The Lawless Nineties

Undercover federal agents John Tipton and Bridger head for Crocket City to root out the criminal network threatening the statehood movement. They assess the town's power players and set up a covert presence among the settlers. Their arrival signals the escalating struggle with Steele, Plummer, and their followers.

Tipton meets Major Carter, his daughter Janet, and their servant Moses after their wagon train falls behind. Carter has acquired the Crocket City Blade and plans to use the newspaper to fight lawlessness. Tipton intervenes when outlaws harass the Carters, and Steele is shot when he draws on Tipton.

At a rally, Carter reveals his plan to use the press to combat crime and support Wyoming statehood. Charles Plummer warns that making noise could invite dangerous attention. The moment foreshadows the coming clash between reformers and criminals.

Bridger sends a coded message to request federal aid, while Plummer and two associates secretly listen in on the telegraph. They deduce that any coded message signals a government agent and decide to hunt Bridger down. The conspiracy widens as the criminals prepare to counter the federal response.

Two outlaws attack Tipton, but he defeats them. Shortly after, Bridger arrives in town badly wounded from a back shot, and no one can identify him, so Tipton pretends not to recognize Bridger to protect the mission.

Carter prints posters promoting statehood and uses them to rally support. A drunk disrupts the scene by ripping a poster and sparking a street fight. The man shoots Carter during the melee, but the murder charge is ruled accidental. Tipton tells Janet that the trial was a farce, signaling corruption.

Plummer learns of a silver shipment via his secret telegraph and dispatches men to ambush it. Tipton has arranged a fake telegraph message to trap the robbers, resulting in their capture. Steele, who has been watching from the trees, rides back to warn Plummer.

Steele informs Plummer of the setup; Plummer orders the outlaws to shoot up the town to disrupt the vote. During the ensuing gunfight, Tipton is captured by two outlaws and tied up in Plummer's office, where he overhears plans to disrupt voting.

Tipton escapes his restraints and warns his men to return to their towns and stop the outlaws. He rallies the remaining force to counter the assault and protect the coming election.

On election day, the homesteaders are prevented from voting as the outlaws barricade the town. Tipton leads a force of agents and ranchers to crush the outlaws; a dynamite blast destroys the barricade, letting Tipton's men enter and capture most of the surviving outlaws.

Plummer grabs the money from the safe and plans to flee town. Steele is shot by Plummer during the chaos, and Tipton arrives to confront them, discovering Steele's corpse and Plummer attempting to escape on a horse. With no bullets left, Tipton tackles Plummer, knocking him unconscious as the sheriff arrives to arrest him.

Wyoming votes in favor of statehood and Tipton and Janet celebrate their victory. The outlaws are defeated and the reform movement secures the state's political future.