Jimmy & Rosalynn Carter Celebrate 75th Wedding Anniversary

GEORGIA — Seventy-five years ago Wednesday, Eleanor Rosalynn Smith and James Earl Carter, Jr. tied the knot. That U.S. Naval Academy graduate and his bride would go on to be better known as President Jimmy Carter and First Lady Rosalynn Carter.

In their 90s (President Carter is 96, while Rosalynn Carter is 93), the pair are the longest-married First Couple.

But the pair took it easy in their hometown of Plains on their momentous day, Press Secretary Deanna Congileo told Patch.

“President and Mrs. Carter will host invited guests as a reception at Plains High School on Saturday, July 10, to celebrate.”

Carter, the 72nd Governor of Georgia and 39th President, and his wife Rosalynn, both Georgia natives, have remained active since leaving the White House in 1981, directing humanitarian projects around the world from their home in Plains.

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The Jimmy and Rosalynn Carter Center in Atlanta announced last week it raised more than $1.9 million to go towards those efforts during Carter Center Weekend. And with the Jimmy Carter Presidential Library and Museum reopening Tuesday following extended closure due to the COVID-10 pandemic, the Carters and their team have much to celebrate.

“We recognize and celebrate the professional and personal milestones of the Carters’ lives, both as individuals and as a couple,” said Meredith Evans, Director of the Jimmy Carter Presidential Library and Museum. “Seventy-five years of marriage is a remarkable achievement and as clear a sign as any of their commitment and extended collaboration.

“Through their partnership, they have achieved so much on a very public and global stage. The Library itself and the Carter Center are perfect examples of this achievement — two organizations, one public and one private — working together to promote civic engagement and public health.”