Editor’s Note: Former President Jimmy Carter died Dec. 29 at age 100. The official state funeral will be held Thursday, Jan. 9, at the National Cathedral in Washington, D.C. President Biden has declared Jan. 9 a national day of mourning.

By Jay Moore

To err is human, and I am human through and through. In the past, I erred in stating that only one sitting president had ever visited Abilene. But there have been two. (I really hope there wasn’t a third.) At any rate, as Alexander Pope suggested, it would be divine if you would forgive my slipup. 

First, in 1976, President Gerald Ford stopped by for a brief reelection howdy-do, spending a smidge over four hours in the Key City. That much I had right. What I had forgotten was, four years later, Jimmy Carter — the man who defeated Ford in ‘76 — also stopped by while in office to see what we were up to. It was actually Carter’s second visit to Abilene. He first dropped by when he was campaigning against Ford in the ‘76 election. Of course, he was not the president then. 

But, four years later, in 1980, Carter returned, this time as President and winging into the Abilene airport on Air Force One. (FYI, when President Ford winged in, he landed at Dyess.) Tagging along with Carter was the usual gaggle of politicos: Senator Lloyd Bentsen, Congressman Charlie Stenholm, and Texas Lieutenant Governor Bill Hobby.

This photo was taken at the Abilene airport on Nov. 1, 1980, by now-retired HSU professor of English, Dr. Larry Fink.

Just before 4 p.m., and facing a brisk breeze, Carter stood outside the Abilene airport and addressed a crowd estimated at around 5,000. He spoke about his hopes and plans for a second term, but he also reminded us of our shared humanity: 

“We share a common background, a common upbringing, a common set of values about the importance of patriotism, families, hard work, neighborliness. Many of you also share with me a common religious faith.” He added, “I’m sure that some of you have seen campaign advertisements and mailings that attack my religious faith… I don’t intend to debate the sincerity of my own religious convictions in a political campaign.” 

President Carter’s visit was on the Saturday before the Tuesday election. And you will recall that things did not go his way that day as Ronald Reagan denied Carter a second term. (Truly, only the most ardent of conspiracy theorists has connected the dots here, seeing what the rest of us have missed: just two presidential incumbents have made campaign stops in Abilene, Texas, and both lost reelection. Hmmm.) 

When Jimmy Carter’s one term came to an end in January of 1981, he had barely lived half of his life — he was 56 years old. Forty-four more years stretched before him. In a 2008 memoir of his post-presidential years, Carter noted that when he left the White House he intended to emulate the retirement of Harry Truman and not use his subsequent public life to enrich himself. Instead, he enriched all of us by living a life of service, demonstrating an abiding sincerity of his religious convictions.

Jay Moore is a retired Abilene High School history teacher and creator of the History in Plain Sight DVD series