The area around Cordova was historically home to the Aleut, with a population of Eyak to the east, and occasional visits from Ahtna and Tlingit people for trade or battle. Orca Inlet was named "Puerto Córdova", after the city of Cordoba, Spain, by Don Salvador Fidalgo in 1790.The median income for a household in the city was $50,114, and the median income for a family was $65,625. Males had a median income of $40,444 versus $26,985 for females.

Cordova was also once the home of a booming razor clam industry - indeed, between 1915 and 1964 it was known as the "Razor Clam Capital of the World." Historic commercial harvest in this area was as much as 3 million pounds. Returns began declining in the late 1950s, presumably due to over harvesting.The economy of Cordova now relies on fishing and canning as well as small amounts of tourism. Cordova has a large fishing fleet that operates in Prince William Sound as well as several fish processing plants.