Season 19

Matt becomes involved in investigating the disappearance of female settlers and travelers in the region. He links it to a band of renegade Native Americans, who plan to sell the women as sex slaves to a band of ruthless white mercenaries.

When we left the end of part 1: Matt was stopped by indians who wanted to team up with Matt and share food Matt continues to help Marcy and Stella and finds her gone. Stella would rather go home on her own Meanwhile Cynthia and Britt help each other. Matt tells Stella to look for landmarks. Britt wants to leave slave trading behind. Cynthia and Britt try and leave to freedom Blue Jacket is shot and lets Britt and Cynthia go. Later Cynthia is trapped after spotting Matt she stabs Britt and runs to Matt and soon is dead because Britt didn't want anything said. Marcy is taken home to her Grandpa and yells for Stella to stay with her.

A wounded Matt Dillon suffers amnesia then falls in love with a widow. Matt's first TV kiss, not to Miss Kitty, but to guest star Michael Learned.

Ron Moody guest stars as a man torn between keeping his own self-respect and the friendship of a young boy or keeping his drunken promise to help two hired gunmen.

Kitty and Matt are off for St. Louis, until Matt is summoned back on business. Upset with him, Kitty sets off for herself meeting a gunslinger on the stage who ends up saving her life. He goes back to Dodge with her and proceeds to court her. Kitty has a hard decision. Leave Matt after 18 years of a relationship or stay with Stambridge.

James Stacy stars as a roguish thief who's long on charm but a bit short on ethics. His real test of character comes on a long, adversity-plagued journey to Dodge with his captor Festus.

Bear Sanderson tells his wife Cora is coming home but Mrs. Sanderson is unhappy because she hates her marriage Bear whishes his wife dead He soon finds his wish true. Festus is getting deputies to help with the renegades, Doc Adams tells Cora that her home is gone and her mom has died. Cora asks how her mom died, Newly continues to track the renegades, Matt tells Bear he is sorry for what happened. Matt warns Bear not take the into his own hands because he wants the Indians dead for killing his wife. Cora wants her dad to let the law handle the raids. Matt hires a lawyer to defend the Indians in jail but doesn't want to take the case, Cora talks to Cicero Wolfe to take the case but he still won't take it. Matt feels that Bear let him down. Baer brings up the time when Kitty was shot and took off his badge and went to find Kitty's attackers alone with hurting Dodge. Mr. Wolfe takes the case only to tell Matt that he is an Indian and says the case is a sham.

Mr. Wolfe has taken the case and said it was sham, Matt offers to protect the lawyer. Cora feels lied to because she didn't know Mr. Wolfe was an indian. Cicero wolfe continues his after defense lawyer objects to the facts proving nothing. Cora feels that the case could hurt her dad no matter how the case ends. Cora feels her dad drove his wife to her death.Mr. Wolfe rests his case. Bear realizes that what Cora said was right and still loves her. Mr. Wolfe asks for a friend and says he always loved her.

Dillon forces an alcoholic Circuit Judge to hold an inquest into the death of a woman saloon owner which had resulted in the lynching of an innocent drifter.

Newly trying to save a hillbilly's life by inserting a tube in their throat loses his patent causing the family members to plan to execute him.

Nellie and Susan get ready to leave for St. Louis when Matt brings a prisoner to be treated for a wound he got while robing a bank. Susan wants to leave for St. Louis right away. Susan worries she and Nellie may never leave because of her love for the prisoner. Mr. Boswell asks Nellie to marry him. Susan puts a stop to Nellie getting married.

Billy comes back to Dodge because he has trouble finding anyone to listen to his stories and visit Festus who is a friend of his. Billy retarded and tells Festus a riddle and the answer given isn't funny to Billy, Doc tells Festus that Billy has the mind of a seven or eight year old and needs better care. Billy sees a man hurting a cat and almost kills the man, not knowing that what he did was wrong Matt and Festus talk to Judge Brooker and Festus becomes a guardian to Billy. When a deer is shot for food Billy attacks Festus. Festus has a hard time trying to make Billy understand why the deer was shot. Doc tells Festus to take Billy back to where he came from but finds that hard to do. They go to the place Doc suggested and Billy gets worried about the noises inside the place. Festus tells Billy he is going to kill rabbits for dinner and try to give Billy a taste of life. Matt, Doc & Festus find Billy telling kids stories at an orphan's home.

Lew Harrod rides to Dodge looking for Doc Adams but learn he is out Newly goes to help but finds that the boy's mom doesn't newly to help. Newly tries to have the parent's take the baby to Dodge, the mom doesn't like the medicine Newly wants to use, and the dad is a wanted man. The dad is angry because he didn't know Newly is a deputy. Harrod trusts newly and his wife doesn't want to go to Dodge because she knows Newly might bring men to take husband away. Makesha takes the baby to her people after Newly asks them to go to Dodge under the oath doctors take that way Newly can't say anything about her husband.

Matt and a fellow lawman go after a vicious family of robbers and killers.

An old safe cracker is set free and he comes back to Dodge to find his former lady love. When two men looking to steal a lot of money come to town and approach him about unlocking the safe at the station, he accepts their proposal, sort of.

Matt and Luke come to restore order to a town and hide their badge as walk in a bar. They find out that it will be hard work. Luke runs into a woman that he once loved Caleb wants Luke as his dad. Luke is told to go after the woman he loves and take her back. Luke wonders if being a Marshal is a good idea, he marries Caleb's mom and is told men are coming to the café to keep the town from dying. Matt returns with Festus and Newly to help out. Luke is leaving his job as Marshal.

After being forced to shoot a man who is breaking up the Long Branch, Matt goes off to be alone only to find a young girl and a newborn in a cave. Neither she nor her parents want the child, and they send it with Matt. Matt finds the only logical choice, Miss Kitty, to deposit the baby with till something can be done with it. Matt decides to give it to the widow of the man he just killed but doesn't realize that Kitty is willing to sell the Long Branch to keep the baby for herself.

Sarah takes her class on picnic trip to enjoy nature but is attacked by Mr. Stokes who is drunk and will have a baby but doesn't know yet and has hidden the secret. Doc tells her but she doesn't believe him. Mr. Pruitt and his son Lester love her. Carl feels hurt that he couldn't tell Sarah he would love the baby anyway. Carl goes to jail for not telling Matt why he fought Mr. Stokes. Sarah doesn't want to help Carl get out of jail because she was attacked and wants to leave Dodge.

Buck Henry Woolf is on the trail of his uncle, who killed his father, stole their money, and wounded him. Festus is on the same mission and also to stop the young man from taking the law into his own hands.

Jack Albertson plays a former pool player who tries to get some respect back. The men playing with him punch him because they realize he still has the touch to win. Sally's husband wants to use Moses to get money from him for him & Sally. Sally doesn't want her husband to gamble anymore. Sally wants Dave to take her somewhere, Moses uses Dave to get some respect back. Kitty asks some to leave the bar because she feels Moses might get hurt. Sally learns from Dave that he bet their money on another man so Dave can win. Moses hasn't lost his touch and plays for love.

Joan Shepherd wants Anna May to marry Steven Rogers, not Newly or Orlo who is a farmer. Ana May wants to date Newly. Newly drops by to take Anna May for a ride and is told she won't be back for awhile. Orlo fights Newly over Anna May, Orlo hits his head on the wagon causing him to lose his memory.

When a lawman's gun arm is shot up, he's essentially a sitting duck. That's what Matt figures when his ability to shoot again is in doubt. So, he leaves the badge and Dodge behind as well as Kitty, Festus, Doc, and Newly. Like vultures circling, outlaws start coming in to gun Dillon down. But, Dillon is out and about and a new marshal is in town. He meets a young man who is handy with a gun but refuses to shoot any living creature even if it were for his own life. Circumstances prove to both men that sometimes responsibility to duty requires more than just the ability to shoot.