Backroad Odyssey : Travel, Van Life & Lost Locations
Traveling America's backroads, history and road trip enthusiasts - Noah and Noodles - unearth fascinating locations overlooked while traveling.
Living out of a van, they research and visit each story location to share the (often shocking) secrets held within.
If you love travel, history and thoughtful storytelling - join us on the road!
Backroad Odyssey : Travel, Van Life & Lost Locations
Van Life Diaries - The Tree That Owns Itself
Can a tree own itself?
In Georgia the answer is a resounding ... KINDOF!
The curios story of one trees accepted autonomy is a tale worth telling - Noodles and I visit it's location in Athens, Georgia to investigate.
As always, we'll answer listener questions at the end - which include:
How much energy does your solar power produce?
What happens when Noodles can’t go to a location for an episode?
How long did you spend in the Blockbuster? Did you see the movie props gifted by John Oliver?
Any upcoming episodes you’re excited about?
Noah and Noodles here!
We want to extend a heartfelt thanks to every listener of Backroad Odyssey.
Your support fuels our passion and inspires us to keep sharing stories and discover overlooked locations.
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https://www.instagram.com/backroadsodyssey/
Cruisin' down the street. I wonder where this road would lead. So many possibilities. Care to share what you think. Oh, noodle Dolls, what do you see? Back Road Odyssey.
Speaker 1:Van Life Diaries the tree that owns itself. Welcome to Van Life Diaries. I'm your host, noah, along with my dog, noodles the Woodle, we're recording in the van in southern Florida. Today it's a little hot, but we're still excited to reflect on the small detour we took to Athens, georgia, to visit the tree that owns itself.
Speaker 1:As always, fan life diaries are unscripted and impromptu. As such, the curious story of a single tree declaring its autonomy will be told, albeit a bit loosely. With that said, I'm drinking a three daughters IPA from St Petersburg, trying to keep it local. Feel free to join me, alcoholic or not, whatever you're feeling, and buckle up for a good old Georgian tale. Let's get into it. Behind the antebellum architecture, the trendy shops and the good music scene, this college town of Athens nestled in northeast Georgia has a secret. It's not shocking, it doesn't stand out, it's not even particularly worth driving out of your way to see, but it is peculiar, it's enduring and the story is reflective of the people and the legacy of Athens. We, of course, are referring to a tree, a specific tree in Athens that owns itself. For, and in consideration of the great love I bear this tree and the great desire I have for its protection for all time, I convey entire possession of itself and all land within eight feet of the tree, on all sides. William H Jackson, 1832.
Speaker 1:This is a reading of a picture that I took when Noodles and I went to go see the tree in Athens. It was a beautiful sunny day when we went, not a cloud in the sky. We'd just been earlier in the day to Terrapin Brewing. I liked their beer for a long time and I love going to tap rooms, so we went. So why not just stay in the tap room? You might be wondering why go to what really amounts to just a tree? And to answer this, I think for a lot of the show it's less about the actual place that we go to and it's more about the story, what it tells about the surrounding area in the broader context of the people that live there. So for the tree, specifically the tree that we left a brewery to go visit, the first question I want to answer right now is why? The first question I want to answer right now is why, what's the larger story of this tree and what can it tell us about the area and about the people of Athens?
Speaker 1:Oral traditions pinpoint the beginning of the story the tree that owns itself to a colonel or a doctor, or neither, depending on who you ask. The occupation really is ambiguous, the more research that you do. But the name is not. William.
Speaker 1:Henry Jackson, it's said, spent much of his childhood sitting underneath a particularly beautiful tree, whilst growing up in Athens, georgia. I think it's a universal desire to want to preserve what you enjoy, what you cherish, and for William, this universal desire extended to his favorite, cherished childhood tree. To prevent anything from happening to his special tree, william deeds the tree and the surrounding eight feet on every side to the tree, witness that the said W H Jackson for and in consideration of the great affection which he bears said tree and his great desire to see it protected, has conveyed. And by these presents do convert the said tree entire possession of itself and of all land within eight feet on all sides. All right, mouthful as that was, that was a reported reading of the will left by William. And you must ask right now, why do I say reported? Well, the deed, it seems, was never found. So keep that in the back of your mind.
Speaker 1:But beyond that, right now, can you legally deed something to an object, especially in the state of Georgia? In other words, can a tree legally own itself? And I'm going to be honest, these legal episodes are getting a little too much. I'm going to call my. These legal episodes are getting a little too much, I'm going to call my lawyer. Quick, one second. You got to stop calling me man, so sorry, really quick.
Speaker 1:Can a tree own itself in Georgia? No, Yep, much like the healing fountain episode, where the land around the springs were deeded to God, it's not legally binding. An entity must be present to accept the deed being given, and here's why, in my view, this is a story worth telling and if you're in Athens, a story worth telling and if you're in Athens, a tree worth visiting. So, after William's death, years pass, generations pass and throughout it all his wishes are respected. It may as well be legally binding because the tree, and eight feet on every side, belongs to itself courtesy of the collective people of Athens, georgia. No one's touched it. But here's where it gets a little deeper. When you stand beneath the tree today, you look up and you think this looks much, much younger, a lot shorter than it should if William sat underneath this tree in the 19th century. And that's because drumroll please the tree today is not the same tree deeded to itself by William all those years ago.
Speaker 1:A storm in 1942 ripped down the estimated 300-plus year tree, but luckily by this point the tree had become a cherished local landmark Pretty quickly. Four years after the tree fell down, a new sapling was planted from an acorn produced by the original fallen tree In 1946, it was planted by the Junior Ladies Garden Club, was dedicated to itself by the mayor at the time time and throughout it all then, now and before it was respected by the larger population of Athens. To this day, no one has challenged the ownership of the tree. The nearby houses, sidewalks, parks and surrounding trees add to the really heartening notion that everyone respects this unique tree's autonomy. They respect the tradition of it all rather than a piece of paper. A resident noticed me setting up my tripod to take a picture of Noodles and I and she came over to help me take the picture. Everybody respects this tree. And look, would I recommend driving three hours to see the tree like I did? Probably not.
Speaker 1:But stories like this, the communities that uphold these stories, the humanity that they bring back into this pretty bleak world sometimes, is worth taking the time to stop and to listen to. It is small, seemingly inconsequential landmarks and the stories behind them, like the tree that owns itself, that make life just a tad more interesting. On one level, the tree in Athens does not own itself in any way, shape or form, but because people collectively believe that it does, it does so cheers to the people of Athens, to its autonomous tree and to the small stories and locations that bring us all together. With that said, my friends, let's hear some listener questions. With that said, my friends, let's hear some listener questions.
Speaker 1:How long did you spend in the blockbuster? Did you see the movie props gifted by John Oliver? All right, so this is referring to the last blockbuster in the world in Bend, oregon, noodles, and I went to visit it and did an episode on it. So we got there and I turned the AC on for Noodles and I spent maybe 30 minutes in the store. So maybe the John Oliver bit needs some context. John Oliver did an episode on the remaining blockbusters in the world. I think there were three left in Alaska, one in Australia and one in Bend.
Speaker 1:John Oliver went to an auction that Russell Crowe was having where he sold his old movie props, and John Oliver bought the jockstrap from Cinderella man and sent it to one of the stores in Alaska to help business. But when that store closed they then sent it to Bend, oregon, and, funnily enough, that is the first thing that I looked for when I went to the business. But when that store closed they then sent it to Bend, oregon and, funnily enough, that is the first thing that I looked for when I went to the store and I didn't find it and I didn't do any more digging on what they did with it once they did receive it from the Alaska store. So I'll have to look into that. But they did have other movie props. They did have other gifts that people had sent them. I'll get back to you on that. I'll do an update next.
Speaker 1:Van Life Diaries what happens when noodles can't go to a location for an episode? Yeah, so every so often there's a location that noodles is not allowed into just because dogs can't go everywhere. So on one hand I really try to pick locations that we both can go to, but on the off chance that she cannot go. I put on the AC in the van and she hangs out in the van. If there's locations within the location that she can go to, I'll take her, but otherwise she just she hangs out in the van. Uh, got AC and I go and check on her every 30 minutes or so. So, yeah, she's all taken care of, but I really wish she could go to every one of them, because she's a sweetheart.
Speaker 1:How much energy does your solar power produce? Great question. I am in the midst of trying to replace my batteries and get better solar power. I've got 215 watts currently. The fridge takes up a lot of power, as well as other things in the van, so I'm going to work on bumping that up a little bit and getting better batteries, because at the moment I can only have lights on for not very long at all. So, yeah, very relevant question, thank you.
Speaker 1:Are you in Florida to enjoy the Arctic temperatures? I'm in Florida currently to one fix some of my van, as I said. Two to watch my parents' dogs. And three, yeah, we've had a bit of colder weather recently, which has been so nice, but what's funny about the van and when I'm recording is I can't have my vent on and I can't have AC. I need all the windows closed just for audio purposes. So even though it is a bit colder, it's insulated, so it's like a sauna a little bit. The sun kind of bakes me in here. So whenever I'm in a sunny place, even though it might be a little colder, it gets pretty hot when I record. But Florida in general noodles and I go for great walks at 65 degrees. Yeah, I'd say it's great to have Arctic-like temperatures while I'm down here.
Speaker 1:Any upcoming episodes that you are excited about? There are legitimately so many. I've been reading a lot of books on Plymouth Rock. I went there a bit ago. I want to do this as a series and I want to get it right, because that's, in essence, is what Backward Odyssey is about. Right, these really sometimes underwhelming locations, but you dive into the story and suddenly it becomes the most interesting thing. So yeah, plymouth Rock will be one. Then there's a cult location down here in Florida which I'm very excited about.
Speaker 1:There's a diamond mine in Alabama that you can pay $14 to go and dig for your own diamonds. So I did that. I wonder if I got anything. I guess we'll have to see about that. But yeah, there's definitely, definitely a bunch. Thanks for asking Great question. It's Noah here. Thank you so much. It's getting pretty hot recording in the van down here in southern Florida so I'm going to start signing out, but I do appreciate every minute that you spend listening to Backroad Odyssey. If you're in Athens, check out Terrapin Brewing Company They've got some good stuff and swing by the tree that owns itself. It is a tree, but a tree like no other. If you find value in this show, taking one minute to rate or review wherever you're listening now really, really helps us continue to share overlooked locations and stories. I appreciate your time. Be good to each other. Where to next?
