Back in 1987 when a Globe photographer captured the image at top left, the gate in Bostons Chinatown marked the very edge of the neighborhood, and sat just across from the exposed ramp to the Expressway. Chinatown remains the cultural and economic center for new Chinese immigrants. Its the most flourishing ethnic neighborhood in the city, said Tunney Lee, an MIT professor who has studied the neighborhoods history.

Here are some photos of how Chinatown and the nearby area have changed in recent decades.