Depression Carpenter: A Road Trip through the Gulf States during The Great Depression A young man, Jackson "Jake" Ferry, born into a privileged New York family, loses them in a car accident. Young and wealthy, he needs to justify his existence during The Great Depression. He is skilled in carpentry and drives around the Gulf of Mexico, working on building projects with his peculiar friend and partner from Florida, Chin, who has cheerfully abandoned his family in favor of an adventure. Together, they travel an amazing road trip, helping poor folks along the way, repairing their homes and their lives. From St. Augustine, Florida, through the Gulf states of Alabama, and Mississippi, Jake and Chin travel together as a team. A falling out parts the men in Louisiana. Jake stops in the capitol city of Baton Rouge to take care of some financial business. He realizes that he can run forever from his responsibilities as a wealthy man. Eventually, Jake lands in Galveston, where he stays to help rebuild the island after their first Great Flood, building an inter-racial school for the island's orphans. Retracing his steps, Jake reconnects with Chin in Vaughanville, Alabama, and head back to St. Augustine together. The road trip comes to an end with Jake back in New York City, an older and wiser man with an internal compass guiding his path.