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Jimmy and Rosalynn Carter had four children—Jack, Chip, Jeff and Amy—and their family came to include 12 grandchildren, one of whom died in 2015. The official family count also records 14 great-grandchildren. Because some public family lists include step-grandchildren alongside biological grandchildren, the most accurate way to understand the family is as a four-branch family tree rather than as a simple list of names.
Jimmy Carter died on December 29, 2024, at age 100, and Rosalynn Carter died on November 19, 2023, at age 96. Their descendants have followed very different paths: some entered public service, while others have largely stayed out of public life.
The Carter family at a glance
| Child | Birth information | Children or family descendants publicly identified in official materials |
|---|---|---|
| John William “Jack” Carter | July 3, 1947, Portsmouth, Virginia | Jason James Carter, Sarah Rosemary Carter, John Michael Chuldenko and Sarah Elizabeth Chuldenko Reynolds |
| James Earl “Chip” Carter III | April 12, 1950, Honolulu, Hawaii | James Earl Carter IV, Margaret Alicia Carter and Casey Payne Gallagher, who was included in family memorial materials as a grandchild |
| Donnel Jeffrey “Jeff” Carter | August 18, 1952, New London, Connecticut | Joshua Jeffrey Carter, Jeremy Davis Carter and James Carlton Carter |
| Amy Lynn Carter | October 19, 1967, Plains, Georgia | Hugo James Wentzel and Errol Carter Kelly |
This table combines the Carter family biography with the 2023 Rosalynn Carter memorial program. The family’s official high-level count is 12 grandchildren, with 11 living grandchildren after Jeremy Davis Carter’s death. The names and relationships in older family materials do not always use the same biological, legal or stepfamily categories used by modern genealogy sites, so those distinctions matter.
How Jimmy and Rosalynn Carter raised their family
Jimmy Carter and Eleanor Rosalynn Smith married on July 7, 1946. Their first three children were born while Jimmy Carter was serving as a naval officer: Jack in 1947, Chip in 1950 and Jeff in 1952. Their daughter Amy was born in 1967, more than a decade after her brothers, after the family had returned to Plains, Georgia.
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The family moved during Carter’s naval years, with assignments and periods connected with Portsmouth, New London, Honolulu and San Diego. When Jimmy Carter’s father died in 1953, Carter resigned from the Navy and brought the family back to Plains to manage the family peanut business. Rosalynn became closely involved in that business and later in her husband’s political career. The National Park Service biography of Rosalynn Carter documents the children’s birth sequence, locations and the family’s naval-era moves.
Jack Carter’s family branch
John William “Jack” Carter
John William “Jack” Carter, the eldest child, was born on July 3, 1947, in Portsmouth, Virginia. He and his younger brothers grew up during their father’s Navy service and the family’s subsequent return to Georgia.
Public family biographies identify Jack’s children as Jason James Carter and Sarah Rosemary Carter. They also identify John Michael Chuldenko and Sarah Elizabeth Chuldenko Reynolds in the broader Carter family genealogy through Jack’s wife, Elizabeth Brasfield. For that reason, official memorial materials include all four names among the family descendants commonly described as grandchildren.
Jason Carter
Jason James Carter is the best-known of the Carter grandchildren in public life. He served as a Georgia state senator and was the Democratic nominee for governor of Georgia in 2014. He later became chair of The Carter Center’s Board of Trustees, giving the family a direct continuing connection to the organization founded by Jimmy and Rosalynn Carter.
Jason’s role should not be taken to mean that the entire Carter family forms a political dynasty. He is the most visible public-service figure among the grandchildren, but most of the family has maintained a much lower public profile.
Sarah Rosemary Carter and the Chuldenko family connection
Sarah Rosemary Carter is also listed in official Carter family and memorial materials. Public accounts have associated her with neuroscience and science-policy work, but current employment details should not be stated without fresh verification.
John Michael Chuldenko and Sarah Elizabeth Chuldenko Reynolds are a reminder that the family’s public genealogy uses a broader family definition than a strictly biological chart. The Carter family biography identifies John and Sarah Chuldenko as children of Elizabeth Brasfield, Jack Carter’s wife. They were included in the Carter family’s official memorial listings, but a careful account should not silently recast that relationship as biological descent from Jimmy and Rosalynn Carter.
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Chip Carter’s family branch
James Earl “Chip” Carter III
James Earl “Chip” Carter III was born on April 12, 1950, in Honolulu, Hawaii. The official family biography identifies his children as James Earl Carter IV and Margaret Alicia Carter.
Chip’s family branch also includes Casey Payne Gallagher in the 2023 Rosalynn Carter memorial materials. Family reporting describes Casey as a stepchild in Chip’s family branch. Since the memorial program does not explain every legal or biological relationship, the most accurate wording is that Casey was included among the Carter family grandchildren for the memorial—not that the available materials establish Casey as Jimmy and Rosalynn Carter’s biological grandchild.
James Earl Carter IV and the “47 percent” video
James Earl Carter IV became publicly known during the 2012 presidential campaign. He helped bring attention to a secretly recorded video in which Republican presidential candidate Mitt Romney discussed the “47 percent” of Americans he said were dependent on government. The episode made Carter IV one of the more politically visible grandchildren, although it was a single campaign-related episode rather than evidence that the whole family is involved in politics.
Margaret Alicia Carter is also listed in the official family genealogy. As with several other Carter descendants, publicly available information about her private life is limited, and there is no reason to fill those gaps with speculation.
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Donnel Jeffrey “Jeff” Carter
Donnel Jeffrey “Jeff” Carter was born on August 18, 1952, in New London, Connecticut. His three publicly identified children are Joshua Jeffrey Carter, Jeremy Davis Carter and James Carlton Carter.
- Joshua Jeffrey Carter was born on May 8, 1984. He participated in the 2025 Washington funeral service for his grandfather and spoke publicly about Jimmy Carter’s Sunday-school teaching and his service to people in need.
- Jeremy Davis Carter was born on June 25, 1987, and died in 2015. He is the one deceased grandchild included in the official count of 12.
- James Carlton Carter was born on April 24, 1991. He has generally kept a lower public profile than Jason Carter and Joshua Carter.
The 2023 Rosalynn Carter memorial program lists Jeremy in memoriam and Joshua and James among the living family members serving as honorary pallbearers. That document is especially useful for explaining why the official count is 12 total grandchildren but 11 living grandchildren.
Amy Carter’s family branch
Amy Lynn Carter
Amy Lynn Carter was born on October 19, 1967, in Plains, Georgia. She was the youngest of Jimmy and Rosalynn Carter’s four children and was nine years old when her father became president in 1977.
Because Amy was a child in the White House, she experienced a level of public attention that her older brothers had encountered as adults. The National Park Service describes how the family tried to preserve an ordinary childhood for her while Rosalynn remained closely involved in her care. Amy attended school and carried out the highly visible but unusual experience of growing up in the White House.
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Amy’s two sons, Hugo James Wentzel and Errol Carter Kelly, are listed in the Carter family’s official memorial materials. Scouting Magazine has also identified Errol Carter Kelly as Amy Carter’s son. Amy has generally protected her family’s privacy, so responsible coverage should avoid publishing unnecessary current details about her children.
A family creative connection
One small example of the Carter family’s creative life is The Little Baby Snoogle-Fleejer, a children’s book written by Jimmy Carter and illustrated by Amy Carter. It is a family-linked work that appeals to readers interested in the less political side of the Carter story, although it is separate from the genealogy itself.
The authoritative list of 12 grandchildren
The following working list reflects the official Carter family biography and the 2023 Rosalynn Carter memorial program:
- Jason James Carter — Jack Carter’s son.
- Sarah Rosemary Carter — Jack Carter’s daughter.
- John Michael Chuldenko — included in the official memorial list through the broader Carter family relationship identified in family biographies.
- Sarah Elizabeth Chuldenko Reynolds — included on the same broader family basis.
- James Earl Carter IV — Chip Carter’s son.
- Margaret Alicia Carter — Chip Carter’s daughter.
- Casey Payne Gallagher — included in the memorial materials as part of Chip Carter’s family branch; family reporting describes Casey as a stepchild.
- Joshua Jeffrey Carter — Jeff Carter’s son.
- Jeremy Davis Carter — Jeff Carter’s son; died in 2015.
- James Carlton Carter — Jeff Carter’s son.
- Hugo James Wentzel — Amy Carter’s son.
- Errol Carter Kelly — Amy Carter’s son.
Why do some sources say 11 grandchildren?
They are usually referring to the 11 living grandchildren. The official Carter Tribute biography reports 12 grandchildren in total, one deceased. Jeremy Davis Carter’s death in 2015 explains the difference. A second source of variation is that official memorial materials use a broad family designation that includes stepfamily relationships, while some genealogy accounts count only biological grandchildren.
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What is known about the Carter great-grandchildren?
The official posthumous Carter family biography reports 14 great-grandchildren. That number provides useful context for the size of the extended family, but it should not be confused with the 12-grandchild count. A complete, current directory of the great-grandchildren would require a separate source review, particularly because several family members have deliberately stayed private.
The family’s continuing public legacy
The Carter descendants represent several different relationships with public life. Jason Carter has continued the family’s public-service tradition through his work with The Carter Center. Joshua Carter has spoken publicly about his grandfather’s faith and humanitarian values. James Earl Carter IV became briefly prominent through a presidential campaign controversy. Amy Carter’s childhood, meanwhile, remains part of White House history because she lived in the executive mansion during Jimmy Carter’s presidency.
Those public examples are only part of the story. Jack, Chip and Jeff were already adults or nearly adults when Jimmy Carter became president, while Amy was nine. Their experiences of the presidency were therefore very different, and the grandchildren have likewise made different choices about publicity. The available record supports identifying the family’s public roles, but not assuming that every descendant works in politics, public service or at The Carter Center.
For a related family artifact, readers may also be interested in The Little Baby Snoogle-Fleejer, the children’s book Jimmy Carter wrote and Amy Carter illustrated. It offers a glimpse of a father-daughter collaboration without treating it as evidence about the private lives of the wider family.
Frequently Asked Questions
How many children did Jimmy and Rosalynn Carter have?
They had four children: John William “Jack” Carter, James Earl “Chip” Carter III, Donnel Jeffrey “Jeff” Carter and Amy Lynn Carter.
How many grandchildren did Jimmy and Rosalynn Carter have?
The official Carter family biography gives the total as 12 grandchildren, one of whom—Jeremy Davis Carter—died in 2015. That leaves 11 living grandchildren.
Who is Jimmy Carter’s most prominent grandchild?
Jason James Carter is the most publicly prominent grandchild. He served as a Georgia state senator, ran for governor in 2014 and is chair of The Carter Center’s Board of Trustees.
Was Amy Carter the only Carter child to live in the White House?
Yes. Amy was nine when Jimmy Carter became president in 1977 and lived in the White House during his presidency. Her three older brothers were adults or nearly adults by then.
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One free scan finds every outdated or missing driver and matches the right update for your exact hardware.Free scan · exact hardware matchWhy do some Carter family lists include more than biological grandchildren?
Official memorial materials use a broad family designation that includes stepfamily relationships. In particular, John Michael Chuldenko, Sarah Elizabeth Chuldenko Reynolds and Casey Payne Gallagher are included in family materials, but the available sources do not establish all of those relationships as biological descent from Jimmy and Rosalynn Carter.
The Bottom Line
Jimmy and Rosalynn Carter’s family includes four children and 12 grandchildren in the official count, with 11 living grandchildren after Jeremy Davis Carter’s death. Jason Carter is the family’s clearest continuing public-service figure, but the broader family is more varied—and considerably more private—than a simple political-family label suggests.
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