Leading a cohort of next-generation Southern leaders in both parties, Carter grafted the region back on the national map by repudiating Jim Crow, firmly and finally extinguishing George Wallace as a political force and assembling a fearsome, if fleeting, biracial general election coalition.

The late president is lying in state through Thursday morning, giving the public a chance to pay respect in person.

One of the world’s most complex regions hosted the humble Southerner’s biggest triumph and most stinging defeat, as seen on front pages of The Washington Post.