Part 1: Introduction
The problem of tradition and myth in a democratic culture
"The present is burdened too much with the past"
Motifs of morality, myth, and memory in antebellum culture.

Part 2: Prolegomenon: the enhancement of retrospective vision
The Civil War remembered, but unreconciled
Ambiguities of tradition: celebrating the past by praising the present
Mismatched memories and perplexed patriotism: an elitist preference for Old World traditions
"Memory is what we now have in place of religion"
"Millions of newcomers alien to our traditions"
The power of place, patronesses of the past, and varied sources of transition in the progressive era
Coda: degrees of distinctiveness: comparisons.

Part 3: Prolegomenon: "the emotional discovery of America"
In quest of an American aesthetic: collecting Americana and seeing America first
Authentic museums to educate the people about the history of progress
Regional rivalry, local pride, and the contestation of memory
Competing conceptions of cultural identity: national versus folk
Memory in politics: the changing role of government
The changing imperatives of myth, memory, and Americanism
Coda: degrees of distinctiveness: comparisons.

Part 4: Prolegomenon: nostalgia, heritage, and the anomalies of historical amnesia
The heritage imperative: popularizing, collecting, and preserving
The public sector and the politics of tradition in cold war America
Nostalgia, new museums, the roots phenomenon, and reborn patriotism: idiosyncracies of selective memory
Disremembering the past while historicizing the present
Coda: degrees of distinctiveness: comparisons.