In order to adequately tackle the main problems and challenges facing public health, it is essential to have knowledge of the health situation and its determinants and conditioning factors peculiar to each territory. This understanding can guide future public policies aimed at remedying structural, organisational and work process problems in health, in terms of policy, work and health care management. In view of the importance of delimiting geographical space for studying the public health of a population, an analysis was made of the public health situation in the municipality of Goiânia (Goiás) during the period of its foundation (1933) and in the years that followed. The details of the public health situation in the municipality of Goiânia at the time of its foundation constitute a solid and faithful portrait of the intricacies that led to the situation of the capital as we see it today. Through this historical review, it is possible to establish a broader understanding of the evolution of Public Health in the city, which is fundamental in obtaining a clear outline of the health context.