Lena Nichols falls in love with a wealthy young collegian who is staying in a small New England town and has chosen to call himself by his first two names only, the full name being Harry Rivers Graham. He marries Lena under the name of Rivers, and after a short period of married bliss he's called back to his home. Thinking he's deserted her, Lena returns home to give birth to their daughter; brokenhearted, she dies shortly afterwards, and her parents name their granddaughter after her. Harry is informed that his wife is dead and he won't be able to locate their child. Years pass, and Harry remarries, moves to Kentucky, and sends his stepson Durward to school in the east. Durward meets Lena and they fall in love, but his feelings cool off when he again meets his first sweetheart, Carrie. Meanwhile, Harry Rivers Graham has realized that Lena is his daughter, but he can't tell his wife and stepson, although he shows Lena many attentions to try to make her life happier. His wife and Durward misunderstand these attentions, and the complications that arise cause Lena to leave her uncle's home. Her collapse under the burden of her troubles, her recovery, and the acknowledgment by her father, coupled with Durward's loyalty, form a climax well in keeping with Mary Jane Holmes' novel of the same name.
—Moving Picture World synopsis