Carter teaches at church

Q: Does President Jimmy Carter still teach Sunday School at a church in Plains? Do you have to make reservations? —Eddie Webster, Douglasville

A: No appointment is necessary to see the former president.

Carter, who is 90 years old, still teaches Sunday School two or three times a month at Maranatha Baptist Church in his hometown of Plains.

Carter’s teaching schedule, which is regularly updated on the church’s website (mbcplains.org), shows he’ll be there Aug. 23 and 30, and Sept. 6, 13 and 27.

Because of his status as the 39th president of the United States, Carter’s class, which begins at 10 a.m., meets in the church’s 300-seat sanctuary.

And if needed, an overflow crowd can watch Carter through a live video feed from the church’s fellowship hall.

Be warned: The church often fills up fast when Carter teaches, so you’re asked to arrive early. Maranatha opens at 8:30 a.m. The Secret Service provides security and there’s an orientation at 9 a.m.

There also is a scheduled time to pose for photos with the Carters after the worship service, if they don’t have to leave for other engagements.

Q: When it comes to population, how quickly has Georgia grown through the years?

A: The interior of the state was largely unexplored when the first U.S. Census was taken in 1790.

Only 82,548 people lived in Georgia at that time, ranking ahead of only Rhode Island and Delaware, which have obvious space constraints.

The state didn’t hit the 1 million mark until the 1860 census and didn’t eclipse 2 million people until 1900.

Even with 2.2 million that year, Georgia was the most populated Southern state other than Texas, which had 3 million.

Georgia surpassed 3 million people in 1940 and increased to 4.5 million in 1970, which was 15th in the nation.

The state more than doubled in residents in the 40 years between 1970 and 2010, jumping to a total of 9.6 million, ninth among the 50 states.