Wild Turn: Famed Farm Opens to Hunters

Red attention sign with the word 'ATTENTION' in bold letters — Photo: Shutterstock

America just bought time on a place where a boy named Jimmy learned work, land, and limits—and soon you can walk it yourself.

Story Snapshot

A conservation nonprofit bought about 2,458 acres tied to Jimmy Carter near Plains, Georgia.
The plan is to open parts of the land to the public as early as 2027.
Georgia’s Department of Natural Resources is slated to take formal control in 2028.
The transfer would expand the Lanahassee Creek Wildlife Management Area to nearly 7,000 acres.

What changed on the ground

The Conservation Fund announced it acquired about 2,458 acres associated with the Carter family’s farm near Plains. The group said the land will be preserved and, if schedules hold, will open for hunting, fishing, and other outdoor recreation as soon as 2027. The nonprofit plans to transfer the property to the Georgia Department of Natural Resources in 2028, which would fold the tract into the Lanahassee Creek Wildlife Management Area for long-term, public management.

Reporters describe the property as land Carter worked as a boy and revisited for walks and hunts with Rosalynn Carter. He raised peanuts, corn, and sugarcane there, and the landscape shaped his sense of duty and thrift. The acquisition does not change the status of Jimmy Carter National Historical Park, which already includes his preserved boyhood home in Archery. This purchase is separate and focuses on conservation and outdoor access, not museum-style interpretation.

How the public will use it

The Conservation Fund and the state outlined a plan that mirrors a well-known Georgia model. A private group buys important land, stabilizes it, and then the state manages it as part of a wildlife area. Public access here means boots-in-the-dirt recreation: regulated hunting, fishing, hiking, wildlife viewing, and similar use. That is how Georgia’s wildlife areas usually work. It does not promise exhibits or tours, and that clarity helps avoid confusion later.

The projected opening in 2027 uses careful words like “as soon as” and “could.” That signals a goal, not an iron date. Roads, gates, signage, safety reviews, and staffing all take time. Georgia’s Department of Natural Resources typically phases access to match habitat work and season rules. Expect the first public steps to focus on safe entry, posted maps, and clear hunt and fish guidelines.

Why this matters for conservation and heritage

Folding the Carter acreage into the Lanahassee Creek Wildlife Management Area would push the complex to nearly 7,000 acres, a scale that protects habitat across seasons and storms. Larger blocks let managers balance timber stands, food plots, wetland buffers, and nesting cover so deer, turkey, quail, and songbirds can thrive. That same size helps keep creeks cleaner and gives families room to hike without crowding. It is practical, not just poetic, and it lasts when rules and title sit with the state.

This move also keeps a working landscape feel tied to a famous American life. Carter’s story was never about velvet ropes. It was chores, fields, and the long walk back at dusk. Letting the public hunt, fish, and explore there fits that ethic. It respects property and prudence while sharing access for anyone willing to lace up boots. That aligns with conservative values about stewardship, local control, and getting more land open to the public without bloated bureaucracy.

What is not included—and what to watch next

The purchased land is not an expansion of Jimmy Carter National Historical Park, and it does not include the boyhood home that the National Park Service manages. Visitors looking for exhibits and ranger talks should still go to the park in Archery. This tract is about habitat, creek bottoms, and pines—managed for wildlife and open-air use. That clarity matters so families plan the right trip and find the right gate the first time.

The family farm where President Jimmy Carter tended peanuts, corn and sugarcane as a boy and later returned throughout his life will be preserved and opened to the public.https://t.co/HmOjo09boQ

— Raymond M. Marotta (@Rmpm1014) November 10, 2026

Several outlets report a price in the eight-million-dollar range, but they do not break down funding or list final deed terms. The essential next milestones are simple: confirm the opening phases in 2027, complete the transfer to the Georgia Department of Natural Resources in 2028, and post the rules that fold the tract into Lanahassee Creek Wildlife Management Area. When those steps click into place, Georgia gains both memory and miles of open ground.