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Annette Wise, Plains Historical Preservation Trust Board member, past president of the Board, and co-founder and President of the Rosalynn Carter Butterfly Trail, gave a tour of Apartment 9A. The Carter’s lived in the unit after they returned to Plains, and it is the only public housing unit in the Country that has been occupied by a president.

Interest had been brewing in renovating the unit for some time. Wise chartered the restoration journey. “The Housing Authority, for many years, had wanted to open it up to have it as a museum, so that visitors could learn more about President Carter and Miss Rosalynn and the family when they moved back here in 1953.”

Efforts started in earnest around two years ago, with research into the kind of furnishings that would be period appropriate. “We were very fortunate, in 2001, miss Rosalynn was on the Plains Historical Preservation Board as well as President Carter, and they were very excited about the opportunity to have this eventually as a museum.”

Wise was thankful for her guidance. “Miss Rosalynn and I walked through the unit, and we video-taped her to learn what she could remember about living here. And so we walked through, and she reminisced about colors and where furniture was.” A 1953 Sears Roebuck catalogue filled in where memory failed, along with the original Housing Authority plans. “When we went through the original plans, we learned that there was one bedroom painted pink, one painted blue, and one paint painted green.”

A hi-fi and corner sofas grace a green living room, along with an oil burning heater. A Japanese doll rests on the hi-fi. There was some debate as to whether the original doll was a hula girl or a Japanese doll, but Wise made a decision after hearing Amy Carter, Rosalynn and Jimmy Carter’s daughter, reminisce. “When they lived in Hawaii, they had a young Japanese Lady that helped them out in the home. And she said, my mom’s perspective of Japan and World War II all changed after having that influence and that personal contact with somebody from Japan.”

Tinker toys, jacks, and Lincoln logs occupied low shelves in the boy’s room, with the image of a Native American on the bedspread. In the Carter’s bedroom, hatboxes sat on a closet shelf, with a Bible resting on the nightstand, along with a vanity and sewing machine. Wise stated the effort to collect artifacts is still ongoing, with plans to change the arrangement based on the seasons.

When asked about Rosalynn Carter’s feeling toward the apartment, Wise recalls that she was not too excited. “Miss Rosalynn remembered that she was not happy about moving back to Plains.” However, she worked to improve the space. “Not too long after they moved back, she made all the curtains in the house. She was a very good seamstress. Her mother was also a very good seamstress. So she remembered the Priscilla curtains, and she had made those.” Wise credits Rosalynn Carter’s work in the warehouse business as giving her a new sense of purpose.

While Rosalynn Carter may not have been enthusiastic about moving to the apartment in Plains, Wise believes the color of the living room may have been significant to Jimmy Carter. “If you think about the campaign, what was his main color? Green.”

The efforts to restore the unit has received a number of donations, with Board members of the Housing Authority and Trust members contributing. Wise noted they received wide support, naming Allene Haugabook, Carol Anderson, Francis Short, Francis Irebeck, among others.

George Edge, CEO of the Americus Housing Authority, summarized the vision that led to Unit 9A’s restoration. Edge view’s the effort as a way of telling the story of affordable housing. “I think it’s an amazing story that our 39th President of [the] United States himself needed affordable housing. So affordable housing is desperately a need. It was a need then, and still a need now.” Edge connected Carter’s life experience with his ongoing concern for housing needs. “It was very crucial to the heart of President Carter.”

For Edge, the Carter story exemplifies affordable housing’s highest ideal. “I think this amazing story really paints an actual picture that although you begin in affordable housing, you can achieve the ultimate.”

The Plains Historical Preservation Trust gives tours of the apartment. Those interested should call Annette Wise at 229 824 4567.

For more stories about Jimmy Carter please go to www.americustimesrecorder.com/category/jimmy-carter/