The origin of the name Puelo is Mapuche and has two meanings: "water from the east" or "road's final". The region was already named in the accounts of last century Spanish explorers, which speaks of "indigenous with nose rings that came to the valley to hunt". In 1928 a teacher, Remigio Nogues, sent by the territorial governor point the necessity of creating a municipal building commission to "preserve the sovereignty". The commission was created April 2 of the same year, mostly made up of teachers.

The Lago Puelo Valley is glacial. It's narrow and thin, the middle is cut through by the Azul and Quemquemtreu rivers who, together with other life streams, give life to the ecosystem of a valley with a notorious valdivian ingression. The most renowned source of the region economy is the so called "industry without smokestacks", tourism. Major inns, cottages and residential complexes are spread throughout the Valley region. The tourist industry has increased a fivefold in the last 7 years. The locals know this will be the resource of the future and and so they work on improving the existing supply within a framework of sustainable development and environmental protection. It's also noteworthy that the cost of fuel (subsidized up to 50% compared to rest of the country) helps increase the number of visitors in a progressive way every season.