🔗 Share this article

Throughout history, the descendants of James Garfield shared stories about his impressive career 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 living relatives. “We studied the story in historical accounts but, somehow, we just glanced over it.”

Fresh Curiosity in a Overlooked Leader

This changed in 2011 with the publication of a historical book, which sparked curiosity in Garfield's truncated career. This work has now inspired a Netflix drama titled the presidential series, starring a talented performer as the president and another skilled actor as the unstable individual who assassinated him.

The series promises to shine a light on Garfield, who came from humble beginnings to the White House during the Gilded Age only to succumb to its bitter partisan conflicts. His tenure was truncated after only several months not only by the gunman's shot but by physician mistakes – an incident now mostly overlooked while the killings of Abraham Lincoln and John F Kennedy continue to fascinate the public.

“You can't help but be proud what he did. He was a true polymath: he was a attorney, he was a preacher, he was a land worker. He was so many things which also influenced his personality and how he was and everything that we know about him the relatives maintain with us.”

Rising from Poverty to the Highest Office

Garfield was the last president born in a log cabin in the Midwest in 1831. His father died when he was just a toddler, leaving his parent, Eliza, to raise five children in difficult circumstances. An insatiable reader, Garfield worked on canal boats to make funds for an education.

He pursued jurisprudence, was became a preacher, became head of a school in Ohio and was a government official. In 1858 he wed a previous schoolmate, his future wife, with whom he would have seven children. An ardent Unionist, Garfield viewed the internal struggle as a righteous fight against slavery and rose to the rank of major general.

“When I started researching him, I found it incredible. He was absolutely brilliant. He was extremely courageous. He was innovative for the era. He was kind. He was a moral individual and would have been a remarkable commander-in-chief had he survived.”

Government Service and Shocking Selection

Garfield was convinced by President Lincoln to resign his military commission when he was selected to the legislative branch, where he would function as a Republican for nearly two decades. He was ardent advocate of racial equality in elections, viewing it as a matter of justice and the completion of a conflict agreement.

“The speech he gave on the House chamber will affect you emotionally. He was an impressive communicator and this topic was deeply meaningful to him.”

At the 1880 Republican National Convention in Chicago the party was sharply split between the “political group”, led by an influential figure, who supported a continued leadership for military hero, and the “rival group”, who supported James G Blaine. Garfield attended as a advocate of his state colleague John Sherman.

When the massive gathering was deadlocked between Grant and Blaine, delegates began seeking a middle ground. Garfield's impassioned speech supporting Sherman impressed them. 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 36th ballot, a wave of backers made Garfield the shocking choice. To placate the Stalwart faction, the vice presidential pick, a political ally from New York, was chosen as his second in command. In the national vote Garfield overcame the Democratic nominee to become the only sitting member of the House ever to be selected for the highest office.

Truncated Term and Power Struggles

“What would have made Garfield great and what is very unusual and maybe unique to the American presidency is he didn't want the job. It's not that he had entirely ignored the possibility but he was thrust into it.”

The central struggle of Garfield's limited administration was his clash with Conkling over the “spoils system”. Conkling demanded control over political positions in New York, particularly the influential position of customs official. Garfield rejected, stating the issue was “if the commander-in-chief should be registering clerk of the senate or the nation's leader”. He selected a political foe of Conkling to the post.

The dispute became a visible struggle but Garfield defeated Conkling in the Senate. Experiencing a humiliating public defeat, Conkling and his colleague quit Congress in protest. The next day, Garfield's candidate was confirmed. It was a significant win for the power of the presidency over the faction system and for the cause of reform over “machine politics”.

The Killer and His Disturbed Mind

But even as Garfield fought powerful figures of his party, he was being stalked by a psychologically troubled person who exemplified the negative aspect of the patronage system. The assassin was a unstable individual with a record of occupational setbacks, mental instability and childhood trauma. He had failed as a lawyer, bill collector, religious figure and member of a alternative community.

“He was mentally ill and his particular brand of madness was delusion. He always believed that God had chosen him for greatness. He actually had more privileged beginning than Garfield but where Garfield achieved and rose, Guiteau failed at everything.”

But Guiteau believed he had at last discovered a route to achievement: politics. Caught up in the excitement of the political contest, he wrote and delivered an minor oration, and became persuaded internally that he was personally instrumental for Garfield's victory.

Under this reasoning, Guiteau reckoned he had deserved a prestigious position. He travelled to Washington and constantly harassed Garfield, Blaine and other authorities, demanding to be made the US consul in Paris — a post for which he had inadequate skills. He became such a annoyance that he was eventually excluded from the White House.

The Assassination and Doctor Errors

On the tragic date, just four months into his presidency, Garfield was departing the capital for his alumni event. As he moved through the transportation center, Guiteau appeared suddenly, withdrew an handgun from his jacket and shot the president twice in the back.

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