The Elizabeth Apartments is significant in Jamestown for its association with the business lives of the John H. Canhams and Ormsby McHargs, leading developers and owners of Jamestown's utility companies from 1888 to 1924. It is also significant architecturally and historically as the best example in the city of affordable multi-family housing constructed in response to the population boom in Jamestown between 1910 and 1920 when housing was scarce, Post-World War I labor costs were high, and there was a severe shortage of
building materials. The simplicity of the apartment building design and the extensive use of stucco were directly related to the need for quick construction and the lack of good building materials, including brick, in the early 1920s.〔 and (accompanying photos )〕