
By Kate Harrold
RARE PHOTOGRAPHS bring San Franciscoās original Chinatown to life ā showcasing the USAās rich Asian-American history.
In one image, a group of men walked along the city streets in 1896 wearing dark-coloured traditional Chinese male changshans ā a form of dress robe.
In another, two young girls held on to their motherās hand as they navigated the regionās streets amidst buildings adorned with Chinese lanterns.

Others showed a group of men lining up to buy flowers from the local lily vendor, and a shoe maker smoking through a Chinese tobacco pipe outside of his store.
The photographs were taken by German-American photographer Arnold Genthe whilst on a visit to Chinatown in San Francisco, California, USA, during the late 1890s. Arnold became fascinated with this area of the city after moving to San Francisco to become a tutor.
In 1906, San Francisco was struck by one of the worst earthquakes in the USā history. Measuring eight-point-three on the Richter scale, the earthquake destroyed 80 per cent of the city including Chinatown. Arnoldās photographs are the only known images of the area before the catastrophe.

The cityās Chinatown, established in 1848, is the oldest in the United States and it has the largest Chinese cultural identity outside of Asia. Today, itās a major tourist attraction and brings in more visitors than the Golden Gate Bridge.