The Richmond District is a neighborhood in the northwest corner of San Francisco, California. Lying directly north of Golden Gate Park, "the Richmond" is bounded roughly by Fulton Street to the south, Arguello Street to the east, The Presidio and Lincoln Park to the north, and the Pacific Ocean to the west. Park Presidio Boulevard, a major thoroughfare, divides the Richmond into the western "Outer Richmond" and the eastern portion, called the "Inner Richmond."
Originally an expanse of rolling sand dunes, the Richmond District was developed initially in the late 19th century. After the 1906 earthquake, development increased with the need to provide replacement housing.
In the 1950s and most especially after the re-structuring of US immigration law in 1965, Chinese Americans began to replace the ethnic Jewish and Irish Americans who had dominated the district before World War II. The area became known as the "New Chinatown," particularly along Clement Street between Arguello and Park Presidio, which is a bustling commercial strip of restaurants and shops. The Richmond District also features a prominent Russian community with many stores catering to the Russian community along Geary Boulevard and a high concentration of Eastern European immigrants.
Adolph Sutro was one of the first large-scale developers of the neighborhood. He is responsible for building the Sutro Baths, along with his mansion on the western end of the district, near Ocean Beach.
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