When Confederate soldier Matt Weaver returns to town after the Civil War, he finds that his home has been sold by town boss Sam Brewster. Brewster hires gunfighter Jules Gaspard d’Estaing to deal with Weaver, but d’Estaing’s independent approach settles the town’s problems in a very unorthodox manner.

A pair of failing high school students — Bill S. Preston, Esquire and Ted “Theodore” Logan — are visited by a time traveler from the future who takes them on an adventure through time to gather up actual historical figures to help them with a history report.