The biggest and most memorable moments from Jimmy Carter's 100 years of life

Born to James Earl Carter Sr. and Lillian Gordy Carter on Oct. 1, 1924, in Plains, Georgia, Jimmy Carter lived to age 100, making him the oldest former president before his death and the longest-living president in U.S. history.

Carter achieved numerous accomplishments in his life, and experienced some memorable moments, in politics and other arenas.

With time as a Georgia senator, governor and then U.S. president, Carter spent close to 20 years in politics before dedicating his life toward charitable organizations in the more than 40 years after he left the White House.

Here are some of the most memorable moments from Carter's life:

Carter's long life:  Jimmy Carter's presidential longevity record

Jimmy Carter's early life

Graduation: After attending Georgia Southwestern College and the Georgia Institute of Technology, Carter attended the U.S. Naval Academy in Annapolis, Maryland, and graduated in 1946 with a Bachelor of Science.

Wedding: After knowing her for most of his youth, Carter married Rosalynn Smith on July 7, 1946, not long after his graduation. The two eventually had three sons – John William, James Earl III, Donnel Jeffrey – and a daughter, Amy Lynn.

Farm life: After his father died in 1953, Carter took over the family farms and operated Carter's Warehouse, a general-purpose seed and farm supply company in Plains.

Beginning of Jimmy Carter's political career

After seven years as a naval officer, Carter began his political career by becoming a Georgia state senator in 1963.

Gov. Carter: Despite an unsuccessful first attempt, Carter ran in the 1970 Georgia gubernatorial race and defeated Carl Sanders. He notably criticized his opponent's support of Martin Luther King Jr., but during his inauguration, he said, "The time for racial discrimination is over."

Presidential campaign: Carter announced his candidacy for president in December 1974. After starting out with little support, Carter's campaign gained attention and clinched the nomination at the Democratic National Convention.

Jimmy Carter's presidency

1976 presidential election: Carter debated incumbent President Gerald Ford three times on television. Carter eventually won with 297 electoral votes to Ford's 240.

Presidential inauguration and Vietnam War: Carter was inaugurated as the 39th president on Jan. 20, 1977. One day later, he pardoned everyone who evaded the Vietnam War draft.

The Camp David Accords: Carter brokered a historic peace treaty between Israel and Egypt, and he witnessed the agreement being signed at the White House on Sept. 17, 1978.

Department of Energy??????: After comparing the U.S. energy crisis to war, Carter created the Department of Energy, the first new Cabinet position in more than a decade.

Nuclear power plant meltdown: On March 28, 1979, a reactor at Three Mile Island Nuclear Generating Station in Pennsylvania partially melted down. Carter, who was an engineering officer during his time in the Navy, inspected the plant on April 1. The accident resulted in increased safety regulations for nuclear power plants in the U.S.

1980 State of the Union: Carter spent much of his presidency de-escalating the Cold War; he said in his final State of the Union address that the relationship between the U.S. and the Soviet Union "is the most critical factor in determining whether the world will live at peace or be engulfed in global conflict."

Iran hostage crisis: From Nov. 4, 1979, to Jan. 20, 1981, 52 U.S. citizens, including members of the Diplomatic Corps, were held hostage in the U.S. Embassy in Tehran, Iran. The hostage crisis began when Iranian militants broke into the embassy, marking a low point for Carter's presidency, one widely cited by historians and analysts as a contributor to his landslide loss in the 1980 general election to Ronald Reagan.

1980 presidential election: Reagan won the presidency with 489 electoral votes to Carter's 49. Carter's only term as president ended on Jan. 20, 1981.

Jimmy Carter's life after presidency

Carter Center: Carter created the Carter Center, a human rights organization. Accolades of the organization include observing 113 elections in 39 countries and helping reduce the cases of Guinea worm disease by 99.99%, essentially eradicating it, according to the Carter Center.

Nobel Peace Prize: With his work with the Carter Center, Carter was awarded the Nobel Peace Prize in 2002 for “his decades of untiring effort to find peaceful solutions to international conflicts, to advance democracy and human rights and to promote economic and social development.”

Hurricane Sandy relief: After the devastation of Hurricane Sandy in 2012, Carter helped rebuild homes with Habitat for Humanity.

Cancer diagnosis: Carter announced in 2015 that he had been diagnosed with cancer and had a mass in his liver removed. A few months later, he said he was cancer-free.

Oldest living former president: Carter broke numerous records, claiming the title of longest-living former president on March 22, 2019. By attending Donald Trump's inauguration in 2017, he became the oldest former president to attend an inauguration.

Follow Jordan Mendoza on Twitter: @jordan_mendoza5.

This article originally appeared on USA TODAY: Jimmy Carter iconic moments: Facts from former president's legacy