I. Jane : The planter's daughter ; The planter's wife ; The widow Jefferson ; The revolutionary's mother
II. Martha : The debt collector's daughter ; Bride and widow ; Mr. and Mrs. Jefferson ; Martha's property ; His world and hers ; Domestic tranquility ; The war comes home ; The butcher's bill
III. Sally : Stories and shadow families ; Summoned and sent ; Paris ; Amazons versus angels ; Sally's choice ; Coming home
IV. Patsy and Polly : Patsy and Polly ; Trouble in the neighborhood ; Domestic tranquility, revisited ; Danger ; Scandal ; Motherhood and mortality
V. A house divided : Domestic diversification ; The pursuit of happiness ; The perils of matrimony ; The capriciousness of fortune ; When we think how we liv'd but to love them.