In the series premiere, the railroad has hired men to force the farmers and ranchers of Stockton off land acquired by the railroad. An angry young man, Heath, shows up at the Barkley ranch claiming to be the late Tom Barkleys' illegitimate son.
While preparing for a major cattle drive, Heath has difficulty being accepted as a Barkley by the ranch hands. Nick's former commander in the war comes for an unexpected visit.
While Stockton honors the memory of Tom Barkley, Victoria searches for answers about Tom and Heath's mother.
Audra is saved by a man who claims to be a mustang hunter, but his band of marauders is extorting protection money from the farmers and ranchers of Stockton.
Victoria sells land to an old friend, keeping a promise made many years before, while Jarrod supports a plan to flood the land to benefit the entire valley.
While Heath investigates violence at one of the Barkley mines, he discovers that the miners hate the Barkley family for promises that have not been kept by the mines' managing partner.
While the Barkleys are involved in a land dispute with a neighbor, Heath falls for the neighbor's daughter, who has recently returned from the east.
An old childhood friend of Audra's returns and surprises her at her birthday party. She doesn't know that he is dangerous and emotionally disturbed.
An earthquake traps Victoria with several others in a forgotten mine shaft under the mission church.
Jarrod defends a man accused of murder, even though the only witness to the crime is his own brother, Heath.
While on his way to sell his herd of cattle, Nick's friend Mariano Montoya discovers that anthrax has infected the herd.
When Nick is bitten by a rabid wolf, he makes Heath swear not to say a word and leaves town so his family will not have to witness what will happen to him.
Matt Toddman, the new foreman of the Barkley's logging operations to dinner, is discovered to be Matt Bentell, the former commander of a prison camp where Heath had been held.
A group of Irish immigrants settle down on Barkley land, believing that they bought the land legally.
Jarrod decides to bring Maybelle Williams, one of his clients, home for Christmas.
While out counting cattle, Heath comes across a dead cow and is shot by the same rawhiders who killed the cow.
Nick returns from a trip from San Francisco with a big surprise - a fiance.
Jarrod is visited by an old law school friend who is being followed by the Secret Service.
Mistaken for the schoolteacher, Victoria is kidnapped by an outlaw who wishes to learn to read.
A guilt ridden Jarrod offers to help a man that he helped to convict of a crime that Jarrod now knows that he did not commit.
While having a birthday drink at The Barbary Red saloon with two of his ranch hands, Nick is shanghaied.
Handy Random, the man who killed the man that killed Tom Barkley, comes to visit the Barkley family during a property dispute.
Heath feels that his friend's injury and paralysis is his fault, and ends up being used by the man.
A man comes to the ranch looking for Heath and is shot by bounty hunters.
Heath's childhood sweetheart Liberty Keane suddenly reappears in his life, bringing unexpected trouble.
When Victoria and Heath take a wagon full of supplies up to the Barkley lodge to prepare for the arrival of the rest of family, their pleasant ride soon turns into a nightmare.
A boy discovers the wreckage of a long-lost riverboat, the River Monarch, which was said to be carrying a large shipment of gold.
Audra falls for a shrewd financier, who has come to the valley to capitalize on a drought that has left most of the ranchers in need of loans.
Bert Jason's new store is used by outlaws who tunnel into the next building to steal the Barkley's gold shipment.
While on their way to the fair in Sacramento, Audra is stricken with a severe case of appendicitis. Fortunately, there is a doctor on board, but he is being chased down by men who wish to see him hang.
A man arrives at the Barkley Ranch and claims that he is Heath's father, causing Heath to question his parentage.
While Heath is in Mexico visiting General Ruiz, the general escapes arrest by fleeing to the Barkley ranch.
Nick and Jarrod head to Mexico to break out Heath, who has already broken out and been recaptured.
A friend of Audra has a new, very young, stepmother who likes him as more than a son and is jealous of Audra.
Victoria heads alone into the desert to find a sick indian before he reaches, and infects, his people.
Jarrod defends a Basque sheepherder.
Joshua Hawks, a candidate for governor, comes to Stockton with accusations against Tom Barkley.
A woman asks Nick for help, saying she is on the run from her former outlaw boyfriend.
While traveling to represent the State Land Commission, Jarrod is injured and has amnesia.
Bumbling thieves hold Victoria and Audra hostage as they try to open a safe at the train station.
While traveling, Nick and Heath buy a bull from a man who subsequently has them arrested for stealing it.
Victoria, Jarrod, Heath, and their travelling companions are left stranded in the desert without water by three stagecoach robbers.
Victoria and Audra are held captive in the church by an outlaw and her sons.
Nick accompanies a gypsy and her family to her wedding.
Audra takes a liking to a mysterious young man, who is a dreamer on the run due to reasons unknown.
The Barkley family helps a man trying to get his peaches to market.
An old beau of Victoria's comes to town, but he is not the man she remembers.
15-year-old Lud Akeley is determined to take care of his younger siblings without any help from the Barkley family, while looking for the mother who left them.
Victoria witnesses a murder committed by her godson.
An old ranch hand tries to prove he is still useful, by capturing a wild stallion alone.
Senator Judd Robeson, a former gunman, comes to Stockton, showing signs of paranoia.
Nick manages an injured boxer who has been told by his doctor to quit fighting.
A fake faith healer comes to Stockton.
A general that Nick served with in the Civil War visits the Barkley ranch and is accused of war crimes.
Heath is sent to protect an evacuated town.
Heath travels to bring Jarrod and Nick money for a water pump, but a gambler wants to relieve him of it.
Heath helps an old friend and lawman transport a wanted outlaw to Stockton, with the outlaw's gang in hot pursuit.
Nick goes to find the daughter of a seriously injured ranch hand, with unexpected results.
Heath is wrongfully arrested for attempted rape, and is helped by a nun who used to be his girlfriend.
Nick captures an eagle, and a dynamiter causes trouble at a Barkley mine.
A man is hired at the ranch who is believed to be a Mexican outlaw thought long dead.
Victoria helps three indian women at a desert mission.
To pay off a gambling debt, Josiah Freeman pawns off his flock of sheep on Nick.
Jarrod agrees to prosecute a land grabber, but his determination to see justice served is severely tested when he is blinded in an explosion.
Traveling on a stage, Heath, Victoria, Audra, and a wayward saloon girl, stop in a small town for the night, where the town marshal turns out to be an old friend of Heath's. The man, though, is clearly not the man Heath remembers.
Nick and Heath stop at an inn where guests are killed for their money.
A client of Jarrod's escapes and takes over the schoolhouse where Audra is the substitute teacher.
A frantic Victoria searches for Audra, who has disappeared from a hotel and who no one claims to have seen.
Victoria and Audra become acquainted with the new town doctor, unaware that he is a psychotic killer out to avenge his father's suicide by hanging those he holds responsible, and Victoria is one of his targets.
A forest fire rages, drawing closer to Stockton. The only solution is a firebreak created by a nitroglycerin explosion.
Jarrod, Nick and Heath volunteer to take the nitroglycerin to the fire.
Victoria is captured by crooked prison guards, who plan to substitute her for a convict they murdered.
While traveling through a strange town, a murder occurs and an innocent man is accused of it. Heath saw the man who really committed the crime, a fact which gets him more trouble than he bargained for.
A community of mountain dwellers, who live by their own laws, captures Heath and forces him into slavery for killing one of their own in self defense.
The Barkleys hire convicts to help with their crops as part of a parole system, but a sadistic guard is determined to make his charges miserable.
On the trail of the two thieving brothers who shot Jarrod during a robbery, Nick and Heath find them in a town where they are not only considered the leading citizens, but also practically saints.
Wracked with grief when his new bride is murdered, an enraged Jarrod relentlessly hunts down her killer.
A wealthy Mexican visits the Barkleys, asking for help and bringing a valuable necklace with him.
Nick and Heath join a posse led by a legendary marshal, but the marshal is no longer the same man they knew in the past.
Jarod defends Heath in court when he is accused of murder.
A couple kidnap Victoria in an attempt to corner the rice market.
When Jarod goes to Rimfire to conclude a merge of two mines, trouble starts.
Nick falls for newcomer Layle Johnson, who is slow to respond to his attentions.
A friend of Heath's has been carrying on a correspondence courtship with a woman who is to be his mail-order bride.
Nick sets out to emotionally help a 14 year old boy who is rejected by his family and getting into trouble.
A Senator comes to Stockton to campaign for re-election, but finds himself the target of a smear campaign that pulls Victoria in as well.
Victoria and Audra Barkley unexpectedly meets a commanding officer in the US Army who rescued them from a freak accident on the road. He takes an immediate liking to Audra, but unknown to them, he is a psychologically disturbed and is obsessed with purity.
A former confederate spy arrives in Stockton to a harsh welcome.
On a stagecoach ride to Stockton, Victoria Barkley has an accident and suffers amnesia. She is rescued by a widower, a cattle rustler who convinces her that she is his wife.
After a panther nearly kills Nick, he wants revenge.
Jarrod travels to Baker City, intending to meet three brothers from Mexico for a business deal. Upon arrival, he learns that they have all been lynched.
The Barkleys meet a short, timid man, who is believed to be a jinx, as whatever he sets his hands to becomes a disaster.
Heath has an interesting encounter with a young woman, who is obsessed with and plans to marry him, much to the objections of her brothers.
Audra witnesses the brutal murder of a close friend and her family. Victoria takes her home to Stockton by stagecoach, while the stage and its passengers are pursued by a mysterious rider.
Heath saves the life of a man, who turns out to be a hired killer on his way to Stockton to accept a job - killing Heath.
As a practical joke, Nick accuses a local seamstress of being a legendary outlaw.
Heath takes in his care and protection a baby entrusted to him by an outlaw's dying wife.
A jealous rancher holds Nick and two other men captive, believing one of them to be his wife's outside lover.
Victoria is being kept from her brother-in-law, who is said to be insane.
A cowboy is believed to be a legendary and special man with the ability to tame horses with ease.
A wealthy and powerful rancher moves into Stockton to ruin the Barkley enterprises. His motive: intense hatred of Jarrod, who he thinks is having an affair with his young wife.
The Dutton Mining Company payroll is missing, and the residents of Midas blame Heath.
An American Indian friend returns to Stockton as a lawyer, but is met with prejudice.
Victoria goes undercover at a women's prison to investigate the conditions there.
When a prince from India comes to Stockton, Jarrod's wealthy young ward Laura falls in love with him.
The Barkleys unknowingly rent a farm to a Mormon polygamist.
Victoria and Jarrod stop in a town having outrageous prices for food, lodging, and services. After finding out the people are bilking travelers to survive, the Barkleys decide to open a shipping business to save the town.
Nick and Heath, on the trail of a gang of murderous raiders stealing horses, enlist the help of the former sheriff of Stockton, with motives of his own.
In a dying desert town, Heath is imprisoned by five deranged people who play bizarre and deadly games with the few people who happen onto their town.
An Englishman with a large gambling debt agrees to smuggle whiskey onto an Indian reservation to pay off his losses.
A former girlfriend asks Heath to undertakes a dangerous trip to revolution-torn Mexico to save her rebel Mexican husband before he is killed.
In the series' final episode, a convict enlists the help of his son to bring vengeance on the Barkley family.