In the summer of 1976 I was reluctantly paddling the Suwanee River for a National Geographic story, one of my first—and one I was uniquely unqualified for. I was a journalist, not an adventurer, at heart.

In the nearby Georgia town of Plains, Jimmy Carter was running his improbable presidential campaign. I had to go have a look. I found a place both charming and complicated, much like Carter himself. This tiny town had shaped the peanut farmer-turned-politician, and Plains was his touchstone throughout his life. I found the things that defined him—faith, humility, caring—the things he in turn offered to the world. The town was giddy with the success of their hometown son (pictured above; Carter in an impromptu baseball game in August 1976; below, a flood of journalists in Plains, a mule ride).

Read our related story.

Also: Jimmy Carter on the century’s biggest problems—and ways to attack them

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This newsletter has been curated and edited by David Beard and Jen Tse. Amanda Williams-Bryant, Alisher Egamov, Rita Spinks, and Jeremy Brandt-Vorel also contributed this week. Have an idea? We’d love to hear from you at david.beard@natgeo.com. Thanks for reading!

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