"Children of High Class"
Lew Kan, a prominent merchant who ran canneries and a store, walks through Chinatown with his two sons. The boys' formal clothing indicates their high status. All boys and many girls attended segregated public schools in Chinatown. (One merchant [...]
Exterior of a Chinese Temple in San Francisco
Chinese temples were often called Joss Houses. The word "joss" comes from the Portuguese term for God, Deus. Chinese immigrants in San Francisco went to temples to pray for good luck and to honor their ancestors. This photograph was most likely [...]
"Street of Gamblers (By Day)"
This photo of Ross Alley shows the preponderance of male immigrants in San Francisco's Chinatown. While outsiders dubbed this a "bachelor society," many Chinese immigrants had left behind families in China. Arnold Genthe's original caption for this [...]
"Chinese Butcher and Grocer Shop, Chinatown, S.F."
In the late 1880s, when this photograph was taken by Isaiah West Taber, there were over 20,000 Chinese living in California. Many settled in San Francisco's Chinatown, where markets, temples, theaters, and restaurants supplied a thriving commercial [...]
"Head of Auburn Ravine"
Immigrants from China were among the thousands who streamed into California after the discovery of gold there in 1848. In 1852 alone, 20,000 migrants came from China seeking “Gold Mountain.” Many Chinese immigrants found some success at [...]
"The Balloon Man"
As this photograph of a Jewish balloon man on Dupont Street shows, there were many non-Chinese peddlers in San Francisco's Chinatown. Chinatown was a popular tourist destination in the late 19th century, and many peddlers sold novelty goods to [...]