Jimmy Carter: A Century of Change and Legacy

Jimmy Carter, the 39th and longest-lived US president, is about to celebrate his 100th birthday. Known for his frugality and significant contributions, Carter's life spans significant shifts in US and global populations, technological advancements, and evolving political landscapes. His enduring legacy continues to influence American culture and politics.

Already the longest-lived of the 45 men to serve as US president, Jimmy Carter is about to reach the century mark. The 39th president, who remains under home hospice care, will turn 100 on Tuesday, Oct 1, celebrating in the same south Georgia town where he was born in 1924.

Here are some notable markers for Carter, the nation, and the world over his long life. Booms most everywhere — but not Plains Carter has seen the US population nearly triple, now at about 330 million residents from 114 million in 1924. The global population has more than quadrupled, from 1.9 billion to more than 8.1 billion.

That boom has not reached Plains, where Carter has lived more than 80 of his 100 years. His wife Rosalynn, who died in 2023 at age 96, also was born in Plains. Their town comprised fewer than 500 people in the 1920s and has about 700 today; much of the local economy revolves around its most famous residents.

Of the numerous milestones, when Carter was born, life expectancy for American males was 58. It's now 75. TV, radio and presidential maps NBC first debuted a red-and-blue electoral map in the 1976 election between then-President Gerald Ford and Carter, the Democratic challenger.

Attention shoppers There was no Amazon Prime in 1924, but you could order a build-it-yourself house from a catalog. The Great Depression followed anyway. In the 1930s, as Carter became politically aware, the political right opposed international engagement. America's and Carter's pastime Carter is the Atlanta Braves' most famous fan.

When Carter was born, the Braves were still in Boston. Booze, Billy, and Billy Beer Prohibition had been in effect for four years when Carter was born and wouldn't be lifted until he was 9. The Carters were never prodigious drinkers. Carter's younger brother Billy marketed his own brand, Billy Beer, once Carter became president. News sources reported that Billy Carter snagged a $50,000 annual licensing fee from one brewer.

(With inputs from agencies.)