The name Eucla is believed to originate from an Aboriginal word Yinculyer which one (uncited) source gives as referring to the rising of the planet Venus.

In 1867, the president of the Marine Board of South Australia declared a port at Eucla,[3] and in 1870, John Forrest camped at the location for nearly two weeks.

The town was proclaimed a township and gazetted in 1885, and reached its peak in the 1920s, prior to the construction of a new telegraph line further north alongside the Trans-Australian Railway in 1929.

[6] In 1971, worldwide media publicity came to the town after reports (and indistinct photographs) emerged of a half-naked blonde girl who had gone wild and lived and ran with the kangaroos, who came to be known as the "Nullarbor Nymph".

With summers being right around 22 °C (72 °F) means, temperatures are near the border between maritime and subtropical climates, although Eucla is highly variable due to the combined cool-ocean and hot-desert influences.

Primarily established as a quarantine checkpoint for agricultural produce, this small settlement also comprises a licensed roadhouse and caravan park.

In October 2005, Greyhound Australia announced the closure of their Nullarbor service due to rising fuel prices and declining passenger numbers.