Collection Guide
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Genthe (Arnold) Photograph Collection
PC RM Genthe
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Table of contents
Language of Material:
English
Contributing Institution:
California Historical Society
Title: Arnold Genthe photograph collection
Creator:
Genthe, Arnold, 1869-1942
Identifier/Call Number: PC RM Genthe
Physical Description:
2.67 Linear feet
Date (inclusive): 1895-1925
Abstract: Collection of portraits of prominent
San Franciscans taken by Arnold Genthe between 1899 and 1920; photographs of the aftermath
of the 1906 Earthquake and Fire; and photographs Chinese American inhabitants of San
Francisco's Chinatown between 1895 and 1906. Collection contains film and glass negatives;
original photographic prints created by Genthe and copy prints presumably made from the
negatives in this collection.
Language of Material: Materials primarily in
English.
Arnold Genthe was born in Berlin, Germany on January 8, 1869. He emigrated to San Francisco
in 1895 where he taught himself photography. He photographed the Chinese Americans living
and working in San Francisco's Chinatown. Genthe opened a studio in San Francisco sometime
between 1890 and 1900 where he made portraits of prominent San Francisco citizens, artists,
authors, dancers, and actors. The 1906 San Francisco Earthquake and Fire destroyed his
studio, but provided him with the opportunity to document much of the destruction in the
city. Genthe rebuilt his studio in San Francisco in 1907 and published his Chinatown
photographs in 1908. He moved to New York in 1911, continuing to work in photography,
primarily in portraiture, until his death in 1942.
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Materials in this collection, which were created between 1895 and 1906, are in the public
domain in the United States. Permission to publish is not required.
Immediate Source of Acquisition
Negatives transferred from Library of Congress to the California Historical Society in
1954.
[Identification of item, date]; Arnold Genthe photograph collection, PC RM Genthe; [box
number, folder number]; California Historical Society.
Comprises film and glass negatives; and original photographic prints created by Arnold
Genthe between 1895 and 1925. Most of the photographic prints are signed by Genthe. Also
contains copy prints, presumably created from the negatives in this collection.
Collection contains a sub-series of original portraits of artists, authors, dancers,
actors, and other prominent San Franciscans who were contemporaries of Genthe, including
Jack London. Another sub-series contains 16 original and many copy prints of photographs of
the aftermath of the 1906 San Francisco Earthquake and Fire.
Bulk of collection is in the Chinatown sub-series which contains a few original prints and
many copy prints of San Francisco's Chinatown. Known as Tangrenbu, this 10 block area was
inhabited by most of San Francisco's Chinese American population. Photographs depict Chinese
American children and families; tradespeople; and street scenes showing details of
Chinatown's architecture, store fronts, and inhabitants. Many of the titles Genthe chose for
his images contain language and descriptions considered offensive. Please see John Kuo Wei
Tchen's introduction in
Genthe's Photographs of San Francisco's
Chinatown
for a contemporary analysis of Genthe's photographs of Chinatown.
Physical Characteristics and Technical Requirements
Many glass plate negatives are cracked or broken and should not be handled.
Subjects and Indexing Terms
Chinese Americans -- California -- San Francisco -- Pictorial
works
Chinatown (San Francisco, Calif.) -- Pictorial works
San Francisco Earthquake and Fire, Calif., 1906 -- Pictorial
works
Chinese American children -- Pictorial works
Portraits
Photographic prints
Glass plate negatives