A 1905 bird's eye view of Boston's harbor, the second busiest port of entry for new immigrants at the time. More than 530,000 people entered the U.S. here between 1900 and 1910.

Early immigrants were expected to climb the socioeconomic ladder, as illustrated in these less-than-politically correct cards from around 1882 (Paddy was a slur against Irish men).

The continued ascent of an Irish immigrant, 5 years (left) and 10 years (right) after arrival.

A promotional brochure for "Oriental Heights" from the Boston Land Company, which began converting former marshland in East Boston into housing for new immigrants in the 1880s.

Meridian Street in East Boston, seen in a 1905 postcard (top) and modern photo (bottom), has been a lively retail area for more than a century.

In 1901, a Fish Market and German Boarding House existed at the corner of Beach and Oxford Streets. As Asian immigration took off in the 1900s the area became Boston's Chinatown.

Reconstructions of Beach and Tyler Streets from 1900 (top), 1936 (middle), and the 2000s (bottom) show the growth of Asian businesses in Chinatown.

This series of maps from the Boston Chinatown Urban Atlas show the growth of the area's Asian population and businesses.

Approximately 36 percent of Boston's population speaks a language other than English, compared to 26 percent in 1990. The six most common are: Spanish, Chinese, Haitian Creole, Vietnamese, Portuguese, and Italian.

These maps show where Boston's top six immigrant groups have settled. Clockwise from top left: Dominicans, Chinese, Haitians, Cape Verdeans, Salvadorans, Vietnamese. See a larger version.

These maps show Boston's diversity by several measures. Clockwise from top left: race, language other than English spoken at home, age, region of birth, education, household income. See a larger version.