[ door creaks ] [ wind howls ] [ thunder rumbles ] [ bird caws ] [ midtempo music plays ] im jamie colby, and today im heading to the annual blueberry festival in plymouth, indiana. Its not exactly the kind of place youd expect to see a massive california redwood, but this tree rocks because it rolls. My name is jamie allen, and, in 1985, when i was 23, my father passed away, and he left me something that his father left him, and its kept me on the road all my life. Jamie . Jamie . [ chuckles ] how are you . Its really great to meet you. And how funny we have the same name. Lets get started, then. All right, here we go. This is one serious tree trunk. [ midtempo folk music plays ] and the root of the story, according to jamie, is in the late 1930s. When her grandfather, james allen, is a lumberjack in northern california. James, a widower with a son in the army, sees redwood trees so massive that several men can easily fit inside the hollowed trunks. One day, during a sudden rain squall, he seeks shelter in the trunk of a giant redwood. Thats when it occurs to james that he could actually make a home out of one. It was the tail end of the depression. He couldnt afford to buy a regular house. My grandma had already passed away. So james allen combs the forest for a suitable tree. He finally discovers the perfect one on the property of the georgiapacific lumber company, near eureka, california. He traded the lumber company for that section of log for work. And then it took him four months to burrow out all the wood and a year and a half to complete the house. It was all done by hand. Today, most of those lumber mills are gone. What was once called the redwood empire is now a state park. Welcome to humboldt redwoods state park. Oh, my gosh. These trees are so beautiful. And theyre the tallest trees on the planet. Lets go. Emily burns, a tree scientist with the save the redwoods league, says there is a reason this part of the country grows such towering trees. The fog rolls in to the Coast Redwood forest from the pacific ocean, and these trees collect it, and they take in that water directly into their leaves, and they also rain it down to the forest floor, helping all the other plants and animals. Come check out this tree over here. What youre looking at is a history of fire, really. This burnedout cave is called a goose pen. Oh, my gosh. Go inside . Go inside, yeah. And it could survive this . Actually, this tree is fine. Its still growing well. And its created an amazing habitat for species like bats. Do you like bats . Not really. Are they in here . They might be. They might be right up above you. Oh, well, it was nice to see it. [ laughs ] [ soft music plays ] chopping down a tree so old is hard to fathom now, but, beginning with the 1849 gold rush, these behemoths supply a lot of lumber needed to settle northern california. As the miners were looking for gold, the redwoods started to be cut down to build cities like san francisco. Even into the 1930s and 40s, redwood trees were still cut down by hand axes and whipsaws. It could take days for a 2man team to fell a 12footdiameter tree. A log could easily weigh 50 tons. Weve lost 95 of ancient forests like this one to harvest. This is one forest you wont find any other place on the planet. So, if this is it and i am here, can i hug a tree . I hope you will. The tree is ready. Youre calling out to me. Give me a squeeze ah its not hard to grasp why americans love their redwoods a muststop on many a family car trip since before the interstate. Maybe even you have gassed up at this filling station built entirely out of three redwood tree trunks or driven through this famous arch. Used to cost a quarter. Today, its five bucks. But remember, back in 1939, jamies grandfather isnt looking to create a roadside attraction. He simply wanted a place to hang his hat. [ midtempo march plays ] that tree he picked out was 1,900 years old. Think about that. When it was just a seed, the roman empire was at its height. As it grew, rome fell. Islam rose. Columbus sailed. The colonies rebelled. Napoleon won and lost. And the Wright Brothers flew. He built the log and lived in it for seven years. Right there in the forest until word gets out of the old fella living in a log. People would come and knock on the door and say, whats in there . So he used to take the log to schools. Just load it on a trailer. Presto a mobile home. In the late 1950s, james sr. Passes away, leaving his only son, world war ii vet and traveling salesman james elwin allen, his unusual home. So the son of a lumberjack decides to take it crosscountry, maybe make a buck while sharing his strange inheritance with the world. He sets off for parts unknown. His travels eventually lead him to canada and a rodeo show called the calgary stampede. There he meets 18yearold iris keiver. Theyre both smitten and soon get married. What do you think your mother thought about her husband driving around the country with a log house . I think it mustve been very intriguing because my mother married my father, and that was a very unusual lifestyle. When baby jamie is born in 1961, james allen jr. Packs up his young wife and daughter and heads right back out on the circuit, traveling the u. S. To fairs, carnivals, and exhibitions. I grew up in a family atmosphere of traveling people, and we just happened to have a log. Step right up, put a nickel in the donation box, and see james allens incredible cabin made from a genuine california redwood. Your dad was able to support the family off of change donations . We had the log, a fudge business, and he sold a lot of different types of products. So he was really a pro at this traveling business. He had his hands in so many pies it wasnt even funny. And its not every day you get to walk through a tree. Now that i heard your story, ive got to go inside. Please go right in and see how beautiful it really is. Thats next. What . But first our strange inheritance quiz question. The answer when we return. You think of people in a place. But when you have the chase mobile app, your bank can be virtually any place. So, when you get a check. You can deposit it from here. And you can see your transactions and check your balance from here. You can save for an emergency from here. Or pay bills from here. So when someone asks you, wheres your bank . 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So, what is americas most visited National Park . Its a, the Great Smoky Mountains in tennessee gets about 10 million visitors a year. Its not often you get the chance to walk through a 1,900yearold redwood tree. Ill be out of the other side, i assume. Ill meet you at the other end. [ upbeat music plays ] welcome inside jamie allens strange inheritance. What . [ chuckling ] oh, my god. Look at this kitchen the kitchen boasts a vintage hotplate and a sanitary brand refrigerator from the 1940s. I did not expect this full kitchen, original kitchen, allwood cabinets . In fact, every builtin facet of the logs interior is made entirely of redwood, handsanded, varnished, and polished to a glossy finish. To keep it that way, jamie tells me she polishes the entire interior from floor to ceiling every night. Huh. Look at that. Thats how it was made. The pictures hanging in this gallery are jamies only remaining photos of her grandpa. They chronicle his amazing endeavor the cutting of a tree 1,900 years old, the stump cut 14 feet in diameter. Amazing. Im imagining the four months it took for her grandpa to hollow out this log and then 18 months to painstakingly handbuild this Redwood Interior just tall enough to accommodate his 6foot frame and Everything Else he needed. Its a whole home couch, living room, dining room. Bedroom . Unbelievable. Oh. This is beautiful wow, jamie. Its like an elegant home inside. Its beautiful, isnt it . [ upbeat music plays ] and its been home to jamie allen her whole life. I cant ever remember not living with a log. When i was a baby, my mother put me in a Cardboard Box because they didnt have a big crib to take with them. You cant carry a big crib in a log. [ country western music plays ] but when jamie turns five, her parents divorce. Five years old . They just couldnt live together, you know . In the wintertime, my dad would come to town where i was going to school. He would come and stay at the apartment we lived in. And every summer, she joins her father on the road. My dad always had me in the log. Hed give me 15 minutes at lunch, a half an hour at dinner, and 15 minutes at around 9 00. My father always knew where i was when i was a teenager. And it sounds like you loved it and you loved him. Oh, a lot. When jamie turns 16, she goes full time on the fairandfestival circuit, traveling with her dad. Its bigtime bonding for father and daughter, but does he really want this life for his girl . Coming up. I looked at my father like, what, are you out of your mind . But first. Heres another quiz question for you. The answer when we return. Limu emu doug [ siren ] give me your hand i can save you. Lots of money with Liberty Mutual we customize your Car Insurance so you only pay for what you need only pay for what you need. Liberty. Liberty. Liberty. Liberty. There are times when our need to connect really matters. 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No matter what theyre up to. It protects your info. And gives you 24 7 peace of mind. That if its connected, its protected. Even that that petcamera thingy. [ whines ] can your internet do that . Xfinity xfi can because its. Simple, easy, awesome. [ barking ] so, what city lays claim to the oldest state fair . Its a. The new York State Fair began in syracuse in 1841 and remains one of the largest in the u. S. Happy blueberry festival to you. Im at the indiana blueberry festival with jamie allen and her strange inheritance a cabin her grandfather carved out of a 1,900yearold redwood. How many people do you think you meet a year as a result of traveling with a log . Millions. [ chuckles ] literally, millions of people. Shes been at it since she was a kid. For years, she crisscrossed the country with her dad. Whats here . This is my friend mike mcneil, and he was a good friend of my fathers, as well, so i thought he was somebody you might like to meet. Oh, you mean you didnt just bring me over here to have something with sprinkles . [ laughs ] mike mcneil has run a traveling concession stand like this one for 40 years. He and jamies father crossed paths many times. Jamies dad was a good businessman, and he had a good heart, too, which is what you want people to say about you. Okay. What i want is to see if mikes cheesecake is any good. Wait a minute. Ooh they have everything inside. There you go. Uhhuh. Is this new york cheesecake . No, its better. This is philadelphia. Nothing is better oh, philadelphia . You havent tried this. Okay, so, whats the first step . Dip it in the chocolate and pull it out. Nice pull it way up. Okay, i would like sprinkles. Sprinkles . Right there. May i . Go ahead. Please do. I think i have to. Youre gonna like that. Mmm. There you go. Give me a minute. Give me a minute. Wow i told you that you would like that. [ laughs ] the thing is, cheesecake on a stick is heavenly on that one weekend a year the fair comes to town. Not so much when every weekends the fair and every weekdays spent creeping down the highway to the next venue. But this was the life of james allen and the life he saw his daughter backing in to. I was the only child, so i knew i was always gonna get the log. All parents hope their kids have options, and, in 1978, when jamie is 17 years old, a stranger stops by the cabin and offers one. My dad approached me, and he said, a mans very interested in buying the log. Would you be interested in selling . But i looked at my father like, what, are you out of your mind . No, i dont want the money. I want the log. Was not continuing what he did with the log ever an option for you . Oh, no. When i was little and they asked me, what are you gonna be when you grow up . Id say, just like my dad. [ folk music plays ] seven years later, in 1985, her dad dies of cancer. Jamie, only 23, receives her strange inheritance, and, for the next 30 years, shes indeed just like her dad. Any regrets that your dad didnt take that offer . No, its a labor of love for me. You have any children . Nope, just three dogs and a cat. And a boyfriend, buddy, who travels with her on the circuit. How much time do you spend with this log of yours . Oh, i spend a lot of time with my log 14, 16 hours a day when were showing, probably 4 to 6 months a year. And you make a living doing this . I try. Its not as lucrative as it used to be. Its taking its toll on me and the log. The roads are rough on it. We only get to go 56 miles an hour because you cant move it very quickly. I get four miles to the gallon. Bungees, buddy. Are you losing money on this proposition . I think im breaking even. You know, im just floating along. How much money did you make off this venture last year . I think we took in maybe about 20,000. Do you think about what will happen when you cant drive a rig anymore . Well, the shows got to go on. We dont have a choice. Or does she . [ upbeat music plays ] shes got a big decision to make. She sure does, jamie. Thats next. Whats your strange inheritance story . Wed love to tell it. Send me an email or go to our website, strangeinheritance. Com. Isnt just a department. Its a voice on the other end of the phone. A note to say youre on our mind. A willingness to come to you. The world and how we interact with each other is changing. But that will never change who we are at lexus. Now, more than ever, you and your needs come first. Find out what Service Options are available in your area at lexus. Com people first heres the thing about managing for your business. S when youve got public clouds, and private clouds, and hybrid clouds things can get a bit cloudy for you. But now, theres the Dell Technologies cloud, powered by vmware. A single hub for a consistent operating experience across all your clouds. That should clear things up. In these uncertain times, look after yourself, your family, your friends. But know when it comes to your finances, we are here for you. What can i do for you today . Well take a look at the portfolio and make adjustments. Im free to chat if you have any more questions. Our j. P. Morgan advisors are working from home to help guide you through this. For more than 200 years, weve helped our clients navigate historic challenges. And we will get through this one. Together. From anyone else. So why accept it from your allergy pills . Flonase relieves your worst symptoms which most pills dont. Get allinone allergy relief for 24 hours, with flonase. Now back to strange inheritance. For 30 years, jamie allen has been the Sole Proprietor of allens original redwood log house. What was once a home for her lumberjack grandpa is now a traveling tourist attraction her strange inheritance. Do people look at you on the road like, wait what . That ladys driving a tree. You can see the passenger tell the driver, look, theres a girl driving that thing. Her policy of admission by donation, plus the revenue from souvenirs, once provided a decent living, but its tougher with each passing year. Its hard to be the log lady and have a life and be the bookkeeper and the truck driver and the repair person and do it all. Those worries are building in the fall of 2014, when jamie is exhibiting the log house at the pittsburgh home garden show. A few exhibits away is an antiques appraiser named lori verderame. Jamie invites her to check out her cabin. What was your First Impression when you saw this log cabin . Oh, i thought it was very unusual. I didnt realize that it was a house inside until i went inside. The women begin brainstorming. Is there anything jamie can do to make her business more lucrative, her future more secure . Is her strange inheritance a sell or a hold . So we invited dr. Lori to join us here at the blueberry festival to hear her advice. I have to look at it and evaluate it as a public attraction for its history. I have to look at it as a redwood log, a piece of a natural historical object. Who buys a log . The people who say, im a museum, im a conservation park, and i want to use it as an attraction to bring more awareness of my business. So the log really can stir an awful lot of interest. The other thing which impacts its value the log also generates money. Well, jamies told me shes just about breaking even. Shes getting four miles to the gallon. Well, shes moving it. That doesnt mean that, if it were staying still, that she couldnt generate more money. Its a lot to take in. I dont really want the log to just stay in one place. Did you choose this life on the road, or did it choose you . I think that its a little bit of both. Youre doing this since youre 23 years old. Do you start to think, maybe i ought to sell . A lot of people ask me do i want to sell, and i tell them, well, you never sell your family tree. [ upbeat music plays ] a family tree for sure. At the end of the great depression, an old lumberjack fells the 1,900yearold redwood and makes a cabin from a section of the trunk. It starts out as his home, turns into a roadside attraction, and becomes a living for his son and then his granddaughter. And what happens when its time for the log to be inherited from you . You dont have children. No, but i have several godchildren that are very interested in the log. So well see who shows the most potential of making sure that it keeps traveling. Words of a woman who knows shes approaching a crossroads but is not there yet. Ive been doing what ive been doing for a long time, and i want my log to keep doing what its doing. So your lifes gonna be on the road for awhile. Well, im pretty sure it probably will be. Its what you do. Its who i am. No doubt jamie allens redwood cabin is a strange inheritance from a different era. Consider this. The tree now believed to be the tallest in the world was discovered in this state park in 2006. Far from turning it into an attraction, officials have kept its location secret. Why . Because if its location were known, they say, so many people would race off to see it that the trees life would be in danger. Im jamie colby for strange inheritance. Thanks so much for watching, and remember, you cant take it with you. From the fox studios in new york city, this is maria bartiromos wall street. Maria and happy weekend. Welcome to the program that analyzes the week that was and helps position you for the week ahead. Im maria bartiromo. Coming up in just a moment, ins managing director joins me, then later secretary of state mike pompeo on chinas culpability in the covid19 pandemic. But first, the cracks caused by the covid19 shutdown are continuing to strain the economy. The Economic Data this week has been awful, now 22 Million People have applied for Unemployment Benefits in the last four wee
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