Bonanza follows the adventures of the Cartwrights who live in Nevada during the 1860s. Headed by Ben Cartwright, the family owned a huge ranch, named The Ponderosa, which bordered the shore of Lake Tahoe. Ben, a widower, had three sons, Joseph 'Little Joe', Adam, and Eric 'Hoss'. / Bonanza ran for 14 seasons and re-runs are still played on both the Hallmark channel and TV-Land. / Broadcast History: / September 1959 - September 1961: Saturday at 7:30pm September 1961 - May 1972: Sunday at 9:00pm May 1972 - August 1972: Tuesday at 7:30pm September 1972 - January 1973: Tuesday at 8:00pm Currently 8.5/10