In January 1854 the level of lake Zürich was particularly low and the locals took the chance to reclaim some land.

[3] The locals also unearthed coins from Roman times (1st to 3rd century AD).

One of the Roman roads connected Turicum (Zürich) with places up to Chur and passed by Meilen.

Since the Middle Ages local trade and handicraft was established in Meilen.

Of this area, 46.9% is used for agricultural purposes, 24.4% is forested, 27.2% is settled (buildings or roads) and the remainder (1.4%) is non-productive (rivers, glaciers or mountains).

As of 2007[update] 26.5% of the total municipal area was undergoing some type of construction.

The town is divided into four districts (Wachten), namely Feldmeilen, Dorfmeilen and Obermeilen along the lake side, as well as Bergmeilen towards the Mt.

Most of the population (as of 2000[update]) speaks German (87.6%), with Italian being second most common ( 2.4%) and English being third ( 1.7%).

There are also a number of mansions, including the Seehof, Seehalde and Grüene Hof.

The Seehof mansion was built in 1767-1769 and originally home to the successful textile producer Felix Oeri-Lavater.

Located on Zürichsee lakeshore, Meilen–Rorenhaab is part of the 56 Swiss sites of the UNESCO World Heritage Site Prehistoric pile dwellings around the Alps,[8] and the settlement is also listed in the Swiss inventory of cultural property of national and regional significance as a Class object.

Meilen railway station is served by the S6 (daily, every 30 minutes), S7 (daily, every 30 minutes), S20 (One-way rush hour service) and SN7 (weekend night service) lines of the Zürich S-Bahn.

During the day the S16 line terminates at Herrliberg-Feldmeilen, but during early mornings and late evenings it is extended to Meilen.

In the summer there are regular boats along the lake to Zürich and Rapperswil, run by the Zürichsee-Schifffahrtsgesellschaft.