Inside the unclaimed baggage center where lost luggage finds new life

Amid the bustling holiday travel season, as travelers navigate the shift from Christmas to New Year's, major airports are keeping pace. But the story doesn't always end at the baggage claim. For some, their belongings embark on an unexpected journey to a small Alabama town.

At the Unclaimed Baggage Center in Scottsboro, Alabama, lost luggage finds a new lease on life. This unique store stretches over a city block, filled with items from unclaimed airline baggage. Visitors here can find anything from a glitzy Rolex and a 1980s-style keyboard guitar to rare movie props, ancient violins and designer clothes.

Bryan Owens, who inherited the business from his father, describes the store's inventory with a hint of wonder. "If these bags could talk, what a story they'd have to tell," he said. 

Among the unusual finds are suits of armor. "We've had more than one suit of armor come through, believe it or not," Owens said.

Airlines typically have a 90-day window to reunite lost bags with their owners. After this period, the bags are deemed lost, and the airlines compensate the flyers. Owens then purchases these unclaimed bags by the truckload. The contents, ranging from wearable items to electronics, are cleaned, data-wiped and priced for resale.

"The thing that separates us from a thrift store is thrift stores are things that people, people don't want anymore. These are items that we have that people didn't wanna part with," said Owens.

The store has seen its share of valuable items and sentimental items including a $22,000 Rolex and wedding dresses.

The idea for the store came to Owens' father 53 years ago after a chat with a friend at a Washington D.C. bus line. With a modest investment of $300 and a pickup truck, the business was born.

Today, the store is not just a retail space but a tourist destination, drawing a million visitors yearly to Scottsboro, a town of 15,000. People like Marilyn Evans, who detoured hours on her drive from Florida to Tennessee, find the journey worthwhile.

"Definitely way out of the way, way farther away than I thought it was gonna be. But yes, it's been worth it so far. It's been a lot of fun," Evans said.

The most popular section of the store is electronics, featuring the latest gadgets alongside some oddities like firearms or boat engines. The store has housed surprises over the years: a live rattlesnake, a 40-carat emerald, Egyptian artifacts and even a guidance system for an F-14 Tomcat fighter jet, which was returned to the Navy.

Kris Van Cleave

Kris Van Cleave is CBS News' senior transportation and national correspondent based in Phoenix.

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