20th Century American Poetry contains 52,000 poems from collected works and individual volumes of poetry covering the works of most major twentieth-century American poets. The database includes the works of most major twentieth-century American poets, beginning with the traditionalists; continuing through the modernists, represented by such poets as Wallace Stevens; and moving on to the contemporary works of the 1990s.

The broad coverage of Twentieth-Century American Poetry includes collected works and individual volumes of poetry from all the major movements and schools, including the New School, the Chicago School, the Southern School, the Confessionals, the Beats, and the Black Mountain poets.

For early American poetry, see American Poetry 1600-1900.