
Ben Cartwright is the patriarch of an all-male Nevada ranching family. Set during and after the Civil War, "Bonanza" is the story of life on the family's thousand-acre spread, known as the Ponderosa, near Virginia City. Ben has his three sons, each with a different (and deceased) mother. Serious eldest son Adam hopes to follow in his father's footsteps; middle son Hoss is a gentle giant -- physically strong, but sometimes naive; and youngest son Little Joe is the most impetuous and romantic of the offspring.

An outlaw's harassment forces his wife to leave her deaf son and the safety of the Cartwright home.

Ben tries to help his paraplegic neighbor Tom by setting up a grain mill on his unused land; Tom's hired hand raises his suspicion about Ben's plan.

Two British socialites find that they still have a lot to learn when they visit their friends, the Cartwrights.

Little Joe and Hoss are mistaken for gunmen while in a small Texas town; they find themselves in the middle of a dangerous feud between two families.