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Throughout history, the family members of James Garfield shared stories about his extraordinary achievements but avoided talking about his untimely death. We understood what had happened, that he was gunned down in a transportation hub,” reflects one of his modern descendants. “We learned about the story in publications but, somehow, we just skimmed through it.”

Fresh Curiosity in a Forgotten President

This transformed in 2011 with the publication of a presidential biography, which revived interest in Garfield's truncated career. The book has now resulted in a television production titled the presidential series, starring Michael Shannon as the president and his co-star as the drifter who gunned him down.

The series seeks to highlight Garfield, who rose from poverty to the presidency during the economic era only to become a casualty to its bitter partisan conflicts. His time in office was ended prematurely after only 200 days not only by the assassin's bullet but by physician mistakes – an tragedy now mostly overlooked while the deaths of the Civil War president and President Kennedy continue to captivate the public.

“One cannot help but admire what he did. He was a true polymath: he was a attorney, he was a preacher, he was a agriculturalist. He was all of these things which also influenced his personality and his approach and everything that we know about him the descendants preserve with us.”

Starting from Nothing to the White House

Garfield was the most recent commander-in-chief born in a log cabin in the Midwest in 1831. His parent passed away when he was just a toddler, leaving his mom, Eliza, to support a large family in difficult circumstances. An dedicated student, Garfield labored on waterways to make funds for an formal learning.

He learned legal principles, was entered the clergy, became head of a school in Ohio and was a political representative. In 1858 he entered matrimony with a educational contemporary, Lucretia Rudolph, with whom he would have multiple offspring. An passionate nationalist, Garfield viewed the internal struggle as a moral battle against slavery and progressed to the rank of major general.

“During my investigation, I found it incredible. He was exceptionally intelligent. He was extremely courageous. He was innovative for the period. He was compassionate. He was a moral individual and would have been one of our great presidents had he lived.”

Political Career and Unexpected Nomination

Garfield was persuaded by the wartime leader to depart military life when he was elected to the Congress, where he would work as a Republican for 17 years. He was dedicated proponent of African American voting rights, viewing it as a question of fairness and the realization of a conflict agreement.

“The address he delivered on the floor of Congress will move you deeply. He was an incredibly powerful orator and this topic was very important to him.”

At the party gathering in Chicago the faction was fundamentally fractured between the “faction members”, led by a powerful politician, who supported a third term for former president, and the “opposing faction”, who supported political contender. Garfield attended as a supporter of his state colleague John Sherman.

When the 15,000-person convention was stalled between Grant and Blaine, party members began searching for a compromise. Garfield's emotional address nominating Sherman impressed them. During the speech, he reportedly exclaimed, “And now, gentlemen of the convention, what do we want?” to which a audience member unexpectedly replied, “We want Garfield!”

On the 36th ballot, a rush of supporters made Garfield the unexpected candidate. To appease the Stalwart faction, another politician, a faction member from New York, was chosen as his vice president. In the national vote Garfield overcame the Democratic nominee to become the unique incumbent of the House ever to be selected for the highest office.

Brief Administration and Political Battles

“Garfield's potential greatness and what is remarkably uncommon and maybe special for the American presidency is he wasn't seeking the position. It's not that he had never thought about it but he was pushed toward it.”

The major battle of Garfield's brief term was his disagreement with Conkling over the “spoils system”. Conkling required power over federal patronage in New York, particularly the influential position of Collector of the Port of New York. Garfield declined, stating the issue was “if the commander-in-chief should be registering clerk of the senate or the presidential authority”. He selected a opponent of Conkling to the post.

The conflict turned into a public battle but Garfield outsmarted Conkling in the Senate. Confronting a humiliating public defeat, Conkling and his junior senator quit Congress in protest. The next day, Garfield's candidate was ratified. It was a landmark victory for the presidential control over the faction system and for the change movement over “boss rule”.

The Gunman and His Mental Illness

But even as Garfield fought powerful figures of his party, he was being followed by a psychologically troubled person who exemplified the dark side of the spoils network. The assassin was a drifter with a record of occupational setbacks, emotional issues and childhood trauma. He had been unsuccessful as a legal professional, bill collector, preacher and member of a alternative community.

“He was emotionally unstable and his unique form of delusion was fantasy. He always believed that religious calling for significance. He actually had more privileged beginning than Garfield but where Garfield achieved and rose, Guiteau was unsuccessful in all endeavors.”

But Guiteau believed he had eventually located a way to accomplishment: politics. Caught up in the drama of the political contest, he prepared and gave an insignificant speech, and became certain in his thoughts that he was single-handedly responsible for Garfield's victory.

Under this reasoning, Guiteau determined he had earned a prestigious position. He journeyed to DC and relentlessly pestered Garfield, Blaine and other authorities, requiring to be made the foreign service officer — a post for which he had inadequate skills. He became such a annoyance that he was eventually banned from the White House.

The Assassination and Doctor Errors

On 2 July 1881, just several weeks into his presidency, Garfield was departing the capital for his educational gathering. As he moved through the Baltimore & Potomac Railroad station, Guiteau emerged from hiding, produced an weapon from his clothing and assassinated the leader in the back.

Garfield shouted: “My God, what is this?” and fell on the waiting area. When a {police officer|law