Former First Lady Rosalynn Carter has passed away, aged 96. President Jimmy Carter’s wife served as the First Lady from 1977 to 1981 and was known for her support of many worthy causes, including her passion for mental health research. Following her passing, tributes have poured in, including those from previous presidents such as Barack Obama and Donald Trump.

Rosalynn Carter and Jimmy Carter were together until the end. The two shared an incredible love story that spanned more than seven decades. 

Interestingly, the pair didn’t meet through politics, but rather in a rural town that had only 600 inhabitants. Here we take a look at her incredible life and the love story she shared with her long-time husband.

Jimmy and Rosalynn Carter pretty much knew each other from the day they were born.

Jimmy’s mother, Lillian Carter, was working as a nurse when, one day, her neighbor, Frances Smith, went in labor. Lillian decided to help deliver the baby – and Eleanor Rosalynn was born.

The following day, Rosalynn met Jimmy, then three years old, for the first time. It was the beginning of a lifelong journey they would embark on together, including a stint in the White House and much, much more.

Jimmy Carter & Rosalynn Carter – love story

Jimmy and Rosalynn grew up in the rural town of Plains, Georgia, home to only 600 people. She initially became the best friend of Jimmy’s sister, Ruth, but it wasn’t until they became teenagers that Jimmy and Rosalynn began to notice each other. Jimmy grew up and decided he wanted to embark on a career in the military. Before joining the United States Naval Academy, he attended Georgia Southwestern College and the Georgia Institute of Technology.

He served as a submariner in both the Atlantic and Pacific, rising to the rank of lieutenant. Carter received his B.S. degree in 1946 – and by that stage, a girl back home had grown fond of him.

By the time Jimmy left Plains for the United States Naval Academy, Rosalynn Carter had already fallen in love with him. In the 2020 book What Makes a Marriage Last, Rosalynn described how she saw a photograph of him that his sister, Ruth, had on her bedroom wall.

“I didn’t know a single boy I thought I’d want to spend my life with until Jimmy Carter came calling,” Rosalynn explained.

When Jimmy returned to Plains on a break from the Naval Academy, his then-girlfriend was away at a family reunion, meaning he was missing a date.

“I was cruising around with my sister, Ruth, and her boyfriend, just looking for a date, and I picked up Rosalynn in front of the Methodist church,” Jimmy recalled in What Makes a Marriage Last.

“I just felt compatible with her. She was beautiful and innocent, and there was a resonance. We rode in the rumble seat of a Ford pickup – Ruth and her boyfriend in the front – and I kissed her on that first date. I remember that vividly.”

“The moon was full in the sky, conversation came easy, and I was in love,” Rosalynn wrote in her memoir First Lady from Plains about their first date.

Jimmy Carter & Rosalynn Carter – marriage, children

Jimmy and Rosalynn began dating in 1945 – and never left each other’s side. The couple married on July 7, 1946, and despite Jimmy being deployed to different parts of the world, she followed him everywhere.

But the fact that the couple married so quickly wasn’t always on the cards. In fact, when Jimmy asked her to marry him for the first time in February, Rosalynn said no.

“From then until late May, she maintained, ‘No,’” Carter told Oprah in 2015. “I kept trying, and finally, she said okay.”

Jimmy and Rosalynn welcomed three children in the next six years. Jack was born in 1947, Chip in 1950, and Jefferey in 1952. Later, in 1967, they welcomed their fourth child and only daughter, Amy Lynn.

In 1953, Jimmy and Rosalynn decided to settle down. They left the Navy behind and moved back to Plains, Georgia, where they took over Jimmy’s peanut-growing farm after Jimmy’s father, Earl, died of cancer.

Meanwhile, Jimmy served in the Navy Reserve for many years, while also becoming active in the local Democratic Party. Among the topics he was most passionate about was the Civil Rights Movement and opposing racial segregation.

But while life had become a deal quieter for the couple, they also had difficulties. Like many couples, Jimmy and Rosalynn had trouble adjusting to marriage, which the former president spoke about in an interview with Playboy.

“We’ve come to understand each other much better. I was by far the dominant person in the marriage at the beginning, but not anymore,” he said.

“She’s just as strong, if not stronger than I am. She’s fully equal to me in every way in our relationship, in making business decisions, and she makes most of the decisions about family affairs. And I think it was a struggle for her to achieve this degree of independence and equality in our personal relationship. So, to summarize, years ago, we had a lot of quarrels—none serious, particularly—but now we don’t.”

Rosalynn Carter – work & projects as First Lady of the United States

Jimmy added: “We also share a religious faith, and the two or three times in our married life when we’ve had a serious crisis, I think that’s what sustained our marriage and helped us overcome our difficulty. Our children, too, have been a factor binding Rosalynn and me together.”

Jimmy had started his political career, and Rosalynn supported him all the way. In 1970, he became Georgia governor. Years before, no one would’ve imagined they would become such a popular couple. Especially not Jimmy himself.

“Before 1966, she and I were both very shy. It was almost a painful thing to approach a stranger or make a speech. It’s been a mutual change we’ve gone through, because we both felt it was worth while; so no matter what the outcome of the election, the relationship between Rosalynn and me will be very precious,” he told Playboy.