The story follows Peyton Farquhar, a well-off civilian planter from Alabama who is about to be hanged by Union soldiers for attempting to destroy the Owl Creek railroad bridge to aid the Confederacy.
The story is divided into three sections:
Farquhar stands on the bridge with a noose around his neck, about to be hanged.
A flashback reveals how Farquhar was tricked by a Union scout posing as a Confederate soldier into revealing his willingness to burn the bridge. This led to his capture.
As Farquhar drops from the bridge, the story enters a surreal sequence where he imagines escaping the hanging, swimming to safety, and reuniting with his wife - only ... but read the ending yourself.