
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.

For saving his life, Ben offers some Ponderosa farmland to an American Indian.

A wanderer seeking his parents' lynchers, arrives in Virginia City as Ben and Adam are convicted of murder.

An outlaw joins the Cartwrights' cattle drive, knowing it will take him to the town where his father is the sheriff.

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