The Last Wagon

Vignettes weaving together the stories of six individuals in the old West at the end of the Civil War. Following the tales of a sharp-shooting songster, a wannabe bank robber, two weary traveling performers, a lone gold prospector, a woman traveling the West to an uncertain future, and a motley crew of strangers undertaking a carriage ride.

A gambler is thrown out of a western town, but returns when the town is suddenly threatened by a band of marauding Apaches.

The army's effort to capture Apache chief Geronimo, who is leading a band of warriors on a rampage of raiding and murder, is hampered by a feud between two officers--who are father and son.

Captain Maddocks will never be promoted beyond Captain because of a mistake that he made in the past. Lt. McQuade is a green rookie who is now under the command of the tough Captain and he does not seem to be able to do anything right. Lt. McQuade also has trouble with Tracey, but it will be the renegade Indians that will test him and teach him the importance of following orders.

Telling the story of his early life in flashback, a former prospector (Joel McCrea, with flashback sequences featuring son Jody) explains his brutal massacre of a tribe of Indians. The only survivor (Marie Gahua) agrees to lead him to a secret gold mine.

Jeff Scott is sent to investigate problems with wagon trains attempting to make the journey to Oregon. Sam Morgan has sent his henchmen, under lead-henchman Bull Bragg, to stop the wagon trains in order to maintain control of the fur trade in the area.

Sheriff Lane Dakota captures robbery-murder suspect Greiner just as the latter is wounded in an Apache ambush. At remote outpost Apache River, Lane and his prisoner spend the night with other travelers, including 2 women with a surprising number of fancy dresses. In the morning, who should appear but a band of ostensibly peaceful Apaches strayed from the reservation. And bigoted Colonel Morsby is strongly inclined to shoot first and ask questions afterward...

A cavalry unit escorts a group of civilians through dangerous territory inhabited by Indians on the warpath.

Federal Agents Tipton and Bridger have been sent to Wyoming where the vote on statehood is imminent. Plummer and his gang are out to make sure the vote fails. When Plummer's men kill Bridger, Tipton fights on. He sends fake telegrams that trap some of Plummer's men. Then he organizes the ranchers and on election day they descend on the town barricaded by Plummer's gang.

A woman tracks down the three men who raped her, helped by an Apache. Traveling through the Old West to her new home, young schoolteacher Alice McAndrew is abducted by five outlaws headed by robber Pudge Elliott. The thugs rape Alice before leaving her for dead, but she is rescued by Chatto, an Apache chief. He restores her health and aids her in her bloodthirsty quest for revenge. With her sanity wavering, will Alice be able to find the men who tortured her?

New Mexico Territory, August 1879. The few surviving members of a cavalry column, which has been relentlessly decimated by the Apaches, attempt to reach Fort Crain. On their way through a hostile land, the obsessive and ruthless Sergeant Vinson takes to the limit the battered will of the troopers under his command.

Seven women are the only survivors of an Apache attack on a wagon train. They must cross the desert on foot to escape the Indians who are hunting them.

An Apache brave vows revenge when he feels betrayed by the U.S. Army.

Johnny Mack Brown goes in search of a treasure map tattooed on the chest of a man who once betrayed his father.

Steve Holden and his men successfully raid a wagon train. Among the local ranchers who decide to stop the raiding are Virgil Trent and his daughter Gail. At a meeting, Sidney Padgett, Cannonball and other townspeople conclude that someone is tipping the gang off on important shipments. Trent volunteers to contact the outlaws. He meets Steve and persuades him to cross to the side of the law and protect the ranchers. Steve soon suspects Padgett and tricks him into revealing his identity as the secret leader of the bandits, and in a furious battle between Steve's men and the outlaws, the former win.

The story of Ulzana, an Apache chief who has reached a rapprochement with the local Mexican population and generously extends it to whites who travel through the territory. His people have become inured to the treacherous ways of the white man, however, and are now reliant on them for booze, 'relief flour' and beef steak.

Travis, Arliss, and Lisbeth are captured by Apaches while Old Yeller's son, Sam, tracks their trail.

Jubal Troop is a cowboy who is found in a weakened condition, without a horse. He is given shelter at Shep Horgan's large ranch, where he quickly makes an enemy in foreman Pinky, a cattleman who accuses Jubal of carrying the smell of sheep.

Nineteen year old pioneer woman Marty has recently married. She goes west with her husband Clem, hoping to start a new life. But Clem unexpectedly dies, and Marty finds herself alone, two months pregnant. Widower Clark offers her a marriage of convenience: she needs food and money, and he needs someone to take care of his daughter Missie. She accepts his proposal as a temporary solution.

Two episodes of the 1957 TV series "Hawkeye and the Last of the Mohicans" edited together and released as a feature.