"Operation Raintree" is the code name for the massive undertaking of filming the epic novel
Raintree County (1957) for the big screen. A group of A-list actors star in the film. In scouting for locations, the crew traveled over 10,000 miles by plane to find only authentic locales throughout the American south. They would base the filming crew in Danville, Kentucky, where the official welcome for the movie would take place. No task was too difficult for filming in getting just the right shot. Much of the logistical problem was getting the large number of costumes and props primarily from the MGM Studio in Hollywood onto location. The biggest task was perhaps the training and recruiting of the actors for and the staging and filming of the 1,500 man "war between the states" battle scene.
—Huggo