The series was loosely based on the real Hill Ranch, located at the western edge of Calaveras County near Stockton, which existed from 1855 to 1931 and included almost 30,000 acres; its location is now covered by the waters of Camanche Reservoir.

Barbara Stanwyck's refusal to portray Victoria Barkley as fragile was considered controversial at the time, as she went from a refined lady of the manor to a jean-clad cowgirl as tough as any cowboy.

Linda Evans' appearances as Audra Barkley were reduced during the final two seasons because she wanted to spend more time with her husband, actor John Derek.

Although set in and near Stockton, California, the series was actually filmed in Southern California, including at Wildwood Regional Park in Thousand Oaks.

It is often mistakenly believed that the Tara set from Gone with the Wind was reused as the Barkley family home, but the house was actually the set originally built for the film The Kentuckian.

The main theme was reworked at least three times over the series' run: composed by George Duning for the pilot and much of the run, then reworked by Lalo Schifrin for season three and Elmer Bernstein for season four, with the final version's closing refrain echoing the Spanish-tinged style of The Magnificent Seven main title.

In the comedy film Airplane! (1980), the character Johnny pays homage to the show's dramatic reputation by shouting lines referencing Barbara Stanwyck and the Barkley siblings Nick, Heath, and Jarrod.

Two episodes were conceived as backdoor pilots for spin-off series: a 1968 episode with Van Williams was meant to launch a Rifleman-like show called Rimfire, and a 1969 episode called 'The Royal Road' with Sajid Khan was also intended to lead to a spin-off, but both plans were abandoned as the show was cancelled.