Chatham tells the story of three retired sea captains named Zebulon Hedge (David Carradine), known as Zeb, Perez Ryder (Bruce Dern), and Jeremiah Burgess (Rip Torn), who goes by Jerry. The three live together in relative squalor, and decide one day to improve their lives by making one of them solicit a bride through a newspaper ad. They will toss a coin, and the loser will have to get married and take the other two in as boarders. When their selected bride, Martha (Mariel Hemingway), arrives, however, they get cold feet. Will the three men go through with their scheme, or will they find a different course of action?