Shortly before the first settlers arrived, the Pequots had invaded Nehantic territory and annexed about half of the land claimed by the tribe.

According to local historian Olive Tubbs Chendali: It was the construction of the railroad in 1851 that lured people to the shoreline which up to this time had been known - not as Niantic - but as "The Bank".

[4]Sportfishing and marinas dominate the village's industry along with summer tourism and restaurant trade.

Strong regional businesses include seafood restaurants and hotels/motels serving the town's beaches and the casinos at Foxwoods and Mohegan Sun.

Rocky Neck State Park features camping, swimming and picnic areas along with numerous marinas and sportfishing companies.

It first opened to the public in 2005, but was closed from about 2011 due to a combination of Amtrak building a new railroad bridge across the Niantic River, which required a re-positioning of the approach tracks, and damage caused by Hurricane Irene in October 2011.

[6] The Children's Museum of Southeastern Connecticut is located in East Lyme's original public library on Main Street.

Flanders was the original center of East Lyme society with dozens of 18th century homes, shops and public inns situated along the Boston Post Road until the early 1800s.

It lost its pre-eminence as Niantic began to flourish, first with the growth of commercial fishing and then with the construction of the Shore Line Railway.

[9] Some homes remain closer to the Waterford line at the site of the old Beckwith Shipyard at the head of the Niantic River.

By the turn of the 20th century it was the site of an amusement park accessible by trolley run by the East Lyme Street Railway.

[10] The topography of East Lyme consists of rolling hills and lush valleys rounded by glaciers during the last Ice Age.

Hills rise to elevations of 250 to 350 feet (76 to 107 m) above sea level in the eastern and central areas of the town.

In 2017, the East Lyme High School earned a National Blue Ribbon Distinction by U.S. Department of Education.

The center contains an eight-lane, 25-yard-long (23 m), competition swimming and diving pool, and a fitness facility with Nautilus equipment, free weights, and a cardiovascular line.

The cross country team has achieved unparalleled athletic success at East Lyme, winning three consecutive Class MM State titles in 2017, 2018 & 2019.

Co-located on this site is the one-room Little Boston Schoolhouse, which was relocated to its current location from across Route 156.

The town features six homes from 1699 or earlier, and the Old Stone Church Burial Ground from 1719 located off Society and Riverview roads.

[21] The 1750s Ezra Stiles map shows the Nehantic village in what is now Indian Woods as consisting of "12 or 13 huts".

Portions of the made-for-TV movie Disaster on the Coastliner, released October 29, 1979, were filmed in East Lyme.

In 2016, East Lyme was used as a filming location for the Lifetime thriller Hunter's Cove, which was renamed Stalker's Prey when it was released on February 9, 2017.