thanks so much for watching "strange inheritance." and remember -- you can't take it with you. ♪ >> a warehouse stacked high with high fashion. >> she never, ever let on that i was going to inherit this collection. i had no idea. >> a clothesline to presidents, royalty, and thetitanic? >> what's it worth? >> $20,000. >> that's a lot of money for a >> that's a lot of money. >> and a lot of stress. >> my husband actually said to me -- oops! -- "it's either me or the collection." ♪ >> if she says yes to the dresses... >> definitely good for blondes. >> ...will her dream ever get off the runway? >> i got a phone call saying, "charlotte, they're going to take your collection." >> oh, no. i was panicking. [ door creaks ] [ wind howls ] [ thunder rumbles ]

[ bird caws ] ♪ >> i'm jamie colby in new york city, here to meet an heir whose strange inheritance not only unraveled her life... it left her hanging by a thread. >> my name's charlotte smith. what do you do when your godmother leaves you 70 huge boxes of dresses? one thought -- send them right back. but then i realized these weren't just dresses. they were one-of-a-kind pieces of history. >> charlotte? >> hello. >> hi. i'm jamie. >> lovely to meet you. >> charlotte, a native of philadelphia who now lives in australia, is in manhattan to meet with fashion students at the famed parsons school of design. >> this is my inheritance, all pieces bequeathed to me from my american godmother. >> why can't i get so lucky? ♪ charlotte's wardrobe is filled with fashion gems that are as

timeless as they are priceless. so elizabeth taylor, cleopatra. >> yeah! this is 1930s. it was all decadence. it was the silver screen. it was hollywood. this was about 1915. >> over 100 years old! >> over 100 years old. >> and this is just a small sampling of the valuable vintage heirlooms charlotte inherited. >> when i received the bequest from my godmother, it was about 3,500 pieces. >> you heard right. 3,500 designer pieces, all assembled by a very unlikely fashionista. the story begins in 1937 in bryn mawr, pennsylvania, when a college student, doris hastings, sees a peach gown in a shop window. >> she asked her family to give her enough money for her birthday and christmas for three years so that she could buy it. >> doris gets the dress she covets and wears it to a dance, impressing her date, howard darnell.

the two are soon engaged and then married. it was a good investment. >> yes. that was really something that kick-started her passion for clothing. >> doris darnell goes on to become a school librarian, devoted wife, mother of three, and practicing quaker while meantime pursuing her passion for glamorous clothes, especially vintage attire. doris's daughter beth tells us more. >> she adored getting dressed up. any time they went out, if we had a birthday party or we went out to a restaurant, she wore antique clothes. and she loved it. >> but her mother's taste for fashion is an uncomfortable fit with quaker sensibilities. >> when quakers started, they didn't believe in anything except very simple dress. that didn't apply to her at all. my father's mother absolutely disapproved of her completely. >> how did doris's quaker husband feel about what she did? >> he was amused. but whenever they went into a function, he would always walk 10 steps behind so that doris

could walk in and be, you know, the show wearing something extraordinary. >> her quirky style becomes her calling card, and philly society loves it. soon, others are handing down to doris their old designer dresses or family heirlooms for her to wear. >> people were just constantly giving her things. she had a whole wardrobe of house dresses and never bought one. >> by the time doris's three kids leave the nest, the third floor is filled with more than 1,000 high-fashion garments, including designs by dior, chanel, and pucci. it's a dress-up dreamland for doris's young goddaughter, charlotte. >> i just thought, "oh, my gosh, you know, why doesn't my barbie have clothes like this?" >> well, hello! no need for barbie. you were her barbie. >> i was her barbie. >> and doris knows the story behind each and every item. she puts together a meticulous dress catalog that includes

letters, photographs, and notes. >> for her, it was about storytelling and about fashion history. >> these fashion stories were often intertwined with significant world events -- like this dress by lady duff-gordon, the leading british fashion designer of the late 19th century, who survived the titanicin infamous style. >> she was in the first lifeboat with her husband, sir duff-gordon. >> a lifeboat nicknamed the millionaires' due to the wealthy first-class passengers who climbed aboard. the boat paddles away ignominiously with only 12 survivors, despite being able to hold 40. but even the scandal can't sink gordon's popularity. loyal customers show up to her testimony at the disaster inquiry dressed to the hilt in her designs. doris also has the wedding dress worn by eleanor chase when she marries charles taft, son of

former president william howard taft, in 1917 during world war i. the real story here is what the groom wore. >> even though it was the son of a president, charles decided that in respect of the war that he was going to wear military uniform instead of black tie. >> there's plenty more history... an original dior owned by ruth meyer when her father, eugene meyer, publisher of the washington post, hosted parties for the capital elite. and this dress, worn to the 1937 coronation of britain's king george vi. so many great yarns! that's what the dresses are for >> she was not only treasuring the garment. she was also treasuring that person's story, and she was keeping their story alive. >> over the years, doris's collection grows from 1,000 garments to 2,000 and more. by her 80s, she's amassed more

than 3,500 pieces and is beginning to fear what will become of her treasured fashion trove when she's gone. >> she worried terribly about it's a it.the people who gave these things. and she had promised everybody that she was not going to sell it. >> doris begins looking for someone to step into her shoes, but her own children show zero interest. >> i loved her clothes. i loved her whole collection, but it was not something that i would have taken on. >> doris's next call comes like a bolt out of the blue. >> and i remember just instantly thinking, "what on earth am i going to do with it?" >> is it historically significant or financially a mind blower? >> both. >> here's a "strange inheritance" quiz question. who is credited with creating and patenting the brassiere strap clasp -- author mark twain, inventor thomas edison, or hero nurse clara barton? the answer after the break. and inspired to learn.

i want my kids to have better oppurtunites than i had. i wish we had classes like the schools across town. i want to hold our elected officials accountable. school boards transform communities, speak up at yours and make your voice heard. text school to 225568 to find out how you can get involved. we should have classes on how to be an entrepreneur. i want to make a difference in my community. let's pay teachers like the professionals they are. we need to prepare students for the jobs of the future. school boards transform communities. speak up at yours and make your voice heard. text school to 225568 to find out how you can get involved.

♪we've got a long longe road way to go♪ ♪scared to live, scared to die♪ ♪we ain't perfect but we try ♪get along while we can ♪always give love the upper hand♪ ♪paint a wall, learn to dance♪ ♪call your mom, buy a boat♪ ♪sing a song, make a friend♪ ♪can't we all get along? ♪ >> so, who is credited with inventing and patenting the brassiere strap clasp? it's mark twain. while the author meant for his patent to be used in vests and pantaloons, it only caught on for one snug garment, the bra. ♪ >> a lifelong love of fashion

fills doris darnell's closets with vintage designer clothes. family, friends, and even strangers vie to be a part of her collection. ♪ that's how it grows to more than 3,500 pieces with designs by chanel, dior, pucci, and dating back to the late 1800s. >> it was like a childhood kind of fantasy, really. it was like disney at my godmother's house. she had so much stuff. so it was a treasure trove up there. in 2004, doris surprises her 46-year-old goddaughter, charlotte, who's now living in australia with her husband and young daughter. doris says she wants charlotte to assume her mantle when she's gone.>> she never, ever let on i was going to inherit this collection. i had no idea. it came out of the blue. >> were you looking for a hobby? >> i was not at all looking for

a hobby. i had a shop, an antiques shop. i had a young daughter. i had a husband. i was living on the other side of the world, and there was a lot of personal and emotional baggage that came with it. >> maybe it's best to politely decline the offer, just as doris's own kids had done. and i remember just instay thinking, "what on earth am i going to do with it?" >> but baggage or no baggage, charlotte comes to terms with her inheritance and tells her godmother, "sure. pencil me into the will." in 2007, doris darnell passes away at age 90. her lifelong collection shows up at charlotte's antiques shop in australia, 70 boxes in all. >> did you have room for all those items? >> well, we stacked it up floor to ceiling. i mean, it was just... it took up half my shop. >> the boxes contain thousands of dresses with detailed notes on each. >> there were four gigantic notebooks with her typed-out letters about the stories behind the dresses and the people who

wore them. >> this social history captured through fashion could be worth a mint, says vintage-fashion appraiser karen augusta. is it historically significant or financially a mind blower? >> i'd say both. >> so, let's talk about these. first up, this '80s cocktail dress by the renowned oscar de la renta, who achieved fame as a favorite designer of jackie kennedy. what would it sell for today? >> in today's market, it would sell for about $4,500. >> karen tells me 1930s gowns like this are in very high demand. >> if it were to sell in a shop in l.a., it would be $6,000 to $7,000. >> she's out of my league, but nice to meet you. karen also puts a price tag on this revealing number by spanish designer paco rabanne. it looks like a j. lo dress. what's this one worth?>> $8,000?

it could go for very much above that. >> then there's this late-'40s hourglass dress by leading postwar designer pierre balmain. >> that's a museum piece. let's say $22,000. >> that's a lot of money for a dress.of money. >> and remember -- charlotte inherited 3,500 pieces, including this 1930s chanel wedding dress valued at 50k. so, what's the whole wardrobe worth? >> it's up there. >> up there in the stratosphere, perhaps millions of dollars, which leads to a recommendation for charlotte's inheritance. >> "just sell it," you know. "don't waste your time. just sell it." >> tally at least one enthusiastic vote for that option. >> my husband actually said to me -- oops! -- "it's either me or the collection." >> here's another quiz question.

the answer when we return.

♪ >> so, when it was first introduced, what was described as the atom bomb of fashion? it's the bikini. in 1946, french designer louis réard named his new garment after the bikini atoll in the south pacific where the u.s. did nuclear testing because he hoped it would make as big of a bang as the atomic bomb. ♪ >> charlotte smith has inherited thousands of valuable designer dresses -- garments that span 150 years of history. and today... this one! ...she lets me model some items

from her collection. >> doesn't it remind you of a stained-glass window? >> so vibrant. >> [ laughs ] >> definitely good for blondes. >> this is timeless! >> that is timeless. >> the dresses bequeathed to her by her late godmother, doris darnell, aren't just beautiful. they're worth a fortune. >> i could see everybody who was money minded standing behind me rubbing their hands together, saying, "just sell it." you know, "don't waste your just sell it." >> and charlotte does test the waters. >> i have sold one thing. >> what was it worth? >> it made just under $6,000. >> if you sold one for $6,000... >> yeah.didn't you say to yourself, "i could sell a few more. there's still thousands of >> i regret it now. >> oh. >> yeah. i regret it now. i knew at the time that i was carrying on something that someone had begun and wished she could continue.

she took it to a certain level and always anticipated it going further. >> so, charlotte resolves to keep the collection intact, roll up her sleeves, and continue her godmother's legacy. >> i decided that i was going to spend 100% of my time making something of the collection. >> her plan is to make money with paid appearances, modeling shows, and exhibits. so, charlotte sells her antiques shop. it's not a decision welcomed by her husband. >> he just couldn't believe i would give up my shop, which was very successful, and take something that was really an unknown risk. so he actually said to me -- oops! -- "it's either me or the collection." >> did you answer right away? >> well, i'm not married any longer. at the time, i was really angry. trust me that i was going to make something out of it. it was a very good motivator. >> but he's not wrong about one thing -- it is a risky move. charlotte, now divorced, learns that as she scrambles to book

gigs while storage and other bills pile up. i can't even imagine what it costs to maintain the collection. >> i need to have $6,000 a month just to maintain it. we're talking already about $150,000 that i've put in. >> money she puts in from the sale of her shop, but those funds only go so far. >> there are moments where i am so overwhelmed, i just think that i just can't cope with this anymore.oing to get rid of. but i say, you know, "keep going. just keep going. you're almost there." >> then, four years after her strange inheritance upended her life, charlotte catches a big break -- a designer from australia uses a dress from her collection as inspiration for her new fashion line. soon, event planners and museum curators are booking charlotte and her dresses. her growing reputation leads to a job at a private fashion

institute. >> they asked me if i would come onboard and teach the history of fashion. >> for the first time in years, charlotte has a steady paycheck, along with a place to store her dresses free of charge. and just like that, everything unravels. >> i get a phone call saying, "charlotte, they're going to take your collection." >> oh, no >> i was panicking. >> what's your "strange inheritance" story? we'd love to tell it. send me an e-mail or go to our website, strangeinheritance.com. queen is just my everything.

right now, i wouldn't know where my life would be without her. queen: they say chivalry is dead, it's not. terrance is a gentleman, he opens doors. his smile did it. his smile, his eyes, his knowledge. my landlord, he decided that he wanted me to move based on the fact that i was transgender.

it takes me to a place of no hope. it takes me to a place of loneliness. it just, it saddens me. when you discriminate against somebody in housing, where do these people go? let's just respect people in everyday life for just being human. ♪ >> now back to "strange inheritance." >> charlotte smith is trying to make a successful career out of the thousands of high-fashion historical dresses she inherited from her godmother. in 2009, she's teaching at a design institute when it goes belly-up. >> i got a phone call from one of the other teachers saying, "charlotte, you've got to get down here right away. they've gone into liquidation, and they're going to take your collection."

>> i was panicking. >> you could have lost these valuable pieces. >> i could have lost everything. everything that i owned was in that school building. no one could get in. >> charlotte won't back down. she's able to prove the garments are hers, not the school's, and get the collection back in her custody. but now her strange inheritance poses another tough choice. >> i'd just lost my job, and i thought, "i'm actually a two-home owner" because my collection actually costs me more than maintaining my house. >> charlotte can only afford to keep one. >> it was awful, but you know what, i thought,"there is no way i would inherit a collection like this for no reason." i made the decision i'd rather sell my house than my collection. >> now, think about that. first the dresses cost her her next they cost her her husband. now they cost her her house. are you obsessed? >> [ laughs ] am i obsessed? i'm determined. i'm passionate. >> and at this point struggling

to make ends meet, but it's not all bad luck. charlotte also gets an e-mail from a major publishing house. >> it came out of the blue, saying, "we've been following your story. are you interested in writing a i sent the e-mail saying, "yes, i'd love to talk to you more." >> charlotte nets a book deal, releasing "dreaming of dior" and later "dreaming of chanel," based on stories of dresses from her strange inheritance. the publications provide much-needed income and help her book even bigger engagements, earning up to 16 grand in a weekend. how many different projects have you developed out of the collection? >> i do everything from museum exhibitions... i write books, of course. i do catwalk parades. ♪ >> in september 2017 at the acclaimed parsons school of design here in new york city, charlotte makes her latest appearance as guest lecturer.

>> it's a real honor for me to be here and to tell the story c. >> both students and professors are wowed. >> i think charlotte's collection must be pretty unique. it's very rare to have a collection of that historical range in private hands. >> have you taken this beyond where even doris could have imagined? this is what she had s wanted, where it was being seen around the world. in the 1920s, people were obsessed with the exotic. this is the modern woman emerging. so when you look at that dress, you suddenly know a bit about world history. so, yes, the collection is at that place that she always anticipated and envisaged it to be. keep loving fashion. it's fantastic. >> a dress in the window ignites a fashion flame in an unlikely soul, launching an historic collection that weaves thousands of stories while providing an heir with a total life makeover. >> i think the collection has given me incredible confidence. it's empowered me.

it's given me something that i can learn and grow with. doris has changed my life... >> wow. >> ...through this inheritance. >> as charlotte says, every dress has a story to tell. here's one more. it's december 1941, right after pearl harbor. a young lady in boston is planning her wedding. her fiancé appears at her door to announce he's being shipped out in three days. they decide to get married right away.the woman heads to filene's basement, which is swarming with other jittery brides-to-be. she picks out this simple ivory dress. the label reads "parachute silk," which somehow seems appropriate. after she ties the knot, she lends the dress to two friends for their wartime weddings. it proves a lucky charm for them all. their husbands make it home alive. i'm jamie colby.

thanks so much for watching "strange inheritance." and remember -- you can't take it with you. [ applause ] [ train whistle blows ] >> a texas-sized model railway... >> do you have any idea what steve spent to put this together? >> i've always heard $1 million. >> ...built by a man on a mission. >> he's telling his life story in trains. >> he is. he is. yes. >> whenever he would add something to it, he said, "you want to see your inheritance again?" >> an inheritance freighted with memories. >> so tell me the truth. did y'all make out at that movie theater? >> no, not that one. [ both laugh ] >> will their plan fall apart? >> your first cut could be the end of this railroad. >> well... [ door creaks ] [ wind howls ] [ thunder rumbles ] [ bird caws ]

>> i'm jamie colby driving through dallas, texas. what do you get when you couple a one-track mind to a boxcar full of bucks? a strange inheritance that i'm told is just the ticket. >> my name is jane sanders. my husband, steve, was always into his model trains. but when he got sick, they became much more than a hobby. they took him on the trip of a lifetime. >> i meet jane at her home here in dallas. she leads me upstairs, and i am transported to a railroad wonderland. [ train whistle blows ] oh, my goodness. unbelievable. it's massive, 2,000 square feet, taking up an entire wing of jane's house. oh, my gosh. that's so fantastic! the locomotives drive past hundreds of hand-crafted

figurines and intricate details. there's two men sharing lunch on the stairs, a blonde bombshell hitchhiker, a 1950's gas station. they're cleaning the windshield like the good, old days. >> yes. >> and a scene from main street, usa. >> there's the diner with people actually sitting in there eating. >> absolutely spectacular, to every detail, jane. what's more, there's a tale behind each detail joined together like verses of a poem written by jane's late husband, steve. >> it's all his story. >> a story that begins in 1944, when steve sanders is born right here in the heart of texas. >> his mother would take him to union station in downtown dallas, then put him on a train to go to camp in colorado. he just always loved it, so ever since then, his love of trains built up. >> a love that continues to build even through steve's college years at the kemper military school

in missouri. steve goes on to become a green beret who sees action in vietnam, is wounded, and awarded a purple heart. >> he loved his military service. that was the best thing he ever did in his life. >> back in dallas, he's set up with jane on a blind date. had you ever met someone like steve before? >> no, and i never have since. he was a very, very loving person, generous, and enjoyed life. >> steve and jane are soon married, and he opens his first business, a hobby shop. >> that's when he started collecting the trains. i didn't think about it. he would just buy the trains and set them back, and set them back. >> steve goes after the largest-size models he can find, the g-scale trains made in germany. "g" stands for "gross," german for big. >> he wanted the biggest and the best. >> in 1981, another of steve's dreams comes true when he and jane adopt twin girls, christina and stephanie.

did it change him to be a father? >> yeah. in a lot of ways, it did. he was so protective of those girls. oh, my gosh. he just was so scared about anything happening to them. >> how would you describe him and his love of trains? >> he would find ways for us to go on train trips. he made us ride the train all the way from dallas to minnesota once. it was horrible, but he had a great time. >> steve wants to give a better life to his young daughters, so he looks to make more money by going to work in the family oil-drilling business and becoming a precious-metals dealer. >> he used to work 12 hours a day, 7 days a week, and everybody would say, "well, why are you working so hard?" he goes, "well, i have to take care of my girls." >> and steve keeps buying up model trains. his lucrative business ventures allow him to add hundreds of engines, cars and pieces of track to his stockpile. probably some you didn't know about. >> yeah. well, i never really paid a whole lot of attention to them. i would just keep seeing

these red boxes building up. >> steve does have a plan. one day, he's going to build the model railway of his dreams. >> he had a train room, and he had started a small train set. it was never finished. >> we weren't allowed to touch it, not allowed to play on it, and we'd be climbing on it, and he'd, "get off that! that's where my trains are going to go!" >> maybe he'll finish it when he retires, when he'll have all the time in the world. but steve learns the 60s can be a cruel decade. he suffers a string of health setbacks -- triple-bypass surgery, prostate cancer, and multiple back operations. so much for a life of leisure. he really suffered. >> he was so tired, in pain, everything. >> steve knows the proverbial train is leaving the station. it's time, once and for all, to finish that railroad display. he'd always had a big vision for it, but knew he needed help

bringing it to life, first-class help. so he tracked down an artist who designs museum exhibits and film sets. >> steve approached me and wanted someone to design the ultimate train layout. >> robert reid is dazzled by steve's ambitious plan. he's on board. but did they start too late to fulfill steve's dream? >> that was the tragedy. >> here's a "strange inheritance" quiz question... they're all model-railroad enthusiasts, but which music legend was a spokesman for lionel trains? the answer after the break. as a struggling actor, i need all the breaks that i can get. at liberty butchemel... cut. liberty mu... line? cut. liberty mutual customizes your car insurance so you only pay for what you need. cut. liberty m... am i allowed to riff?

what if i come out of the water? liberty biberty... cut. we'll dub it. liberty mutual customizes your car insurance so you only pay for what you need. only pay for what you need. ♪ liberty. liberty. liberty. liberty. ♪

♪ >> so, which music legend was a spokesman for lionel trains in the '70s? neil young was a part owner of lionel, but it's johnny cash, the man in black, who served as its spokesman in the 1970s. >> for decades, these model trains are stockpiled in steve sanders' texas home to be used one day in the mother of all model railroads. in his 60s, with his health in decline, steve works with a movie-set and museum-display designer to finally bring his lifelong dream to fruition. >> he wanted it to be a tour of the southwest from colorado through new mexico to arizona

to west texas and on through dallas. >> he's telling his life story in trains. >> he is. it is. he was definitely involved. each little vignette had to tell an important story. >> but putting together a display for steve's g-scale trains is a huge challenge. >> it's much larger than most train layouts. figures in this scale are very difficult to come by. >> hundreds of figures like these, many personally handcrafted and all custom painted. >> these weren't things that you just buy off the shelf. we had people making trees, all the rock work, the scenic work. we actually created the buildings, most of them from scratch. steve, running out of time but not money, spares no expense. forty-two thousand dollars to create a pint-sized drive-in theater, complete with a feature film playing on the screen. >> it's a miniature projector. it's not a tv screen. and then the sound comes from original

drive-in movie speakers. >> steve pays a sculptor $80,000 more to create a rocky mountain scene that includes 32-inch trees and a working tram. and another $40,000 for murals to give it the feel of big sky country. >> there's shooting stars that go across the sky. there's thunder and lightning effects. we were able to develop something that was museum worthy. >> dad always did everything all the way, especially this. >> do you have any idea what steve spent to put this together? >> i've always heard the figure of $1 million. >> does it matter? >> not to me. i thought he works hard, he's a good husband, if he wants it, let him have it. before i knew it, this is what we end up with. >> what were your thoughts about it? >> whenever he would add something to it or finish it, even though i'd seen it a hundred times,

he goes, "you want to see your inheritance again?" >> in december 2012, after four years of construction, the 2,000-square-foot display is finally completed. it seems that it's not just a train set. >> it's pretty much the story of his life. >> the journey starts here, 1950's dallas union station, where steve's love affair with trains first blossomed. from there, the layout heads to steve's boyhood summer camp in colorado. then continues past his hobby shop and through the oil fields of west texas, which helped make him rich. then there's the ranch where jane and steve raised their girls. is it an exact replica? >> pretty close. it has the blue roof, which is one of favorite things that we had about it. >> and that drive-in? playing an army movie. tell me the truth. did y'all make out

at that movie theater? >> no, not that one. [ both laugh ] >> and, of course, he creates a tribute to his wife, the mary jane train station. and it's more than just a massive piece of art. steve designed seven track loops that can handle up to 12 engines running simultaneously. >> he had ideas in his head and he'd be sure whatever he wanted done, got done and done the right way. >> with his vision realized, steve began sharing his magnificent train display with anyone who will come see it. and he loved that? >> oh, heavens yes. he stood up there and ran those trains all night long. >> but steve's joy is short-lived. in february 2013, just months after the display is finished, steve is diagnosed with his most dire ailment, stage-four lung cancer. >> he'd walk me in here and show me how to work everything. >> because he knew he wouldn't be able to be the conductor here forever.

>> yeah. he wanted to make sure we knew how to take care of everything, including his trains. >> his illness spreads quickly. >> he was diagnosed february the 12th and died may the 28th. that was all the time we had left. >> that was the tragedy. we finished this masterpiece and he had such little time to enjoy it. >> steve sanders is just 68 years old. what do you miss the most? >> [ voice breaking ] i miss the most sitting at the dinner table with him and us exchanging stories. that's my hardest time every day. >> he leaves his enormous model train display, along with hundreds of trains in storage, in the care of his daughters and widow. did steve tell you what to do? >> no. he got sick and died so quickly that we didn't have time to discuss it. >> so, for the time being, jane just keeps the display in her home, acting as it's loyal custodian. >> it's a full-time job to take care of them,

to keep them clean and running in good shape. >> then in 2017, jane decides to downsize her life, putting her 10,000-square-foot house on the market. >> i knew i'd have to do something at some point. i felt like i didn't want to leave it to my daughters to have to deal with it. >> it's time to tear up the tracks. but then what? >> here's another quiz question for you... the answer when we return. eñ

♪

>> the term described the constant dancing motion of track workers as they lunged against their tools in unison to nudge the rails. >> his 2,000-square-foot model-train display tells steve sanders' life story. he built it in his house in dallas and, before he died, he taught his daughters, christina and stephanie, how to operate it. and now they're going to teach me. >> i happen to love trains. are you going to let me try something? >> of course. >> show me how it works. >> okay. pull this lever slowly and we're going to go one after the other. >> all systems go. seems easy, until steve's daughters warn me that his complicated layout demands that the trains run at precise speeds. get it wrong, and i'll crash a couple of very expensive locomotives into each other. yikes! so i'm driving three trains at once.

fortunately today, nothing goes off the rails. i love it. i could be here all day. what steve didn't do was instruct his widow, jane, what he wanted her to do with the trains after he died. do you wish he had made these kind of arrangements before? >> well, i wish had, but there just really wasn't the time to even get into it. >> jane estimates steve spent about $1 million on the trains and layout. so perhaps selling off the cars and display, piece by piece, could be just the ticket. enter appraiser laurence martin to provide his expert financial analysis. >> i went through every train, every locomotive, every car. it was over 126 man hours. i mean, shock and awe would be a good way to phrase that. >> and you'd be shocked how much some of steve's model trains are worth. >> he has one locomotive, was by row and company,

that is one of only 30 in the world. >> its value -- $5,300. this pennsylvania railroad model is one of only 250 and worth nearly $4,000. while this limited-edition steam engine comes in at $1,900. the train total -- $137,000. steve's custom display itself is a different story. with no real secondary market, those pieces won't fetch anything near what he paid for them. >> i don't know too many people that spend that kind of money to have a model train set running around in their house. >> laurence estimates the layout and all its components are worth about $200,000, so it doesn't make much sense to sell off the inheritance piecemeal. and that's actually a relief for stephanie and christina. >> his only dream was to make sure that everyone that wanted to could enjoy them.

>> but then, what to do? how many options did you have? >> not very many. it's so big that not just anybody could take it. >> the family begins seeking out someone who could take the entire display. >> originally, i'd love to have given then to the children's hospital, but they didn't have the room. it just wasn't feasible. >> so they reach out to a bigger facility. >> we checked with at&t stadium, too, but it was a little large for the stadium so... >> even for a stadium? >> even for the stadium. >> but the family doesn't give up yet. they leave their info at a museum in nearby frisco, texas. >> i got a message on my desk that someone had an interest in donating a train layout to us. >> bob laprelle is the ceo of the museum of the american railroad, which has honored railroad history since 1962. you must get calls all the time of people who think their train sets are good enough for a museum. >> yes, we do. in fact, we've turned down quite a few over the years. >> did you come immediately out

to see it? >> we came out within a week or so. it just blew us away. the creativity that went into this layout far exceeds just about anything else we've ever seen. >> the family offers to donate the display, plus steve's vast collection of model trains, to the museum. but there's still one, giant bridge to cross. what if you start taking it apart, and it's destroyed? what's your "strange inheritance" story? we'd love to tell it. send me an e-mail or go to our website, strangeinheritance.com.

♪ >> now back to "strange inheritance." >> jane sanders and her daughters want to donate the gigantic model train display their husband and father left behind to the museum of the american railroad in frisco, texas. it's got to be a little bittersweet. >> it is. it's almost like it's the end of an era. >> and how do you feel about that? >> happy that everyone is going

to enjoy his dream but sad that it's not ours to keep to ourselves anymore. >> was it a piece of your husband leaving? >> it is, but at the same time i know so many more people are going to get to see it, and that's what he wanted. >> now train museum ceo bob laprelle needs to clear the biggest hurdle -- moving the layout without destroying it. this can't be very easy. >> well, it's a massive project, and it's a specialized job. >> your first cut could be the end of this railroad. it could fall apart. >> well... >> in june 2017, the breakdown begins. step one -- label every single one of the thousands of individual pieces. >> we'll try to document as much as we can of the existing configuration of the layout before we attempt to dismantle it. >> with the inventory complete, each piece is delicately removed. >> then you've got to consider everything that you don't see -- the wiring, the hidden loop tracks, the

behind-the-scenes parts of it. >> finally, the various sections of the layout, called decks, are ever so carefully split apart. >> you've got to make strategic cuts and be very careful with it. >> the last step -- forklift the decks out of their second-story home. one wrong move and the display will come crashing down. >> we just don't want to drop anything. that would be a tragedy. ♪ >> but there will be no tragedies today. the sections are safely loaded onto a truck and the entire lot gets shipped to nearby frisco, texas, for reassembly. and the museum will not only reinstall the display, but add to it, so they can show off even more of steve's trains. >> we can share it with, you know, literally tens of thousands of people a year. and even though he's no longer with us, he really lives on.

>> do you think he would approve of what you're doing? >> oh, i think he would be so excited. he always had this way of giggling when he was very, very happy and i think that he would just be walking around giggling right now. >> that legacy is still going and will continue for, hopefully, very, very many years, that my children can take their children to go see it and say this was pop's place. >> when it comes to model-train enthusiasts, steve's in very good company. take frank sinatra. old "blue eyes" dedicated an entire wing of his california ranch to model trains. then there's buster keaton. he was so enamored with the hobby that he had trains running through his backyard carrying cocktails to pool-side quests. and when rod stewart's train display was featured on the cover of model railroader, he said it meant more to him than being on the cover of rolling stone.

i'm jamie colby. thanks so much for watching "strange inheritance." and remember -- you can't take it with you. [ train whistle blows ] >> good evening everybody. tonight from west palm beach, florida, president trump tonight is wrapping up his first campaign event of this new year in miami. the president looking to energize further his already enthusiastic base from the important evangelical community, looking to bring as many as 25 million of them to the polls this year. at tonight's rally the president announcing to the world that at his command one of the most merciless and savage terrorists on earth was ordered killed by the u.s.