Colonel Ferris, a wealthy farmer in northern California, is strongly opposed to hydraulic mining, a new method developed during the gold rush of the 1870's, which is flooding the area's prosperous farmlands. Despite Ferris' political stance, Jared Whitney, a mining engineer from the East, becomes friends with the colonel's son Lance and falls in love with his daughter Serena. Family tensions deepen when the colonel's brother Ralph gives up farming to go to San Francisco to work for his wife Rosanna's father, Harrison McCooey, a leader in the mining venture. When Lance follows Ralph, the colonel, focusing his anger on Jared, forbids him to see Serena.
| Directing | Michael Curtiz | Director |
| Writing | Clements Ripley | Story |
| Writing | Robert Buckner | Screenplay |
| Writing | Warren Duff | Screenplay |
| Camera | Sol Polito | Director of Photography |
| Production | Hal B. Wallis | Executive Producer |
| Sound | Max Steiner | Original Music Composer |
| Art | Ted Smith | Art Direction |
| Production | Samuel Bischoff | Associate Producer |
| Editing | Clarence Kolster | Editor |
| Production | Jack L. Warner | Executive Producer |
| Costume & Make-Up | Milo Anderson | Costume Design |
| Editing | Owen Marks | Editor |
| Directing | Jack Sullivan | Assistant Director |
