[9] For a long time, the town most likely consisted of little more than a few farms and some other buildings, such as a windmill and a church and it didn't grow very much until the 19th century.

In the year 1830, a road was constructed to make this part of the Veluwe more accessible, and at the end of the 19th century, a railway station was built in the town.

A classic windmill dating from 1863 located in the town centre, named De Koe [nl] (The Cow), partially burned down in 1990 after having been hit by lightning, but was restored to working order in late 2008.

There are many campsites in the forests surrounding Ermelo which are popular place to stay for mainly Dutch and German tourists.

A pedestrian and cyclist only ferry operates between Horst beach and Zeewolde, crossing the Veluwemeer.

At the time of UEFA Euro 2000, the Portugal national football team stayed in Ermelo and played against one of the local clubs, DVS '33.

[11] Spanish La Liga football team Valencia CF has regularly used Ermelo as a base for their preseason training, and have played a number of matches at the local ground against other visiting clubs from Europe, such as Lokomotiv Sofia in 2007 and Fenerbahçe in 2006.

[12] In May 2009 it became clear that plans for a merge of DVS'33, EFC '58 [nl] and KC Ermelo were cancelled.