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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 railway depot,” notes one of his modern descendants. “We studied the story in historical accounts but, somehow, we just glanced over it.”

Revived Interest in a Forgotten President

This shifted in 2011 with the publication of a presidential biography, which generated attention in Garfield's truncated career. The book has now inspired a television production titled the presidential series, featuring a talented performer as the national leader and another skilled actor as the wanderer who shot him.

The series seeks to shine a light on Garfield, who emerged from difficult circumstances to the White House during the Gilded Age only to succumb to its deep political rifts. His time in office was ended prematurely after only several months not only by the assassin's bullet but by physician mistakes – an tragedy now largely forgotten while the killings of Abraham Lincoln and President Kennedy continue to captivate the public.

“One cannot help but admire what he did. He was like a multi-threat: he was a legal professional, he was a preacher, he was a farmer. He was multiple professions which also shaped who he was and how he was and the complete story about him the descendants preserve with us.”

Rising from Poverty to the Highest Office

Garfield was the most recent commander-in-chief born in a log cabin in the Midwest in 1831. His dad perished when he was 18 months old, leaving his mother, Eliza, to care for multiple kids in difficult circumstances. An insatiable reader, Garfield worked on canal boats to earn money for an education.

He pursued jurisprudence, was ordained as minister, became leader of an institution in Ohio and was a government official. In 1858 he entered matrimony with a previous schoolmate, his partner, with whom he would have seven children. An ardent Unionist, Garfield viewed the civil war as a moral battle against slavery and progressed to the military position.

“As I studied his life, I couldn't believe it. He was exceptionally intelligent. He was fearless. He was innovative for the period. He was caring. He was a decent human being and would have been a remarkable commander-in-chief had he survived.”

Government Service and Shocking Selection

Garfield was encouraged by President Lincoln to leave army service when he was elected to the House of Representatives, where he would work as a party member for 17 years. He was dedicated proponent of black suffrage, viewing it as a question of fairness and the fulfillment of a conflict agreement.

“The address he delivered on the legislative arena will move you deeply. He was an incredibly powerful orator and this matter was extremely significant to him.”

At the 1880 Republican National Convention in Chicago the faction was deeply divided between the “faction members”, led by a powerful politician, who supported a third term for military hero, and the “Half-Breeds”, who supported James G Blaine. Garfield attended as a advocate of his close associate John Sherman.

When the 15,000-person convention was gridlocked between Grant and Blaine, party members began looking for a middle ground. Garfield's emotional address proposing Sherman won them over. During the speech, he reportedly declared, “And now, representatives, what do we want?” to which a voice from the crowd unexpectedly replied, “We want Garfield!”

On the extended selection process, a stampede of delegates made Garfield the surprise nominee. To placate the Stalwart faction, Chester Arthur, a Conkling loyalist from New York, was chosen as his second in command. In the national vote Garfield beat the opposing candidate to become the unique incumbent of the House ever to be chosen as leader.

Truncated Term and Government Conflicts

“What would have made Garfield great and what is very unusual and maybe unique to 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 central struggle of Garfield's brief term was his clash with Conkling over the “political favors”. Conkling demanded control over government appointments in New York, particularly the influential position of port authority. Garfield refused, stating the issue was “concerning if the national leader becomes registering clerk of the senate or the executive of the United States”. He selected a rival of Conkling to the post.

The dispute became a visible struggle but Garfield outsmarted Conkling in the Senate. Experiencing a humiliating public defeat, Conkling and his colleague resigned their seats in protest. The next day, Garfield's nominee was approved. It was a significant win for the executive authority over the party machine and for the improvement efforts over “political control”.

The Assassin and His Disturbed Mind

But even as Garfield confronted influential people of his party, he was being followed by a psychologically troubled person who exemplified the problematic element of the patronage system. Charles Guiteau was a drifter with a background of career disappointments, mental instability and early life difficulties. He had failed as a lawyer, bill collector, religious figure and member of a free-love commune.

“He was emotionally unstable and his unique form of delusion was fantasy. He always believed that divine selection for significance. He actually had financially a better start than Garfield but where Garfield progressed and improved, Guiteau could not accomplish anything.”

But Guiteau believed he had at last discovered a pathway to success: politics. Caught up in the events of the political contest, he created and presented an insignificant speech, and became persuaded internally that he was solely accountable for Garfield's victory.

Under this thinking, Guiteau calculated he had merited a important role. He went to the capital and constantly harassed Garfield, Blaine and other leaders, insisting to be made the foreign service officer — a post for which he had inadequate skills. He became such a annoyance that he was eventually prohibited from the White House.

The Attack and Physician Mistakes

On 2 July 1881, just a short time into his presidency, Garfield was departing the capital for his alumni event. As he moved through the train depot, Guiteau appeared suddenly, pulled an handgun from his clothing and shot the president twice in the back.

Garfield cried out: “My God, what is this?” and dropped on the depot ground. When a {police officer|law