The refuge is a 1,329-acre (5.38 km2) island in the James River, located approximately 20 miles (32 km) south of Richmond.

D Williams, a Richmond tobacco magnate, willed a parcel of land called Presquile to the Virginia Commission of Game and Inland Fisheries for use as a wildlife refuge[citation needed].

Established to protect habitat for wintering waterfowl and other migratory birds, Presquile is an important component in the network of refuges on and around the Chesapeake Bay, the largest estuary in the United States.

The refuge is primarily hardwood swamp, with a fringe of marsh and 300 acres (1.2 km2) of upland fields.

This article incorporates public domain material from websites or documents of the United States Fish and Wildlife Service.