Intergenerational Transmission of Collective Memory in Public Spaces: A Case Study of Menghe, a Historic and Cultural Town

Historic and cultural towns are undergoing spatial restructuring and memory ruptures in the context of urban–rural transformation. Collective memory depends on the continuity of public space, with generational differences playing a key role in its transmission. This study uses Menghe Town in Changzhou, Jiangsu Province, as a case to explore the role of public space in collective memory transmission through interviews, emotional mapping, and intergenerational co-construction analysis. The findings show the following: (1) Interviews and emotional mapping reveal that memories of traditional spaces like farmland have weakened, while emerging public spaces such as squares and walkways have become new memory nodes, reflecting a dynamic “carrying-transformation-reproduction” mechanism. (2) Intergenerational emotional mapping reveals that the transformation of spatial functions has driven the reconstruction of cultural identity, shifting villagers’ sense of place from clan and production-based spaces to modern public spaces. (3) Intergenerational emotional mapping and co-construction analysis reveal significant generational differences in memory perception and spatial use: the older generation relies on ancestral halls and farmland, the middle generation on factories and streets from the “agriculture-to-industry” period, and the younger generation on modern facilities like squares and schools. This study proposes the “Narrate—Preserve—Participate” model, explaining memory transmission across generations and offering insights for intergenerational collaboration and differentiated preservation in public space planning.