Jimmy Carter National Historical Park, Historical park in Plains, Georgia, US

Jimmy Carter National Historical Park is a historical park in Plains, Georgia, preserving sites tied to the 39th US president: his boyhood farm in Archery, the former Plains High School that now serves as visitor center and museum, and the 1888 train depot used as his 1976 campaign headquarters. The Carter home at 209 Woodland Drive is not open to the public, though the gravesite and memorial garden across the road opened in July 2025.

The site was first designated as a historic site in 1987 and became a full national park in 2021. That change brought more federal support for the care of the buildings and their contents.

The restored Plains High School shows classrooms from Carter's school years alongside objects from his political career. Many visitors come not only because of the president but to get a sense of what small-town life in rural Georgia looked and felt like during that era.

The different buildings can be explored on foot, with paths connecting the various stops around town. Plan for several hours if you want to visit all the sites without rushing.

Plains is a tiny town that changed very little since Carter's childhood, so many of its streets and buildings look much as they did decades ago. Carter continued to live there into old age, which means the town had a living connection to history that most presidential sites do not.