Re-designation of Jimmy Carter National Historic Site clears Congress
Legislation aimed at drawing more visitors to former President Jimmy Carter’s hometown of Plains is on its way to President Donald Trump for his signature.
The U.S. Senate unanimously passed a bill on Monday, Dec. 21, that already had cleared the House of Representatives re-designating the Jimmy Carter National Historic Site as the “Jimmy Carter National Historical Park.”
The measure was introduced into Congress by Sen. David Perdue, R-GA., and Rep. Sanford Bishop, D-albany, and cosponsored by the entire Georgia congressional delegation.
“No matter where life has taken me, from the Governor’s Mansion to the White House, Plains has always been my home,” Carter said Monday, Dec. 21. “Rosalynn joins me in thanking Senator Perdue, Congressman Bishop and the Georgia delegation for helping preserve my family’s legacy.”
The re-designation will help protect three current sites in Plains: Carter’s boyhood farm, Plains High School – the alma mater of both Jimmy and Rosalynn Carter, now a museum – and the Plains Train Depot, which served as headquarters for Carter’s presidential campaign.
Eventually, the home where the Carters now live and their gravesites will be included in the park.
After serving as Georgia’s governor in the early 1970s, Carter – a Democrat – was elected president in 1976 when he defeated Republican incumbent Gerald Ford. Carter served one term before he lost to Republican Ronald Reagan in 1980.
Many of the visitors who travel to Plains ride the SAM Shortline Excursion Train, a tourist attraction in its own right connecting downtown Cordele with Plains via Americus.