In 1880s Wisconsin, ambitious lumberjack Barney Glasgow (Edward Arnold) loves saloon girl Lotta (Frances Farmer) but spurns her and marries to advance his career. While Lotta marries his friend (Walter Brennan) and has a daughter, Barney becomes a lumber bigwig by ruthless deforestation. Years later, the late Lotta's daughter, also named Lotta and played by the same actress, becomes the object of affection of both Barney, hoping to recapture the love he lost, and his son, Richard (Joel McCrea).