George Dean (Robert Taylor) and his three children relocate when he takes a teaching position at a Seminole Indian reservation in Florida. He is overwhelmed by the poverty of the tribe and their ability to interact in society without giving up their treasured tribal customs. Sam (Ford Rainey) is the old Seminole chief who resents the white man and wants his grandson Johnny (Chad Everett) to renounce the white man's ways and assume leadership of the tribe. Johnny and George's daughter Barbara (Brenda Scott) fall in love, which leads to problems in both families. George falls for the pretty female physician (Geraldine Brooks), who is dedicated to healing the poverty-stricken people.