Jimmy Carter’s extraordinary life in pictures

Former President Jimmy Carter, who died Sunday at the age of 100, led an extraordinary life that began at a peanut farm in Plains, Georgia, and went on to include four years in the world’s most powerful office, travels around the globe and a Nobel Peace Prize.

President Biden declared a National Day of Mourning for Jan. 9, when the state funeral will be held in Washington, D.C., with additional services and ceremonies planned throughout the week. Carter will be buried at the same ranch house where he returned to live after his time in the White House, next to his beloved wife of 77 years, Rosalynn Carter, who died in 2023.

Childhood in Plains, Georgia

James Earl Carter, known as Jimmy throughout his life, was born on Oct. 1, 1924, in Plains, Georgia, the son of Earl and Lillian Carter. The family owned a peanut farm and he grew up in a home without electricity or indoor plumbing.

U.S. Navy service

Carter graduated from the U.S. Naval Academy, completed submarine training and served in the Navy for seven years.

Running the family peanut farm in Plains, Georgia

Carter had planned on a military career, but he left the Navy and returned to his hometown in Georgia to run the family farm after his father died.

Governor of Georgia

Carter got involved in politics in the 1960s, first serving as a state senator from 1963 until 1967, but he lost his first race for governor in 1966. He ran again and won in 1970, taking office as Georgia’s 76th governor on Jan. 12, 1971.

He drew national attention for his focus on civil rights, declaring in his inauguration speech, “The time for racial discrimination is over.”

Race for the White House, 1976

In the wake of the Watergate scandal and President Richard Nixon’s 1974 resignation, Carter ran as an outsider in the 1976 presidential campaign against incumbent Republican President Gerald Ford. Then-Sen. Joe Biden of Delaware was one of the first senators to endorse Carter’s White House bid. Carter ultimately picked U.S. Sen. Walter Mondale of Minnesota as his running mate.

Winning the presidency

The Carter-Mondale ticket triumphed on election day, with hopes of setting America on a new course. But after taking office, Carter faced deep economic challenges and a series of world crises.

Carter was sworn in as the 39th president of the United States by Chief Justice Warren Burger on Jan. 20, 1977. Afterwards, the Carters famously decided to walk rather than ride in a limo at the Inaugural Parade.

Carter family at the White House

Jimmy and Rosalynn Carter married in 1946 and had four children, Jack, Chip, Jeff and Amy, the youngest, who was 9 years old when she and her parents moved into the White House.

Middle East talks and Camp David Accords

In one of Carter’s signature accomplishments in office, negotiations at Camp David in Maryland led to a landmark peace treaty between Israel and Egypt. Israeli Prime Minister Menachem Begin and Egyptian President Anwar al-Sadat signed it and shook hands at the White House in 1979, and were awarded the Nobel Peace Prize for their efforts. (Carter would be awarded a Nobel Peace Prize of his own in 2002.)

Panama Canal Treaty

Under the Carter administration, negotiations resulted in the 1977 Panama Canal Treaty, a pair of agreements that would establish security and neutrality protections and turn eventual control of the canal over to Panama.

Welcoming Pope John Paul II

The Carters welcomed Pope John Paul II to the White House — the first pope ever to visit — during his first papal tour of the United States in 1979, which drew huge crowds at each stop. 

According to the National Archives, the president and the pope “met privately in the Oval Office for an hour. At the start of the meeting, these two deeply religious men — each at the pinnacle of power in their respective spheres — agreed to speak not as diplomats, but as Christian brothers.” They also discussed world affairs and human rights.

Carter with celebrity guests

As president, Carter greeted some of the biggest celebrities of the era, including Elvis Presley and Muhammad Ali.

U.K. visit and dinner with Queen Elizabeth II

During a 1977 state visit to the U.K., President Carter, the plainspoken former peanut farmer, dined with Queen Elizabeth II and Prince Philip at Buckingham Palace. A moment at the end of the dinner caused a ruckus in the British press when Carter violated protocol by giving the Queen Mother a goodbye kiss on the cheek. 

Iran hostage crisis

Carter’s final year in office was beset by crisis after the Islamic revolution in Iran and the seizure of dozens of American hostages at the U.S. embassy in Tehran in November 1979. A rescue mission he approved ended in failure. The hostages were finally released on Jan. 20, 1981, the day Carter’s successor, Ronald Reagan, was sworn in as president.

Asked about the challenges he faced in office during a 1980 interview with Dan Rather for “60 Minutes,” Carter said, “The president has a unique responsibility. You can’t share it with others.”

Post-presidency dedicated to peace and human rights

Carter served just one term in office, losing his bid for reelection 1980 to Republican Ronald Reagan, but he did not give up on his efforts to advance the causes of peace and human rights. He traveled the globe monitoring elections and spearheading efforts to combat health scourges like Guinea worm disease. 

Carter awarded the Nobel Peace Prize

In 2002, Carter was awarded the Nobel Peace Prize. The Nobel committee said he was honored “for his decades of untiring effort to find peaceful solutions to international conflicts, to advance democracy and human rights, and to promote economic and social development.”

Work with Habitat for Humanity

Carter got involved with Habitat for Humanity in the 1980s and spent decades committed to its work of building homes for those in need. He continued to pitch in on construction projects well into his 90s.

A man of faith

Carter considered faith a cornerstone of his life and frequently taught Sunday school at Maranatha Baptist Church in his hometown of Plains, Georgia, even following his cancer diagnosis in 2015.

Death of his beloved wife, Rosalynn

Jimmy and Rosalynn Carter marked their 77th anniversary in July 2023, the longest marriage of any American president in history. Rosalynn Carter died a few months later, on Nov. 19, 2023. Their son Chip said Jimmy and Rosalynn spent her final moments together. 

Jimmy Carter, who was receiving hospice care at home at the time of Rosalynn’s death, attended her funeral in a wheelchair and with a blanket draped over him. It was his final public appearance. He marked his 100th birthday on Oct. 1, 2024, with a small gathering of family and friends at home. 

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