President Carter’s Connection To Farming Was Personal

Thursday is the National Day of Mourning for Jimmy Carter, our 39th President.  Some may have forgotten that Jimmy Carter's legacy, and literally his roots, were in agriculture.

“We didn’t have any equipment on the farm that was powered by machinery. All the work was done by manual labor, by mules and horses," the President noted when talking about growing up on a peanut farm in the 1920s and 1930s.  The former President said that his first task when assuming day-to-day operations of the family farm in the 1950s, modernization.

“I would go down to [University] Extension courses and learn the latest techniques on growing peanuts, cotton and corn.  I used to be out in the field with the University of Georgia experts.” 

And in time.

“I was going and producing seed peanuts and selling them, and I built a peanut shelling plant to process the peanuts," Carter said.  "So, I was in charge of the production of all certified seed in Georgia for two years.”

The peanut would become his symbol for both his gubernatorial run in Georgia and his successful 1976 presidential campaign. 

Learn more about President Carter by visiting the Carter Center's Website.

If you have a story idea for the PNW Ag Network, call (509) 547-1618, or e-mail glenn.vaagen@townsquaremedia.com