This year former president James Carter celebrated his 100th birthday on October 1st.
Born on October 1st, 1924, in Plains, Georgia, James Earl Carter was the son of a farmer and a nurse. As a child, he did all sorts of chores and jobs on the farm, from picking crops to going into town to sell their peanuts. His uncle, who was in the navy, sent his nephew many postcards of all the exciting and exotic places he had been. This is what seemed to spark Jim’s interest in the navy, which he joined in 1946.
For four years, he was part of the submarine division of the U.S. Navy. During this time, he sent letters to his college sweetheart, Rosalynn Smith. After he left the navy, he married Rosalynn and started a peanut farm of his own. During this time, he also had four children: Jack, Amy, Donnel, and James Jr.
His political career started when, from 1963 to 1967, he served on the Georgia State Senate. Four years later, he was elected governor of Georgia until 1975. He eventually ran for president a year later in 1976, and won against former president, Gerald Ford. A highlight of his campaign was the fact that since he was a peanut farmer, almost every piece of merchandise for his campaign involved his famous smile plastered on a peanut. He seemed to really connect with the middle class and his speeches were always shown in his home, wearing cardigan sweaters. During his term, it seemed that being a family man did not correlate to being a good president. He was voted out of office after the 1980 election, with Ronald Reagan winning the election.
After he left office, he decided to do some charity work. He joined the famous charity, Habitat for Humanity and created The Carter Work Project, which built houses for underprivileged communities. In 2002, he even won the Nobel Peace Prize for his work in charity.
For his birthday, he and 25 family members had cupcakes on his lawn while watching airplanes fly overhead. Despite being a pretty quiet presidency Jimmy Carter has left a long legacy, all the way to his 100th birthday.
References
Strong, Robert. “Jimmy Carter: Life Before Presidency” Miller Center, UVA, 19 September 2016
millercenter.org/president/carter/life-before-the-presidency
Harding, Gene. “James Carter: The 39th President of the United States” About the White House Presidents, The White House, 23 June, 2013, www.whitehouse.gov/about-the-white-house/presidents/james-carter/
Askwell, Edgar. “Jimmy Carter” The Nobel Prize Committee, Nobel Foundation, 8 April 2018, www.nobelprize.org/prizes/peace/2002/carter/facts
