trophy? with phil willing to go to authorities and the evidence mounting, the search for jimmy hoffa may end up in the meadowlands. >> majestic trees thousands of years old... >> these are the biggest trees i've ever seen, and they're beautiful. >> the redwood forest has been on the planet since the dinosaurs. >> then the ax men cometh. one makes a redwood his ultimate log cabin... >> what? >> ...a log-rolling attraction. it's her strange inheritance. >> i was the only child, so i knew i was always gonna get the log. >> but the road takes its toll. >> it's hard to be the log lady and have a life and be the truck driver and the repair person and do it all. >> she's got a big decision to make. >> she sure does, jamie. she sure does. >> and what happens when it's time for the log to be inherited from you? [ suspenseful music plays ]

[ door creaks ] [ wind howls ] [ thunder rumbles ] [ bird caws ] [ mid-tempo music plays ] >> i'm jamie colby, and today i'm heading to the annual blueberry festival in plymouth, indiana. it's not exactly the kind of place you'd 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 it's kept me on the road all my life. >> jamie? >> jamie? >> [ chuckles ] how are you? it's really great to meet you. and how funny we have the same name. let's get started, then. >> all right, here we go. >> this is one serious tree trunk. [ mid-tempo 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. that's when it occurs to james that he could actually make a home out of one. >> it was the tail end of the depression. he couldn't 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 georgia-pacific 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 they're the tallest trees on the planet. let's 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 you're looking at is a history of fire, really. this burned-out cave is called a "goose pen." >> oh, my gosh. go inside? >> go inside, yeah. >> and it could survive this? >> actually, this tree is fine. it's still growing well. and it's 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 2-man team to fell a 12-foot-diameter tree. a log could easily weigh 50 tons. >> we've lost 95% of ancient forests like this one to harvest. this is one forest you won't 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. >> you're calling out to me. give me a squeeze! ah! it's not hard to grasp why americans love their redwoods -- a must-stop 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, it's five bucks. but remember, back in 1939, jamie's grandfather isn't looking to create a roadside attraction. he simply wanted a place to hang his hat. [ mid-tempo 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, "what's 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 cross-country, 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 18-year-old iris keiver. they're 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 must've 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 allen's 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 wasn't even funny. >> and it's not every day you get to walk through a tree. now that i heard your story, i've got to go inside. >> please go right in and see how beautiful it really is. >> that's 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.

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you're also not helpless. you have the strength to find your way back to being you again. starts with the first step. visit yourlifeyourvoice.org it's your life. you can get it back. >> so, what is america's most visited national park? it's "a," the great smoky mountains in tennessee -- gets about 10 million visitors a year. >> it's not often you get the chance to walk through a 1,900-year-old redwood tree. i'll be out of the other side, i assume. >> i'll meet you at the other end. [ upbeat music plays ] >> welcome inside jamie allen's 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, all-wood cabinets? in fact, every built-in facet of the log's interior is made entirely of redwood, hand-sanded, 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. that's how it was made. the pictures hanging in this gallery are jamie's 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. i'm imagining the four months it took for her grandpa to hollow out this log and then 18 months to painstakingly hand-build this redwood interior -- just tall enough to accommodate his 6-foot

frame and everything else he needed. it's a whole home -- couch, living room, dining room. bedroom? unbelievable. oh. this is beautiful! wow, jamie. it's like an elegant home inside. >> it's beautiful, isn't it? [ upbeat music plays ] >> and it's been home to jamie allen her whole life. >> i can't ever remember not living with a log. when i was a baby, my mother put me in a cardboard box because they didn't have a big crib to take with them. you can't carry a big crib in a log. [ country western music plays ] >> but when jamie turns five, her parents divorce. five years old? >> they just couldn't 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. he'd 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 fair-and-festival circuit, traveling with her dad. it's big-time 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... >> here's another quiz question for you... the answer when we return. ♪ limu emu & doug

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so, what city lays claim to the oldest state fair? it's "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. i'm at the indiana blueberry festival with jamie allen and her strange inheritance -- a cabin her grandfather carved out of a 1,900-year-old 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. >> she's been at it since she was a kid. for years, she crisscrossed the country with her dad. what's here? >> this is my friend mike mcneil, and he was a good friend of my father's, as well, so i thought he was somebody you might like to meet. >> oh, you mean you didn't 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 jamie's father crossed paths many times. >> jamie's 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 mike's cheesecake is any good. >> wait a minute. >> ooh! they have everything inside. >> there you go. >> uh-huh. is this new york cheesecake? >> no, it's better. this is philadelphia. >> nothing is better -- oh, philadelphia? >> you haven't tried this. >> okay, so, what's 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. >> you're 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 weekend's the fair and every weekday's 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 man's 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 don't 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?" i'd 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, she's indeed just like her dad. any regrets that your dad didn't take that offer? >> no, it's 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 we're showing, probably 4 to 6 months a year. >> and you make a living doing this? >> i try. it's not as lucrative as it used to be. it's 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 can't move it very quickly. i get four miles to the gallon.

bungees, buddy. >> are you losing money on this proposition? >> i think i'm breaking even. you know, i'm 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 can't drive a rig anymore? >> well, the show's got to go on. we don't have a choice. >> or does she? [ upbeat music plays ] she's got a big decision to make. >> she sure does, jamie. >> that's next. what's your "strange inheritance" story? we'd love to tell it. send me an e-mail or go to our website, strangeinheritance.com. isn't just a department. it's a voice on the other end of the phone. a note to say you're on our mind. a willingness to come to you. the world and how we interact with each other is changing.

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>> now back to "strange inheritance." >> for 30 years, jamie allen has been the sole proprietor of allen's 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 lady's driving a tree." >> you can see the passenger tell the driver, "look, there's a girl driving that thing." >> her policy of admission by donation, plus the revenue from souvenirs, once provided a decent living, but it's tougher with each passing year. >> it's 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 didn't 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, "i'm a museum, i'm 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, jamie's told me she's just about breaking even. she's getting four miles to the

gallon. >> well, she's moving it. that doesn't mean that, if it were staying still, that she couldn't generate more money. >> it's a lot to take in. i don't 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 it's a little bit of both. >> you're doing this since you're 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 1,900-year-old 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 it's time for the log to be inherited from you? you don't have children.

>> no, but i have several godchildren that are very interested in the log. so we'll see who shows the most potential of making sure that it keeps traveling. >> words of a woman who knows she's approaching a crossroads but is not there yet. >> i've been doing what i've been doing for a long time, and i want my log to keep doing what it's doing. >> so your life's gonna be on the road for awhile. >> well, i'm pretty sure it probably will be. >> it's what you do. >> it's who i am. >> no doubt jamie allen's 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 tree's life would be in danger.

i'm jamie colby for "strange inheritance." thanks so much for watching, and remember, you can't take it with you. ♪ ♪ >> from the fox studios in new york city, this is maria bartiromo's "wall street." maria: and happy weekend. welcome to the program that analyzes the week that was and helps position you for the week ahead. i'm maria bartiromo. coming up in just a moment, ins' managing director joins me, then later secretary of state mike pompeo on china's culpability in the covid-19 pandemic. but first, the cracks caused by the covid-19 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