Rapid Ethnographic Assessment in Urban Parks: A Case Study of Independence National Historical Park

Abstract

This article presents a case study of the use of rapid ethnographic assessment procedures (REAP) to study an urban heritage park and its relationships with some of the cultural groups living in that city. The literature on REAP and rapid assessment, and on applied ethnographic research on parks, is surveyed. The context of the study is discussed at length: Independence National Historical Park in Philadelphia and its historic relationship to the city, the park's proposed improvements that necessitated the study, and the communities that were consulted. Emphasis is given to the difficulties involved in selecting, reaching, and fairly representing particular communities for study. The article reviews the different methods used in this case and how well they worked in relation to one another. The findings of the study are summarized, giving attention to how the various methods produced particular findings. The article concludes with some observations about the study's usefulness to park management in this case and on the value of such rapid ethnographic research as a basis for park planning and programming in general.