Charlie Bannon, construction manager for the Calumet K grain elevator on the outskirts of Chicago in Nov, 1895, has to finish the job by Dec. 31. A Wall Street clique wants to sabotage the construction to corner the wheat market, and a corrupt union boss threatens to stop the job unless Bannon pays him bribes. Bannon, brilliant and resourceful, must find a way to beat them both and finish Calumet K.