John-Boy goes to New York City after waiting weeks without word on his novel. It pays off and John-Boy talks to an editor who agrees to publish his novel. John-Boy comes back home and tells them the good news. He also tells the family he is moving to New York City. Mary Ellen and Curt also have news of their own; she is pregnant.

As an aggressive used car salesman, Ben loses loved ones' respect; Olivia plays Cupid for Sheriff Ep Bridges.

The Baldwins' cousin Hilary Von Kleist has come home after 17 years as a German diplomat's wife in Europe. Because she keeps avoiding John-Boy's questions about current events in Germany, John-Boy thinks she's hiding something. After staying confined in bed with worry, she finally opens up about her disagreement with the Nazi regime. Meanwhile, Jason joins the National Guard, against his mother's wishes.

Grandpa tries to sneak into Esther's hospital room with flowers but is rebuffed and told that she needs rest. He feels down until he discovers Aimee needs a grandfather. She had been frustrated at Corabeth's emphasis on highbrow culture instead of letting her play and wander with Elizabeth outdoors.

Jason falls in love with Curt's restless sister Vanessa, who has left her husband to become a singer. John-Boy publishes a story from his novel in his newspaper that upsets his grandfather.

John-Boy wins $25 from a journalism contest and an all expense paid trip to cover the Hindenburg landing in Lakehurst, New Jersey. After witnessing the airship burst into flames, he returns home traumatized and unable to write about it. Meanwhile, Curt and Mary Ellen are frustrated at not having private time from the family.

The Waltons find out Sheriff Ep is a decorated war hero and John-Boy wants to write about it, but Ep wants to keep it quiet. Also, an old friend of Ep's comes to visit. Jim-Boy likes to talk to her about cars and war.

Erin graduates from high school still having no direction for her life. She works briefly as a waitress in a roadhouse, then gets a job as a switchboard operator at a business school to buy a typewriter for John-Boy. Family members sneak a look at John-Boy's novel about them and the community.

Grandma's medical bills and the mill's deterioration force John to take a job away from home to make more money. At the job, everyone in the office fears the manager who makes life miserable for all. Elizabeth is a tomboy.

Chad Marshall returns to the area where he buys land and wants to marry Erin, but Olivia and John don't approve of Erin getting married before finishing school, so Erin and Chad decide to elope; meanwhile, Ike takes a trip and leaves Jason to run the store, and Jason finds out that Maude Gormley isn't allowed any credit due to her outstanding debt, so John-Boy figures out a way to sell Maude's paintings at the store to help pay off her debt to Ike.

As the annual carnival approaches, Elizabeth has recurring nightmares of being trapped on a runaway Ferris wheel. Meanwhile, Ben believes that his height is affecting how people see and treat him.

Note: This is the last episode featuring Ellen Corby in season 5 as she suffered a real life massive stroke which impaired her speech and severely limited her mobility and function. She returned to the show in the last episode of season 6 but was limited for the rest of the series.

Corabeth gives Olivia a permanent that turns out badly. Grandma is up against new competition for playing the church organ.

Sheriff Bridges is running for re-election but an out of town opponent has more charm and threatens to put Ep out of a job. A wild mustang is captured and Grandpa is determined to make sure it can continue to run free on Walton's Mountain.

Olivia sets about making this Christmas 'the best we ever had', but a variety of emergencies keep each of the Walton children from coming home.

The irascible Martha Corrine Walton, in her 90s, makes an unexpected return to Walton's Mountain, and reminisces about her early life as the bride of a Civil War veteran. She soon gets on everyone's nerves as she begins adding her methods to the cooking, and her opinions in the family daily life. Ben buys a used pony cart, intending to re-sell it for a profit after he makes some improvements. Martha Corrine calls it a "shay", and paints flowers on the side of cart. Ben takes her in the pony cart to her to visit her husband's grave, and she has a heart attack. 

Note: Beulah Bondi at age 87 won an Emmy Award for her performance in this episode.

Jim-Bob fixes up Ike's old motorcycle and he enters a motorcycle race. The Godsey's want to adopt a baby but instead adopt a young girl named Aimee.

John-Boy sells most of his meadow to pay off his printing press so he can continue the Blue Ridge Chronicle, deeply upsetting Grandpa. He is then alarmed to learn the land company plans to buy up more small plots to do hydraulic gold mining in the community. After fainting while watching Curt perform an emergency tracheotomy, Mary Ellen is later encouraged when she successfully delivers Mrs. Fordwick's baby.

While the wedding preparations continue, Mary Ellen finally shares her hesitation to be married with David and as a result, calls things off. As the residents of Waltons Mountain fear that Dr. Willard ran off with the money raised from the hard luck dance, John Boy starts to investigate Curtis' past employment with a mining company and is able to track him down. Upon their arrival back on the Mountain, Mary Ellen and Curtis have a confrontation and ultimately get married by Rev. Fordwick.

When Mary Ellen announces her engagement to Dr. David Spencer, the family is surprised. On the day of their engagement party, they get an unexpected visitor: Dr. Curtis Willard, looking to take over the practice of Dr. Vance. Mary Ellen is soon hired by the new doctor to help him get acquainted with his new patients, and as a result begins to have doubts about her relationship with David. Elsewhere, Jim Bob begins a relationship with Mrs. Brimmer's niece, Patsy.

A prowler is lurking around Walton's Mountain, which threatens Jason's plans to hold a community dance at Ike Godsey's new Hall.

John-Boy tries to keep the community updated about the news in Europe, so he decides to print excerpts about Hitler's "Mein Kampf" in his paper. A great outcry ensues, and the town is torn apart over the issue of publishing unfavorable items in the Blue Ridge Chronicle. Erin competes in a beauty pageant.

A famous evangelist is coming to town, and Olivia and Esther hope John and Ben will be converted and baptized. Jim-Bob finds a peacock and names him Rover.

After losing his scholarship, Jason gets a job at the Dew Drop Inn, playing music at night to pay his tuition. He then gets an idea to visit the parents of his late friend Seth, in order to talk Red into getting back on stage for a benefit show. Meanwhile, after spending some time with the Walton family, Yancy Tucker works up the nerve to propose to his girlfriend, a barmaid at the Dew Drop.

When Grandma has a sudden illness Mary Ellen offers a diagnosis based on the symptoms, but when Grandma gets worse and is rushed to the hospital in an emergency Mary Ellen learns a harsh lesson from the doctors and a tender lesson from Grandma; meanwhile, Erin gets a job as a phone operator and abandons her post during the family emergency, and John-Boy focuses on his newspaper editorial about the local doctor who is looking to leave the area due to patients not paying their bills.

John-Boy's integrity is tested when he seeks to publish the truth about a local judge's driving mishap and his brother Ben's arrest, which in turn tests Olivia's patience with John-Boy's newspaper enterprise; meanwhile Ike and Corabeth's marriage is tested when she experiences a false pregnancy.