
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.
Little Joe runs into romantic complications when he tries to teach a deaf girl sign language; guest Albert Salmi.
Outlaws plot to steal a trunk containing the savings of a religious group heading for a new life in the West.
As Ben prepares to run for governor, Joe must come to his rescue when a disabled police officer from New Orleans comes to arrest Ben on a 20-year-old murder charge.
When a neighbor agrees to sell his property, the Cartwrights fear the loss of water rights for their cattle.