In 1605, Samuel de Champlain interacted briefly with native people in Nahant and remarked that "all along this coast there is much cleared land sewn with Indian corn.

"[2] By the 1630s at the time of English colonization, the seat of "Sagamore James" of the Naumkeag, known in his own tongue as Montowampate, was at the outlet of the Saugus River overlooking Nahant,[3] though the island itself may have been controlled by a sachem Poquanum, known to English settlers as Blacke William[4] or Duke William, who around 1632 gave permission to Thomas Dexter to use the island in exchange for an English suit.

[5] The word Nahant may mean "at the point," or "twin islands," or it may refer to an important local person named Nahantum.

The first hotel was built by one of the Johnsons 1802, and in 1817 a steamboat ran daily between Boston and Nahant.

In the late 19th century, it was home to some of the country's first amusement parks, as well as a popular summer retreat for the wealthy, including the poet Henry Wadsworth Longfellow.

The geologist Louis Agassiz was a resident and the artist William Stanley Haseltine produced many versions of his oil painting 'The Rocks at Nahant'.

[8] During World War II, East Point was the site of a coastal artillery battery.

It is now a town park, and location of the Marine Science Center for Northeastern University.

Besides the cement base, the only remaining piece of the original is the wooden cylinder in the center of the roof, which still bears the "1976" emblem—repainted by Nahant resident Octavia Randolph.

The only mass transit within town is route 439 of the MBTA bus system, which loops within town before passing back into Lynn, providing access to Central Square, home to a stop along the Newburyport/Rockport Line of the MBTA Commuter Rail, providing service between the North Shore and Boston's North Station.

Some 439 buses extend their service to Wonderland, providing a connection to the MBTA Blue Line.

Students attend grades preschool through sixth at Johnson Elementary School in Nahant.