at a glance

The Bairro Peixoto sub-neighborhood, referred to by some as the 'Island of Tranquility', is nestled between the Morro dos Cabritos, or 'Goats' Hills' to the west and São João to the east, and is one of the most iconic parts of the celebrated Copacabana neighborhood.

At the end of the 19th Century Copacabana remained a quiet area, isolated from the main bulk of the city, which was concentrated in Centro and Botafogo. This only began to change in 1892, when the Túnel Velho, or 'Old Tunnel', was built connecting the region to the rest of the city.

In 1903 the Portuguese entrepreneur Paulo Felisberto Peixoto da Fonseca bought several lands in the region, and eventually managed to secure his own ranch, which had a pond, a wetland, fruit trees and a bamboo grove. As he didn't have any heirs, he eventually donated his property to five different charities in 1938.