ABSTRACT
Charles J. Galpin made a notable contribution to rural sociology by his publication of The Social Anatomy of a Rural Community, where he reported the results of a social survey in which he had asked questions about the social habits of people in a rural area. In 1913 Robert Ezra Park was appointed to a lectureship in the University of Chicago, and later, in 1923, to the chair of sociology. The notion of ecological equilibrium is strongly brought out in Park's thought, for history may bring epidemics, invasions, new inventions and other factors which have their effects. Human ecology, as Park called his method of approach, was the basis for research into urban development. Urban sociology is still a major factor in sociological teaching and research but it is much more oriented to town planning and in this respect the ecological tradition initiated by Park and E. W. Burgess is still alive.
