This is a story about family relationships, set in the time before and during the American Civil War. Ethan Wilkins is a poor and honest man who ministers to the human soul, while his son Jason yearns to be a doctor, helping people in the earthly realm. It is a rich story about striving for excellence, the tension of father-son rebellion, and the love of a mother that can never die.
Walter Huston
as Ethan Wilkins
James Stewart
as Jason Wilkins
Beulah Bondi
as Mary Wilkins
Gene Reynolds
as Jason Wilkins as a Child
Guy Kibbee
as George Ames
Charles Coburn
as Dr. Charles Shingle
John Carradine
as President Lincoln
Ann Rutherford
as Annie Hawks
Leatrice Joy Gilbert
as Annie Hawks as a Child
Charley Grapewin
as Jim Meeker
Leona Roberts
as Sister Clarke
Gene Lockhart
as Quid
