Collection of 13 Photographs of San Francisco Links Club Events

[Oakland, California]: [E. F. Joseph Studios], Circa 1950-1953. 13 b&w photographs, of which 11 are 8 x 10 inches and 2 are 6-1/4 x 10 inches, plus a small marker or sign for the San Francisco Chapter of the Links, printed in green on a strip of white paper. Most photographs stamped on the verso with the photography studio's name and the date; several also signed in ink by Joseph on the photo itself. Light wear; creasing to corner of one photo; small bit of discoloration to another photo. Good to Very Good overall.

A collection of photographs of Links members and their events by Emmanuel Francis Joseph (1900-1979), considered the first professional African American photographer in the Bay Area. The Links is an invitation-only social and service club for Black women, founded in 1946 and still in operation today.

The photographs are a combination of posed portraits of young women in formal attire and gatherings of Links members at social events. Two of the photographs are of the Links visiting artist and actor Ching Wah Lee after a tour of Chinatown, during which Ching shows them pieces of ancient Chinese art and speaks briefly about the need to understand different racial and ethnic groups (a newspaper clipping accompanies these photos).

Joseph's archive is held by the Oakland Public Library, but it is unclear if these photographs are included in it. Nevertheless, his photographs only rarely come to market.