Plains
Plains is a small town in Georgia which is best-known as the home of the 39th United States president Jimmy Carter.
Understand
[edit]
The town has a population of fewer than 600 people, and despite a history of cotton and peanut cultivation, held little importance prior to Jimmy Carter's election as Georgia governor and, later, as president. The newfound fame of the town led to the creation of the Jimmy Carter National Historic Park to preserve the Carter family's ties to the town. Billy Carter's Service Station (Billy Carter was Jimmy Carter's younger brother), the Plains Depot, and Jimmy Carter's boyhood farm were incorporated into the historic park and have transformed the town into a center for historical tourism.
Plains has a continental subtropical climate with hot, humid summers and cool winters.
Get in
[edit]By car
[edit]US-280 connects Plains from Americus, a town to the east of Plains.
Get around
[edit]See
[edit]
- 1 Jimmy Carter National Historic Park, 300 N Bond St (one block north of E Church St on N Bond St), ☏ +1 229 824-4104. Main visitor center 10AM-4PM. Preserves sites associated with Jimmy Carter. The park is spread out with small sites all around the town, but the main site is the former high school (now a museum) north of downtown across the railroad tracks. Free.
- 2 Billy Carter's Service Station, 104 E Church St. Former Standard Oil station converted into a museum.
- 3 Jimmy Carter Peanut Statue, 114 US-45 N. Statue of a smiling peanut, installed during Carter's 1976 presidential campaign by the Democratic Party.
- 4 Plains Depot, 107 Main St. 9AM-4:30PM daily. Built in 1888, it was the headquarters of Carter’s 1977 campaign. It’s now a museum focusing on his campaigns for State Senate, Governor, and President. Parking available during daylight hours.
- 5 The Boyhood Home & Farm, 402 Old Plains Hwy. Carter's childhood home west of Plains, with parking and restrooms available onsite.
- 6 Plains Visitors Center, 1763 US-280 W (drive east from Plains on US-280), ☏ +1 229 824-7477.
Do
[edit]Buy
[edit]Eat
[edit]- 1 Buffalo Cafe, 118 Main St, ☏ +1 229 824-4520. Run as a nonprofit by the Friends of Jimmy Carter, with affordable American-style cuisine.
- 2 Plain Peanuts, 128 Main St, ☏ +1 229 824-3462. You can buy at their general store or even order to ship.
Drink
[edit]Sleep
[edit]- 1 Plains Historic Inn & Antiques Mall, 106 Main St, ☏ +1 229 824-4517. Hotel with historically furnished rooms representing different decades of the 20th century.
Connect
[edit]Go next
[edit]- Americus is a larger town a few miles to the east.
- East Atlanta, 160 mi (260 km) north, is the home of the Jimmy Carter Presidential Library