Rosalynn Carter is a first lady that most Americans know. With her long life of service, she stands out as a first lady who made the biggest impact after her time in the White House. She is the first first lady I remember as I was born in 1976 just as her husband was elected. Her entire life is fascinating, especially when you realize that the White House years were only a small part of it.
Each month, I’ll detail the life of the first lady and their legacy. Then I’ll share what I learned while studying them, along with ways you can travel in their footsteps through historical sites and museums. I’ll also share books, podcasts, TV shows, and websites where you can learn even more about that first lady. Read all of the way through the blog post or click on the links below to go straight to those sections.
Life
Childhood
Eleanor Rosalynn Smith was born on August 18, 1927 in Bottsford, Georgia to William and Allie Smith and grew up in the nearby town of Plains. Her father was a descendant of John Smith from the early American colony of Jamestown and was a school bus driver and mechanic. While the family was very poor, she never felt lacking as there was always food on the table and pretty clothes that her mother made in her closet.
Rosalynn had a happy childhood, playing with mostly neighborhood boys as there were no other little girls her age in the small town of Plains. Once she started school, she became best friends with a little girl from the country, Ruth Carter whose parents had visited her own parents soon after her birth. Their three-year-old son, Jimmy, saw baby Rosalynn in her cradle.
Her mother was very religious, and Rosalynn and her three younger siblings always went to church. Their social life revolved around church, and they enjoyed attending all of the events at three different churches in town.
“God was a real presence in my life.” Rosalynn Carter
Rosalynn valued education and pushed herself to be the best in her class. When she was twelve, she won $5 for having the highest grade point average. She loved reading and excelled at all classes.
After eighth grade, her parents let her go to a summer camp, but when she came home, she realized why they had sent her away. Her father was very sick with leukemia. One of his nurses was her best friend’s mother, Lillian Carter. As the end drew near, Rosalynn spent the night with the Carters as her father died at the age of 44. Rosalynn was thirteen.
“My childhood really ended at that moment.” Rosalynn Carter
Her maternal grandparents helped her mother with their care as she had to enter the workforce, eventually becoming postmistress. However, Rosalynn’s grandmother passed away the next year, and her grandfather moved in with them. Rosalynn took on much of the responsibility for her younger siblings.
“I had lost much of my childhood enthusiasm and confidence.” Rosalynn Carter
Rosalynn got a job as a hairdresser while still in high school to help her mother. She was still able to graduate as class valedictorian and attended college at the nearby Georgia Southwestern College where she wanted to learn about interior design.
Courtship and Marriage
Rosalynn continued to spend time with her best friend, Ruth, and thought Ruth’s older brother, Jimmy, was cute. Ruth tried to set them up when he was home for break from the Naval Academy, but it didn’t work until the summer of 1946. Ruth invited Rosalynn to go with them to a family home in the country and Jimmy was there. That night, they double-dated with Ruth and her boyfriend.
“After dreaming about him for so long, I was actually with him, and it couldn’t have been more wonderful.” Rosalynn Carter
He told his mother the following morning that he was going to marry Rosalynn. It was a whirlwind courtship; conducted via letter as he went back to school. They often signed them ILYTG – I love you the goodest. He affectionately called her Rosa.
He asked her to marry him, but she rejected him as she thought she was too young and had promised her father she would complete college. However, when she went to Annapolis in February to visit him at the Naval Academy, he asked again and she said yes. She abandoned plans to continue her education, and they set a wedding date.
His family didn’t approve of Rosalynn and thought she wasn’t good enough for him. She had a particularly tense relationship with his mother which never resolved.
Rosalynn and Jimmy married at Plains United Methodist Church on July 7, 1946 in a simple ceremony with no attendants. She and Jimmy walked down the aisle together since her father had passed. They honeymooned at Atlanta’s Biltmore Hotel and then drove to the Appalachian mountains for the rest of their honeymoon. It wasn’t without drama as Jimmy totaled another car on the trip!
They moved to Norfolk, Virginia after the honeymoon so he could serve on a battleship. He was at sea all the time except weekends and some Fridays. Rosalynn handled everything, but he helped with cooking when he was home. Their first son, John “Jack” Carter born in July of 1947. Rosalynn was forced to do many hard things and excelled.
“I was more content than I had been in years.” Rosalynn Carter
In 1948, the Carters moved to New London, Connecticut for Jimmy to attend submarine school. Then they were sent to Hawaii where their second son, James Earl III (Chip), was born in April of 1950. They loved Hawaii and learned about the native culture. She took hula lessons, and he played the ukulele.
When the Korean War began, the Carters were sent to San Diego, and neither Jimmy or Rosalynn liked their apartment there. Five months later, they were sent back to Connecticut where their third son, Jeff, was born in August of 1952. Jimmy was selected to be on a nuclear sub so they moved to Schenectady, New York.
They soon learned that Jimmy’s father was dying of cancer and rushed back to Plains. While there, Jimmy decided to move back home and take over the family business – peanut farming. Rosalynn was not happy to move back because she enjoyed her freedom and traveling. When they drove to Plains in 1953, a furious Rosalynn refused to talk to Jimmy the entire trip, even relying on their son to tell him that she needed to use the restroom.
Georgia Wife
The move back to Plains was rocky for another reason. Jimmy’s mother didn’t like being in the same town as Rosalynn so she left for work. Rosalynn was so upset about moving home that she shut herself away from the community until her mother chided her to get involved.
She renewed her interest in going to church which had been dormant during her years as a Navy wife. They had financial difficulties, but things started to improve as Rosalynn helped Jimmy in the office. Jimmy’s confidence in her helped her try new things.
They eventually moved the family into a home they built and enjoyed spending time together, listening to jazz and traveling to hear bands. They even attended a square dancing convention! They were loving but strict parents and took boys fishing every Saturday.
Jimmy started getting involved in politics through the school board and then decided to run for state senate. Rosalynn had no idea he was even considering it until she saw him put on a suit to go to the courthouse to qualify! While he campaigned, she ran the peanut warehouse, took care of the family, and contacted voters, dealing with threats from Jimmy’s opponent in the primary. Jimmy eventually won the Senate seat.
Rosalynn faced every mother’s worst nightmare around this time as well. Her oldest son, Jack, was accidentally shot in the neck by a friend. Thankfully, he was fine, missing serious harm by only a few millimeters.
Jimmy excelled in the state legislature with his modern progressive policies and decided to run for governor in 1966.
“I never have been so surprised.” Rosalynn Carter
They went on a statewide campaign with the boys, going separately to talk to over 300,000 voters. Jimmy lost but planned to run again in 1970. As they geared up for that campaign, Rosalynn realized she was pregnant at the age of forty! She had Amy in October of 1967, fifteen years after her last son was born!
They campaigned throughout the state, leaving Amy with Rosalynn’s mother. She hated public speaking but forced herself to push through.
“I hated it. I would get physically ill.” Rosalynn Carter
Together they shook hands with 600,000 Georgians and won the election. It was off to the governor’s mansion for the Carters.
Governor’s Wife
Rosalynn was excited to move to Atlanta as she would have all four children living with them. However, she insisted that Jimmy’s mother not live with them.
“This house isn’t big enough for both of us, and I don’t intend to leave.” Rosalynn Carter
She didn’t like the scrutiny that being the governor’s wife brought to her and her children. Neither she nor Jimmy had close friends, and they didn’t enjoy the Atlanta social scene. They mostly entertained at the Governor’s mansion with Rosalynn reusing flowers and other items in back-to-back events to save money. With her limited entertaining funds, Rosalynn shared clothes with her daughters-in-law and friends.
They needed help to entertain and were provided prisoners from the state penitentiary to serve as their help. Even Amy’s nanny was a woman in prison for convicted murder (Rosalynn helped her get exonerated).
Both Jimmy and Rosalynn were fiscal conservatives, and she supported his efforts to cut state departments and establish zero-based budgeting. Her personal focus was on mental health, even going so far as to join the public line to ask Jimmy what he was going to do about it!
“We’re going to have the best mental health system in the country, and I’m going to put you in charge of it.” Jimmy Carter
He established the Governor’s Commission to Improve Services to the Mentally and Emotionally Handicapped. He didn’t put her in charge but made her a member of the commission. She attended all of the meetings, volunteered one day a week at Georgia Regional Hospital, and visited other hospitals throughout the state. The final commission recommendation was to get away from large facilities and establish neighborhood ones.
She had other causes as well, working with Lady Bird Johnson on the Georgia Highway Wildflower Program. It was the first time a former and future First Lady cooperated on a major project. She also worked with the vice president’s wife, Betty Ford, on Artrain, a six-car train carrying works of art to communities without museums. She vocally supported the Equal Rights Amendment and improved in her public speaking as she traveled the state to discuss these causes.
Run for the White House
As Jimmy considered a run for the White House, Rosalynn was worried but supported him. She thought they could bring openness, honesty, and competence to government which was needed after Watergate. She left Amy with her mother and mother-in-law in Plains to travel for the campaign where she would stop at local TV stations and newspapers to offer an interview. The entire campaign was conducted out of private homes of the “peanut brigade” to save money on hotels.
She traveled constantly, going to over 100 cities in just two months, and helped Jimmy with his campaign strategy. She encouraged him to run in all state primaries and coached him on his speeches. Newspapers started calling her a “steel magnolia” as she was tough as nails and determined to win. Jimmy’s opponent’s wife, Betty Ford, said she was “saccharine sweet but always ready to stick a knife in your back.”
The feminists of the era weren’t fans, however, because Rosalynn was pro-life. Even with her avid support of the ERA, they shunned her. Jimmy didn’t help matters when he contradicted himself on issues like abortion and gave a disastrous interview to Playboy magazine where he said he had “committed adultery in his heart.” Rosalynn brushed it off.
Jimmy Carter won the 1976 election, beating sitting president Gerald Ford. Rosalynn at the age of 49 was set to become the youngest first lady since Jackie Kennedy.
White House Years
Rosalynn held the Bible while Jimmy took the oath of office on January 20, 1977, and despite the bitter cold, they walked the parade route together as a symbol of their partnership and belief that they were just ordinary Americans. Rosalynn even wore the same dress she had worn to Jimmy’s gubanatorial inaugural ball!
They even enrolled Amy in a local public school (the first presidential child to do so since Quentin Roosevelt) and built her a tree house in the backyard.
The Carters with Amy (Library of Congress and Wikipedia)
Their entertainment style was also more down-home with no hard liquor being served, earning Rosalynn the nickname “Rosé Rosalynn.” They brought in artists and hosted a White House Jazz Festival. Some of the White House events were broadcast to the public in hopes that the White House would be more open and family-friendly. All together, Rosalynn hosted over 5,000 events and entertained around 100,000 people during her time in the White House.
She added a solarium to the White House and did a mult-year fundraising drive to cover the costs of refurbishments. They loved their family time with all but one son living at the White House with their wives and children. She valued the family’s privacy and worried especially about Amy. As such, Rosalynn refused to allow the public to tour the White Tours. She and Jimmy continued to have a strong relationship and were openly affectionate. They had lunch together every Thursday.
“When she goes off for a few days, he just has a long face around here. And when she comes back, that day, he’ll be like a little boy-so excited to see her.” Carter White House staffer
She experienced a health scare during her first few months as First Lady, undergoing surgery to remove a non-malignant mass from her breast. She also had an unspecified gynecological surgery in August of 1977 as well.
Rosalynn would become a First Lady like no other as she was the first First Lady to have an office of her own in the East Wing. Her four years in the White House focused on many of her favorite causes. Jimmy valued her input so much that he put her on the President’s Commission on Mental Health where she served as the honorary chair but really did the work of chair. The commission held public hearings in May and June of 1977 where Rosalyn heard horror stories that made her wince. The final report made 117 recommendations from national to state to local laws. Rosalynn called this report her greatest achievement because “she had worked so hard on it.”
Jimmy proposed allocating $150 million to the recommendations. She traveled to meet with state and local mental health leaders and advocacy groups to encourage them to press lawmakers to pass these spending bills. She even testified on Capitol Hill, becoming only the second First Lady to do so (Eleanor Roosevelt was the first). The funding passed, shifting the financing of mental health hospitals to community programs, giving states more funds for grants. Even with President Reagan’s changes to the programs in his presidency, Rosalynn’s legacy was bringing mental health issues to the public’s attention.
Rosalynn focused on the needs of the elderly as well as she saw how her mother and other relatives still wanted to contribute. She was determined to abolish mandatory retirement and lobbied Congress to pass bills to help the elderly.
Her broader focus on volunteerism helped locally in Washington, DC. Jimmy instituted the Rosalynn Plan to get Americans to volunteer their time and money for neighborhood beautification and to help those in need, which worked well with his urban programs. She also worked on improving schools and encouraging childhood vaccinations.
She had less luck lobbying for the passage of the ERA, calling its failure the “greatest disappointment” from her White House projects. Her work to get it passed in the last few states needed for ratification even caused some resentment from feminists who thought she stayed too close to Jimmy’s policies. She thought it would be “tacky” to break with his views.
“The President of the United States cares what I think.” Rosalynn Carter
Some of her staffers encouraged her to focus on just one or two causes as she had a hard time getting things accomplished with so many different issues of interest. This would be something Jimmy would struggle with as well.
Not only did Rosalynn lobby for her causes, she also was focused on foreign relations, becoming the first First Lady to hold substantive policy discussions with foreign heads of state. In her travels through Latin America, Caribbean, and Asia, she made recommendations to Jimmy and he often took her advice.
In May of 1977, she took a tour of seven Caribbean and Latin American nations at request of Jimmy. She even began sitting in on the president’s daily foreign policy briefings to prepare. While on the trip, if the staffers pushed back on her understanding of policy, she would say, “Well, my understanding is the president makes policy, and he told me that this was his policy today. Do you have any problem with that?” That effectively shut them up.
Rosalynn leaving and returning from Latin America trip (Library of Congress and Wikipedia)
She encountered demonstrators in Ecuador that shouted at her to go home and threw rocks, tires, and dirt at police. She held her own and impressed both the foreign governments and the staffers. She was happy to come home on June 12 and 70% of Americans rated her journey as excellent or good. Her trip had a lasting effect on aid packages for Colombia and Jamaica. No other First Lady has done something similar.
Even when she was there to support Jimmy, she stayed involved in foreign affairs. During the Camp David accords between Egypt and Israel, she didn’t participate in the meetings but took over 200 pages of notes.
Her most impactful trip was visiting the refugee camps of Thailand. She was the administration’s representative to see how the USA could provide assistance.
“Nothing had prepared me for the human suffering I saw in the refugee camps when I arrived.” Rosalynn Carter
She took action when she got home, making speeches and appeals on the TV as well as testifying before the Council on Foreign Relations. Her work resulted in $69 million in aid being passed with the potential for $30 million more, and the US increased its yearly quota of refugees allowed in from Thailand.
Both Jimmy and Rosalynn were devastated by the Iran hostage crisis. Rosalynn was Jimmy’s closest advisor during the crisis and encouraged him to do something to free the hostages. When it failed, she was heartbroken.
“Every time I woke up, I wanted to go back to sleep, hoping it would all go away.” Rosalynn Carter
The Iran hostage crisis was a blight on their last year in the White House, and she thought it was “despicable” that the Iranians wouldn’t let the planes of hostages take off until Reagan took the oath of office.
Rosalynn had a love-hate relationship with the media who didn’t know how to cover her. She wasn’t interested in fashion and was too involved in the president’s decisions. She attended cabinet meetings at the request of the president, and even though she didn’t actively participate, she was nicknamed “Mrs. President” and asked if she was really running the country by the press.
Rosalynn was respected by the American public, but she was not beloved like Jackie Kennedy or Betty Ford. She was an enigma.
As the tough 1980 reelection campaign began, she worked hard, spending 12 hours a day traveling and giving speeches. Jimmy’s loss was shocking and made her feel bitter towards all of their opponents. After the election was over, she returned to the White House and no longer kept a regular schedule. For the first time in her adult life, she used her time to read, relax, and watch movies with Jimmy.
Post-White House
The Carters were relieved to move back to Plains, but Amy didn’t like the small town so they sent her to boarding school in Atlanta. Rosalynn and Jimmy enjoyed the slower pace of life where they made home repairs and focused on raising funds for his presidential library.
They had personal financial issues and had to sell the peanut warehouse. They both signed lucrative contracts to write their memoirs, which she found difficult to write. Her book eventually came out in 1984.
They both saw their time after the White House as a way to continue initiatives to create a caring society. By establishing the Carter Center that focused on conflict resolution, they charted a new course for ex-presidents. Jimmy was asked to intervene in many international crises, and Rosalynn often traveled with him to the Middle East, Latin America, North Korea, and Bosnia/Serbia. He won the Nobel Peace Prize in 2002 for his work.
They also focused on a new program, Habitat for Humanity, and set aside one week a year to build houses for the needy in all kinds of conditions. She loved helping, even learning how to use a hammer!
She continued her focus on caregiving, serving as director of the Rosalynn Carter Institute for Caregiving at Georgia Southwestern State University (her alma mater). She also wrote two books on caregiving and spoke out against assisted suicide.
She teamed up with former first lady Betty Ford to tackle mental health since it was so closely tied to addiction issues. They appeared before a Senate committee together. Through the Carter Center, she helped promote vaccinations for children and eradicate diseases in developing countries. She received the Presidential Medal of Freedom in 1999 for all of her post-White House efforts.
Receiving the Medal of Freedom and celebrating with the other First Ladies (Wikipedia)
Rosalynn and Jimmy rarely had downtime, but when they did, they were able to relax at their cabin in the north Georgia mountains where Jimmy had built all of the furniture. They wrote a book together which was the “worst thing we ever tried to do together” Jimmy said.
Rosalynn continued working well past a normal retirement age until she was diagnosed with dementia in 2023. She died on November 19, 2023 at the age of 96.
“Rosalynn was my equal partner in everything I ever accomplished.” Jimmy Carter
Jimmy would follow her just a year later. They are both buried in Plains.
Legacy
Rosalynn Carter was only first lady for four years, but she looms large in recent American history thanks in part to her work after leaving the White House. More people are familiar with her work with Habitat for Humanity and the other initiatives of the Carter Center than they are with her time as first lady.
Her time as first lady was full of controversy, and with her direct involvement in Jimmy’s unpopular policies, she gets lumped into any conversation about the success of his presidency. She is similar to Florence Harding and Eleanor Roosevelt in her activism and must have inspired Hillary Clinton who would be the next activist first lady. While most of these first ladies weren’t especially liked (with maybe Eleanor as the exception), they got things done.
Rosalynn was able to rise above her humble beginnings to negotiate with world leaders. She was intelligent and courageous in staying true to her beliefs. She should be admired for her work and her achievements.
My Time with Rosalynn
Now that we’re getting into the more modern first ladies, I find that I have preconceived notions about them. I have never been a fan of the Carter policies, so I was expecting to not find much to admire about their time in the White House. However, learning about Rosalynn’s early life and how she fought so hard for her beliefs made me like her. She stood her ground when the media and some in the public made fun of her Christian beliefs. I admire her stances on several subjects, and she inspires me to hold fast to what I believe as well. I, too, have been in leadership situations where it seems like you’re pleasing no one, and I am sure that was hard for her to go through.
Her relationship with her mother-in-law intrigued me as well. I would have hated to get in between them! I do like how close she and Jimmy were – a true partnership.
Travels with Rosalynn
Rosalynn was a Georgia girl through and through.
Georgia
There are many sites to see in this small town. Look at this driving tour map (see above) to plan your day.
Jimmy Carter National Historical Park
This is where you can tour Jimmy’s childhood home as well as their high school that is now a visitor center. The Carters are buried here as well.
Rosalynn Smith Carter Childhood Home
Home where Rosalynn lived until her marriage to Jimmy Carter.
Plains United Methodist Church
The church where Jimmy and Rosalynn were married.
Americus
Georgia Southwestern State University
See a statue of Rosalynn in front of the health and human sciences building as well as a timeline of her accomplishments at her alma mater.
Atlanta
Jimmy Carter Presidential Library and Museum and The Carter Center
Housed on the same campus, the museum is the best place to learn about the Carters’ time in the White House. You can tour the grounds and gardens of The Carter Center.
Washington, DC
Smithsonian National Museum of American History
You can see Rosalynn’s beautiful inauguration gown here.
To Learn More
Books to Read:
Rosalynn wrote several books including an autobiography. Her other books detail her work with mental illness and caregiving.
Links are Amazon affiliate links. Be sure to see my Bookshop.org list for all of the books related to my Booking It Through History: First Ladies project.
First Lady from Plains by Rosalynn Carter
You really get a sense for Rosalynn’s personality in her autobiography.
Rosalynn Carter: Equal Partner in the White House by Scott Kaufman
This was a short, easy-to read-biography about Rosalynn.
A Full Life: Reflections at Ninety by Jimmy Carter
I listened to this book about the president’s life and always loved his warmth in talking about his Rosa.
Her other books:
Everything to Gain: Making the Most of the Rest of Your Life – the book she wrote with Jimmy
Helping Yourself Help Others: A Book for Caregivers
Mental Illness: A Compassionate Guide for Family, Friends, and Caregivers
Within Our Reach: Ending the Mental Health Crisis
TV Shows/Movies
C-SPAN First Ladies: Influence and Image
Podcasts
The White House 1600 Sessions Podcast “President Jimmy Carter: Faith, Family, and a Presidency”
Websites
Jimmy Carter Presidential Library and Museum
The White House Historical Association
- Ornament: The Carter White House ornament is an anchor shape in honor of Jimmy’s naval service. I love all of the special items from their lives on the ornament.
Rosalynn Carter was a unique First Lady that we all remember fondly for her dedication and years of service.
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