Part I. Protoenvironmentalists (1945-1959). The ebb and flow of John F. Kennedy ; Harry Truman: polluted and radiated America ; Rachel Carson and the shore of the sea ; William O. Douglas and the protoenvironmentalists ; Wilderness politics, Dinosaur National Monument, and the Nature Conservancy ; Saving shorelines ; Protesting plastics, nuclear testing, and DDT

Part II. John F. Kennedy's new frontier (1961-1963). Forging the new frontier: Stewart Udall and Lyndon Johnson ; Wallace Stegner's "Wilderness letter" ; The green face of America ; Rachel Carson, the Laurence Rockefeller Report, and Kennedy's science curve ; The White House Conservation Conference (May 24-25, 1962) ; Rachel Carson's alarm ; Point Reyes (California) and Padre Island (Texas) National Seashores ; Campaigns to save the Hudson River and Bodega Bay ; The tag team of John F. Kennedy, Stewart Udall, and Rachel Carson ; The limited nuclear test ban treaty

Part III. The environmentalism of Lyndon Johnson and Richard Nixon (1964-1973). JFK's last conservation journey ; The Mississippi fish kill, the Clean Air Act, and American beautification ; The Great Society: Rachel Carson and Howard Zahniser's legacies ; The Wilderness Act of 1964 ; Ending the bulldozing of America ; America's natural heritage: Cape Lookout, Big Bend, the Grand Canyon ; Defenders: historical preservation, endangered species, and bedroll scientists ; "Sue the bastards!" and environmental justice ; The unraveling of America, 1968 ; Lyndon Johnson: champion of wild rivers and national scenic trails (October 2, 1968) ; Taking stock of new conservation wins ; Santa Barbara, the Cuyahoga River, and the National Environmental Policy Act ; Generation Earth Day, 1970-1971 ; Nixon's environmental activism of 1972: the Great Lakes protection, the DDT ban, and the Stockholm Conference

Epilogue. Last leaves on the tree.