Trump signs bill upgrading Carter sites in Plains to national historical park

President Donald Trump has signed the bill that will upgrade the status of locales in Plains tied to former President Jimmy Carter. What was formerly called the Jimmy Carter National Historic Site is now the Jimmy Carter National Historical Park.

The park will include the farm where Carter grew up, the train depot that once was headquarters for his presidential campaign, his former high school and the city center. After Carter and his wife, Rosalynn, die, their home and burial sites will also be included in the park. They are ages 96 and 93, respectively.

Trump announced Wednesday afternoon that he had signed this measure, House bill 5472, into law along with more than a dozen other bills. He did not make any further statement.

U.S. Rep. Sanford Bishop, the bill’s sponsor, said previously that making the Plains sites a national park was needed to ensure they receive the resources and security protections they need for future generations of visitors.

“President Carter has spent his life making Plains, Ga., and America a better place for all, and it is fitting that we honor him with this change,” the Albany Democrat said in December, shortly after both chambers in Congress signed off on the legislation. “The Jimmy Carter National Historical Park will increase tourism in Plains for many years to come, as President and Mrs. Carter desire.”

Where is Plains, Ga?

Plains, the South Georgia hometown of Jimmy Carter and his wife Rosalynn is located in Sumter County along U.S. 280. It is about 150 miles southwest of the Atlanta airport, about 10 miles west of Americus and about 40 miles northwest of Albany. If you are making a tour of presidential historic sites, the Jimmy Carter site is about 70 miles from Warm Springs, site of Franklin Roosevelt’s Georgia retreat, the Little White House.