After the murder of their founder, Joseph Smith (Vincent Price), members of the Mormon Church flee to the West in search of a place to practice their religion in peace. Leading the way is Brigham Young (Dean Jagger), who brings the Mormons to the Great Salt Lake in Utah. While a tenuous romance develops between Jonathan Kent (Tyrone Power) and Zina Webb (Linda Darnell), harsh conditions and internal divisions among the settlers threaten their survival.