Log House stands out among Peanut Festival attractions

It’s not often you get the chance to walk through a tree.

That opportunity is afforded to this year’s National Peanut Festival attendees, however, thanks to Allen’s Original Log House, a 1,900-year-old redwood log hollowed into a livable house.

The log house has been traveling the country on display for more than 60 years, and it has remained in the family of the man who built it—Jim Allen.

“He was a lumberjack, and he retired in ‘38 after living most of his life in a tent being chased by bears and wolves in northern California. He wanted to preserve a bit of the great history of these redwoods at a time when they were being cut down all the time,” said James “Willie” Adams, the husband of Allen’s granddaughter, Jamie. “It was cut down after Christmas in 1938. It took four months to hollow it out, about a year and a half to complete it, and he lived in it ‘til 1947, so it’s been in the family 70 years.”

Initially, Allen lived in the log. However, he soon began taking it to different counties and states to allow people to view the oddity.

“Primarily around 1942 is when he left California with it, and he went from county to county letting kids walk through it,” Adams said. “There are people in their 80s who remember seeing it when they were in school. I walked through it when I was 8 years old in Sarasota, Fla., so you could say I’m a kid who got his wish.”

Jamie’s father put the log house into the carnival business in 1948, touring it at state and county fairs around the nation, funding it strictly through donations.

Portions of each donation go to a charity, in this case the Boys and Girls Club of the Suncoast.

“It’s been that way since I was a kid, run purely on donations,” Adams said. “(Jamie) is on board of directors of the Boys and Girls Club in Tarpon Springs, Fla., where we’re from. She’s raised money over the years for many children’s organizations, like Make-A-Wish. We take just the expenses, then they get the rest.”

While the house is still livable, Adams said he and Jamie only rarely stay in it these days, preferring to keep it in pristine condition for public viewing purposes.

“It’s a priceless antique,” he said. “We’re on the road eight-to-10 months out of every year, so every once in a while (we’ll stay in it).”

Allen’s Original Redwood Log House is free to view, and donations are accepted inside the house.