When Place Tells a Story: The Analysis of the Tha Taphao Riverside Community District through the Cultural Landscape

Abstract

This research aims to examine the physical characteristics, architectural values, and cultural meanings of the Tha Taphao Riverside Community District in Chumphon Province through the analytical framework of cultural landscape, which conceptualizes the historic urban area as a system of relationships between built structures, people, activities, and the community’s shared memories. The study investigates how this area reflects its historical layers and socio-cultural transformations amid the pressures of contemporary urban development driven by economic expansion and infrastructural change. A qualitative research methodology was employed, incorporating field surveys, participant observation, and in-depth interviews with local residents to understand how the area is perceived from the standpoint of those who inhabit it. The analytical process consisted of site analysis, the creation of mental and perceptual maps, stratified spatial analysis, and cultural landscape interpretation, aiming to synthesize the dynamic interrelations between the physical and symbolic dimensions of the place in a holistic manner. The findings reveal that the Tha Taphao Riverside Community District possesses a distinctive identity derived from its assemblage of built forms spanning multiple historical periods, including Traditional wooden shophouses, Art Deco buildings, Modernist structures, and Contemporary architecture. These elements collectively narrate the transformations of Chumphon over different eras. In parallel, public spaces and religious sites such as the Nia Keng Shrine, Wat Subannanimitr, riverfront piers, local shops, and activity plazas continue to serve as social hubs. These structures and spaces function as cultural mediators, supporting economic, religious, and everyday activities that render the district a living cultural landscape, where continuous place-use practices contribute to the accumulation of shared memories and local identity. In terms of spatial structure, the district’s circulation network includes city-level primary roads namely Poraminmanka Road and Phuwanard Damnoen Road along with neighborhood-level routes connecting internal community spaces, such as Ratwithi Klang Road, Ratwithi Nai Road, and smaller alleys. The riverfront walkways on both sides link the Ratwithi Community with the Wat Subannanimitr Community, creating diverse access routes and facilitating sustained use of the area at various times of day. Mixed-use building functions combining commerce, residential uses, and creative activities generate a rotating daytime and nighttime population, which significantly contributes to the vibrancy of the district. Furthermore, perceptual maps derived from resident interviews show that the places valued by the community are not limited to formally developed sites but include spaces rich in cultural memory such as the Phra Mae Thorani Shrine, formerly a key river pier for goods transportation; informal riverfront gathering nodes; local eateries; Wat Subannanimitr; and the community’s multipurpose plaza. These perceived spaces illustrate a landscape of memory that interweaves the lived experiences of different generations and continues to shape residents deep emotional attachment to the district.

However, the stratified spatial analysis reveals overlapping relationships among economic spaces, religious spaces, traditional residential areas, and the internal circulation network of the community. These spatial layers operate dynamically, and their overlaps reflect the characteristics of a “multi-vocal landscape”, produced by the presence of diverse user groups including long-term residents, business owners, the elderly, youth, tourists, and passersby each of whom perceives and interprets the area in different ways. The analysis also identifies challenges related to changing land use, particularly the conversion of residential spaces into commercial ones. Such transformations may generate feelings of dispossession among certain local groups and lead to forms of cultural power negotiation. Through cultural landscape interpretation, it becomes evident that built structures and everyday activities function as carriers of historical narratives and cultural values. For example, the two-story wooden riverside buildings reflect the district’s former water-based economy; Sino-Thai architecture illustrates the roots of the local Chinese-descendant community; and the adaptation of old buildings for creative businesses signifies the district’s response to emerging economic currents. Based on the overall analysis, this article argues that the Tha Taphao Riverside Community District possesses significant cultural value in terms of architecture, landscape, and collective memory. These values should form the foundation for planning its conservation and development as a historic urban district. Appropriate development strategies include integrating cultural landscape principles into urban planning, designing public spaces through participatory processes, promoting creative economic activities that align with the existing context, and establishing a citywide cultural landscape network. Such approaches would support sustainable development while preserving the district’s identity in the long term.