Robert Ezra Park (February 14, 1864 – February 7, 1944) was an American urban sociologist who is considered to be one of the most influential figures in early U.S. sociology. Park was a pioneer in the field of sociology, changing it from a passive philosophical discipline to an active discipline rooted in the study of human behavior. He made significant contributions to the study of urban communities, race relations and the development of empirically grounded research methods, most notably participant observation in the field of criminology. From 1905 to 1914, Park worked with Booker T. Washington at the Tuskegee Institute. After Tuskegee, he taught at the University of Chicago from 1914 to 1933, where he played a leading role in the development of the Chicago School of sociology.
Park is noted for his work in human ecology, race relations, human migration, cultural assimilation, social movements, and social disorganization. He played a large role in defining sociology as a natural science and challenged the belief that sociology is a moral science. He saw sociology as "...a point of view and a method for investigating the processes by which indiviudals are inducted into and induced to cooperate in some sort of permanent corporate existence, society."
Biography
Childhood and early life
Robert E. Park was born in Harveyville, Luzerne County, Pennsylvania, on February 14, 1864, to parents Hiram Asa Park and Theodosia Warner Park. Immediately following his birth, the Park family moved to Red Wing, Minnesota, where he grew up.
Park lived in Red Wing for his first eighteen years. Referred to as the "Middle Border" by American novelist Hamlin Garland, Red Wing was a relatively undeveloped and unsettled area with new- but few- towns. The one significant event from his youth recalled by Park was an encounter with bandit Jesse James with whom Park provided with directions to a local blacksmith's shop. Park has been described as an "awkward, sentimental and romantic boy" whose character led him to develop an interest in writing. He was not considered a promising student, but he liked learning about the people in his town and their ancestries, a niche which would prove to be useful throughout his life. Park graduated high school in 1882—finishing tenth overall in a class of thirteen. Park was interested in attending college after high school, but his father did not allow him to do so, ironically because he felt his son was not "study material." As a result, Robert ran away from home and found a job working on a railroad.
Park's love of writing and concern for social issues, especially issues related to race in cities, led him to become a journalist. Franklin Ford and Park made plans for a newspaper, Thought News, which would report public opinion. Although it was never published, Park still pursued a career as a journalist. From 1887 to 1898, Park worked as a journalist in Detroit, Denver, New York City, Chicago, and Minneapolis. Park's experience as a reporter led him to study the social function of the newspaper, "not as an organ of opinion, but as a record of current events". Towards the end of his newspaper career, Park became disenchanted with the idea that newspaper reporting could alone solved social issues. As a reporter Park learned a great deal about urban communities, which inspired his later sociological endeavors in race relations.
In 1894, Park married Clara Cahill, the daughter of a wealthy Michigan family and had four children: Edward, Theodosia, Margaret and Robert.
Education
Park first attended the University of Minnesota where he excelled in his courses. Because of his success at the University of Minnesota, his father offered to invest in furthering Robert's education at the prestigious University of Michigan. Upon entering the University of Michigan, Park decided to transition from studying science to instead studying philology. His professor Calvin Thomas exerted a great influence on him. He challenged him to expand his mind and deeply pursue the concepts presented in his courses.