soy, coffee, hides, paper, tea, beans, cotton, plywood, bananas, and sugar. An oil terminal was constructed in the 1970s, further enhancing the port’s important role for the state of Parana.

In 1872, the transformation of the old port began to be replaced by more modern facilities. Brazil’s federal government granted the right to develop the port to Jose Goncalves Pecego, Peter Aloys Sherer, and Jose Maria da Silva in that year. The concession was transferred to the State of Parana in 1917. Construction of the modern port began in 1926, and it was opened in 1935. In 1949, Brazil’s government officially assigned management of the Port of Paranagua to the State of Parana.

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