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Throughout history, the heirs of James Garfield spoke proudly about his impressive career but avoided talking about his violent end. “We knew what had happened, that he was gunned down in a railway depot,” reflects one of his modern descendants. “We learned about the story in publications but, for various reasons, we just glanced over it.”

Revived Interest in a Historical Figure

This shifted in 2011 with the publication of a presidential biography, which revived interest in Garfield's cut-short presidency. The publication has now led to a television production titled the presidential series, starring an acclaimed actor as the commander-in-chief and another skilled actor as the unstable individual who assassinated him.

The series promises to illuminate Garfield, who came from humble beginnings to the highest office during the Gilded Age only to become a casualty to its deep political rifts. His time in office was cut short after only 200 days not only by the killer's weapon but by doctor errors – an event now frequently ignored while the assassinations of President Lincoln and John F Kennedy continue to intrigue the public.

“It's impossible not to respect what he did. He was like a multi-threat: he was a lawyer, he was a preacher, he was a agriculturalist. He was multiple professions which also shaped who he was and his behavior and everything that we know about him the family carries down 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 dad perished when he was 18 months old, leaving his mom, Eliza, to support a large family in hard times. An insatiable reader, Garfield labored on waterways to make funds for an schooling.

He studied law, was ordained as minister, became president of Hiram College in Ohio and was a government official. In 1858 he married a previous schoolmate, his future wife, with whom he would have a large family. An passionate nationalist, Garfield viewed the civil war as a holy crusade against slavery and rose to the rank of major general.

“During my investigation, I was astonished. He was absolutely brilliant. He was fearless. He was innovative for the period. He was caring. He was a good person and would have been an outstanding leader had he survived.”

Government Service and Shocking Selection

Garfield was convinced by Lincoln to depart military life when he was selected to the House of Representatives, where he would function as a party member for multiple terms. He was ardent advocate of racial equality in elections, viewing it as a issue of rights and the realization of a wartime covenant.

“His oration on the House chamber will affect you emotionally. He was an incredibly powerful orator and this issue was deeply meaningful to him.”

At the party gathering in Chicago the faction was fundamentally fractured between the “Stalwarts”, led by Senator Roscoe Conkling, who supported a continued leadership for military hero, and the “opposing faction”, who supported James G Blaine. Garfield attended as a supporter of his state colleague John Sherman.

When the huge assembly was deadlocked between Grant and Blaine, delegates began seeking a middle ground. Garfield's emotional address proposing Sherman impressed them. During the speech, he reportedly exclaimed, “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 rush of supporters made Garfield the unexpected candidate. To placate the Stalwart faction, another politician, a political ally from New York, was chosen as his running mate. In the national vote Garfield beat the Democratic nominee to become the unique incumbent of the House ever to be chosen as leader.

Truncated Term and Political Battles

“His possible achievements and what is remarkably uncommon and maybe particular about the American presidency is he hadn't campaigned aggressively. It's not that he had never thought about it but he was pushed toward it.”

The major battle of Garfield's short presidency was his confrontation with Conkling over the “spoils system”. Conkling demanded control over political positions in New York, particularly the powerful and lucrative post of customs official. 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 political foe of Conkling to the post.

The conflict turned into a open fight but Garfield defeated Conkling in the Senate. Facing a humiliating public defeat, Conkling and his associate quit Congress in protest. The next day, Garfield's nominee was approved. It was a significant win for the presidential control over the party machine and for the change movement over “machine politics”.

The Killer and His Disturbed Mind

But even as Garfield battled the titans of his party, he was being followed by a mentally unstable individual who represented the problematic element of the patronage system. Charles Guiteau was a drifter with a record of career disappointments, psychological problems and early life difficulties. He had failed as a attorney, debt recovery agent, religious figure and member of a alternative community.

“He was psychologically disturbed and his specific type of insanity was false belief. He always believed that religious calling for importance. He actually had superior economic background 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 events of the political contest, he wrote and delivered an unimportant address, and became persuaded internally that he was personally instrumental for Garfield's victory.

Under this reasoning, Guiteau determined he had merited a high-level government job. He travelled to Washington and continuously bothered Garfield, Blaine and other officials, insisting to be made the foreign service officer — a post for which he had no experience. He became such a annoyance that he was eventually prohibited from the White House.

The Assassination and Medical Malpractice

On the tragic date, just several weeks into his presidency, Garfield was traveling from DC for his educational gathering. As he walked through the Baltimore & Potomac Railroad station, Guiteau stepped from the shadows, produced an handgun from his coat pocket and shot the president twice in the back.

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