US public memory rhetoric and the National Mall Introduction: the soul of the nation Roger C. Aden Civic tourism and the Washington Monument Casey R. Schmitt Placemaking and the Vietnam Veterans Memorial: an exploration in user experience design John A. McArthur Myth and accountability: the negotiation of rhetorical tensions in the Korean War Veterans Memorial Michael R. Kramer Commemorating in Americas front yard: the National World War II Memorial and the public memory landscape of the National Mall Jennifer L. Jones Barbour A requiem and a dream: discerning the rhetorical significance of the Lincoln Memorial Raymond Blanton The Ulysses S. Grant Memorial as a site of virtuous suffering Lawrence J. Prelli Entrepreneurs and immigrants: representing American identity in the National Museum of American History Jennifer Keohane Intergenerational cultural trauma and the National Museum of the American Indian Ernest Stromberg Public memory as contested site: the struggle for existence at the National Museum of African American History and Culture Timothy J. Brown Extending the national narrative: the MLK Memorial and the Museum of African American History and Culture Lisa Benton Short Memorials behind the one we see: the story of the Franklin Delano Roosevelt Memorial Karen A. Franck Stepping into history: time and dialogue in the progressive experience of the FDR Memorial Catherine L. Langford Conclusion: soul searching and public memory on the National Mall Roger C. Aden