The Elizabeth River has been used by people since the Chesepian Indians sailed and fished its waters, but it is the naval and industrial uses since WWI that
have most strongly shaped the river as we see it today.

In the past, careless use of the river by industry left it barren and polluted, but today the most serious threat comes from urban runoff. Some areas of the river are still devoid of the living creatures that signal a healthy river, but clean-up and restoration has allowed other stretches of the
river to flourish again.