As elsewhere in Kuusamo, the first settlements in Purnuvaara were built along waterways, up on the southern slopes of hills and ridges, where the fields were protected from the frost.
Pulkkasenvaara, near Purnuvaara, was settled as follows: seven Veteläinen brothers lived in Kurkijärvi’s Kaikkonen, one of whom came to Niskalehto on the banks of Lake Ala-Kuoliojärvi. From there, a man named Mikko moved to Pulkkasenvaara “to escape the cold.” This is how the surname Veteläinen changed to Pulkkanen.
By the end of the 18th century, Purnuvaara had grown into a large village.
The people of Purnu have earned their livelihood from grain cultivation and livestock raising, which was made possible by a multi-functional meadow economy. Fishing was done in the nearby lakes and ponds, and people also had reindeers.
Purnuvaara’s hay situation improved decisively when the drying of Hyväjärvi into meadow land began in the 1850s, and in 1870 the Hyväjärvi lake dredging company was founded.
After the Kuusamo Rapids War in 1959, construction of a powerplant began at the west end of Soilunjärvi in Soilunkoski. The powerplant was automated in 1975.