Eastham is known as the "Gatewayā€¯ to the Cape Cod National Seashore, which was founded in 1961 by President John F. Kennedy to protect Cape Cod's coast from erosion and overpopulation. The town is the site of many beaches, both on the Atlantic Ocean and on Cape Cod Bay, as well as the Nauset Light, which among the most photographed lighthouses in North America.