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Over many years, the family members of President Garfield shared stories about his extraordinary achievements but seldom discussed his untimely death. “We knew what had happened, that he was assassinated in a train station,” explains one of his modern descendants. “We learned about the story in publications but, in one way or another, we just skimmed through it.”

Fresh Curiosity in a Forgotten President

This shifted in 2011 with the issuing of a presidential biography, which generated attention in Garfield's cut-short presidency. The book has now led to a television production titled the presidential series, starring Michael Shannon as the commander-in-chief and another skilled actor as the wanderer who shot him.

The series seeks to highlight Garfield, who rose from poverty to the presidency during the historical period only to become a casualty to its bitter partisan conflicts. His tenure was cut short after only several months not only by the assassin's bullet but by physician mistakes – an tragedy now frequently ignored while the killings of the Civil War president and President Kennedy continue to intrigue the public.

“You can't help but be proud what he did. He was incredibly versatile: he was a lawyer, he was a minister, he was a land worker. He was all of these things which also formed his character 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 Cuyahoga County in 1831. His dad perished when he was very young, leaving his parent, Eliza, to raise five children in hard times. An dedicated student, Garfield found employment on vessels to make funds for an education.

He learned legal principles, was ordained as minister, became president of Hiram College in Ohio and was a government official. In 1858 he entered matrimony with a educational contemporary, his future wife, with whom he would have a large family. An dedicated federalist, Garfield viewed the internal struggle as a righteous fight against slavery and advanced to the officer status.

“During my investigation, I found it incredible. He was exceptionally intelligent. He was fearless. 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 survived.”

Public Life and Shocking Selection

Garfield was encouraged by the wartime leader to leave army service when he was elected to the House of Representatives, where he would work as a party member for nearly two decades. He was ardent advocate of black suffrage, viewing it as a issue of rights and the realization of a conflict agreement.

“His oration on the legislative arena will tear your heart out. He was an incredibly powerful orator and this issue was extremely significant to him.”

At the 1880 Republican National Convention in Chicago the party was deeply divided between the “political group”, led by Senator Roscoe Conkling, who supported a continued leadership for former president, and the “Half-Breeds”, who supported political contender. Garfield attended as a supporter of his friend and fellow Ohioan John Sherman.

When the 15,000-person convention was stalled between Grant and Blaine, delegates began looking for a compromise. Garfield's impassioned speech nominating Sherman won them over. During the speech, he reportedly declared, “And now, representatives, what do we want?” to which a audience member unexpectedly replied, “We want Garfield!”

On the extended selection process, a wave of backers made Garfield the shocking choice. To placate the Stalwart faction, another politician, a Conkling loyalist from New York, was chosen as his running mate. In the presidential race Garfield beat the rival politician to become the unique incumbent of the House ever to be selected for the highest office.

Truncated Term and Government Conflicts

“Garfield's potential greatness and what is remarkably uncommon and maybe unique to the American presidency is he wasn't seeking the position. It's not that he had completely dismissed it but he was pushed toward it.”

The major battle of Garfield's limited administration was his disagreement with Conkling over the “spoils system”. Conkling required power over government appointments in New York, particularly the powerful and lucrative post of Collector of the Port of New York. Garfield rejected, stating the issue was “whether the president is registering clerk of the senate or the nation's leader”. He selected a rival of Conkling to the post.

The confrontation turned into a public battle but Garfield outsmarted Conkling in the Senate. Confronting a embarrassing loss, Conkling and his junior senator left their positions 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 improvement efforts over “machine politics”.

The Assassin and His Psychological Issues

But even as Garfield confronted influential people of his party, he was being pursued by a disturbed and delusional man who represented the dark side of the patronage system. Charles Guiteau was a unstable individual with a background of occupational setbacks, psychological problems and childhood trauma. He had been unsuccessful as a lawyer, debt recovery agent, minister and member of a unconventional group.

“He was emotionally unstable and his unique form of delusion was fantasy. He always believed that religious calling for greatness. He actually had more privileged beginning than Garfield but where Garfield succeeded and advanced, Guiteau could not accomplish anything.”

But Guiteau believed he had at last discovered a pathway to success: politics. Caught up in the excitement of the political contest, he created and presented an minor oration, and became certain in his thoughts that he was solely accountable for Garfield's victory.

Under this logic, Guiteau reckoned he had merited a high-level government job. He went to the capital and relentlessly pestered Garfield, Blaine and other authorities, demanding to be made the US consul in Paris — a position for which he had zero qualifications. He became such a problem that he was eventually excluded from the White House.

The Shooting and Physician Mistakes

On that fateful day, just several weeks into his presidency, Garfield was traveling from DC for his college reunion. As he moved through the train depot, Guiteau stepped from the shadows, withdrew an weapon from his jacket and fired multiple rounds in the back.

Garfield shouted: “What's happening?” and dropped on the depot ground. When a {police officer|law