Jimmy Carter, 39th President of the United States, dies at 100

Jimmy Carter, the 39th President of the United States, has died.

He was 100.

An online memorial created by the Carter Foundation was launched Sunday, showcasing photos and stories from his life.

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Former President Jimmy Carter, who turned 100 on Oct. 1, served as the 39th president of the United States, from 1977 to 1981, but before that, he was the 76th governor of Georgia and a member of the Georgia State Senate.

Although he had a lengthy career in politics, Carter also worked as a diplomat and humanitarian and authored dozens of books.

Carter graduated from the United States Naval Academy in Annapolis, Maryland, at the top of his class in 1946. Soon after, he started his Navy career, spending five years on submarine duty.

Carter married Rosalynn Smith, who became Rosalynn Carter, in 1946, soon after graduating from high school. They had four children: Jack Carter, born in 1947; James Carter, born in 1950; Donnel Carter, born in 1952; and Amy Carter, born in 1967.

In his hometown of Plains, Georgia, Carter’s parents, Earl and Lillian Carter, owned a peanut farm, warehouse and store. When Earl Carter died of cancer in 1953, Carter resigned from the Navy, came back home and worked to rebuild the business. Despite a drought in 1954 and a boycott against integration, Carter made the business profitable by 1959.

The Carter Center opened in 1982, and its mission, in partnership with Emory University in Atlanta, is to resolve conflicts and improve human health through a commitment to human rights. Part of that work led Carter to be honored with the Nobel Peace Prize in 2002.

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Carter was diagnosed with stage 4 melanoma in August 2015. While teaching Sunday school at Maranatha Baptist Church in Plains, he said he had surgery on a mass on his liver and had radiation treatment on four melanoma spots in his brain.

Despite the diagnosis, Carter remained active in his humanitarian work, helping build a Habitat for Humanity house in Memphis, Tennessee.

In May 2016, Carter Center Director of Communications Deanna Congileo confirmed that Carter did not need any more treatments but would “continue scans and resume treatment if necessary.”

Carter had additional medical issues in 2019. He experienced a fall in his home in Plains, Georgia, which required stitches above his brow. After a series of such falls, Carter had successful surgery to relieve pressure on his brain caused by a subdural hematoma. Carter also recovered from an infection associated with that hospital stay.

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