Chinatown in Washington, D.C., is a small, historic neighborhood east of downtown consisting of about 20 ethnic Chinese and other Asian restaurants and small businesses along H and I Streets between 5th and 8th Streets, Northwest. It is known for its annual Chinese New Year festival and parade and the Friendship Arch, a Chinese gate built over H Street at 7th Street. Other prominent landmarks include the Verizon Center, a sports and entertainment arena, and the Old Patent Office Building, which houses two of the Smithsonian Museums. The neighborhood is served by the Gallery Place-Chinatown station of the Washington Metro.
The Chinatown area was once home to many German immigrants; it is also the location of the Washington branch of the Goethe-Institut. Chinese immigrants began to move into the area in the 1930s, having been displaced from Washington's original Chinatown along Pennsylvania Avenue by the development of the Federal Triangle government office complex. The newcomers marked it with decorative metal latticework and railings as well as Chinese signage. At its peak, Chinatown extended from G Street north to Massachusetts Avenue, and from 9th Street east to 5th Street.
Like other Washington neighborhoods, Chinatown declined sharply after the 1968 riots. Ethnic Chinese residents, as well as many others, left for suburban areas, spurred further by the city's rising crime and taxes, and deteriorating business climate. When the Washington Metro station serving the neighborhood opened in 1976, it was named simply "Gallery Place," ignoring Chinatown altogether.