Cedartown, Nebraska, is introduced as the setting of this novel. It is characterized by its tumultuous weather, which alternates between droughts and “dreary rain,” although it also provides clear, beautiful days. Abbie Deal is one of the oldest people in Cedartown and can remember the changes Cedartown has been through. Abbie dies alone in bed, and her children worry that she was miserable at the end. One of Abbie’s grandchildren, Laura, believes that Abbie died peacefully, thinking about all her memories.

The narrative turns back in time to 1854, when Abbie Deal was eight-year-old Abbie Mackenzie. Abbie travels to a new home with her family in Iowa, except for her father, who has been dead for two years. Abbie’s father came from landed gentry in Scotland but lost all his money. Their mother, an Irish immigrant, tried to hold onto a few precious belongings she could pass down to her daughters; Abbie dreams of being a lady like her ancestors.

The family makes it to Cedar Falls in their covered wagon. As they unpack their belongings, Abbie finds a small chest with the last remaining finery of their aristocratic background.