🔗 Share this article

Throughout history, the heirs of the 20th US president shared stories about his extraordinary achievements but seldom discussed his tragic assassination. “We knew what had happened, that he was gunned down in a train station,” explains one of his modern descendants. “We read about the story in books but, somehow, we just glanced over it.”

Fresh Curiosity in a Overlooked Leader

This shifted in 2011 with the release of a historical book, which sparked curiosity in Garfield's unfinished life. The book has now resulted in a television production titled the historical drama, including a talented performer as the president and Matthew Macfadyen as the unstable individual who gunned him down.

The series aims to shine a light on Garfield, who came from humble beginnings to the highest office during the Gilded Age only to succumb to its bitter partisan conflicts. His time in office was ended prematurely after only half a year not only by the assassin's bullet but by doctor errors – an event now largely forgotten while the killings of the Civil War president and JFK continue to intrigue the public.

“You can't help but be proud what he did. He was incredibly versatile: he was a attorney, he was a minister, he was a farmer. He was multiple professions which also influenced his personality and his approach and all the information about him the descendants preserve with us.”

Starting from Nothing to the Presidency

Garfield was the most recent commander-in-chief coming from pioneer roots in Ohio in 1831. His father died when he was just a toddler, leaving his mom, Eliza, to support a large family in challenging conditions. An insatiable reader, Garfield found employment on vessels to generate income for an schooling.

He learned legal principles, was became a preacher, became president of Hiram College 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 national conflict as a moral battle against human bondage and progressed to the officer status.

“During my investigation, I couldn't believe it. He was exceptionally intelligent. He was fearless. He was ahead of his time for the era. He was kind. He was a good person and would have been a remarkable commander-in-chief had he lived.”

Government Service and Surprise Candidacy

Garfield was persuaded by the wartime leader to resign his military commission when he was elected to the Congress, where he would work as a political representative for nearly two decades. He was dedicated proponent of African American voting rights, viewing it as a question of fairness and the realization of a wartime covenant.

“His oration on the House chamber will move you deeply. He was an impressive communicator and this matter was deeply meaningful to him.”

At the party gathering in Chicago the faction was deeply divided between the “political group”, led by Senator Roscoe Conkling, who supported a third term for Ulysses S Grant, and the “Half-Breeds”, who supported political contender. Garfield attended as a supporter of his close associate John Sherman.

When the massive gathering was deadlocked between Grant and Blaine, party members began seeking a middle ground. Garfield's impassioned speech proposing Sherman won them over. During the speech, he reportedly shouted, “And now, gentlemen of the convention, what do we want?” to which a audience member unexpectedly replied, “We want Garfield!”

On the multiple voting round, a stampede of delegates made Garfield the surprise nominee. To satisfy the Stalwart faction, Chester Arthur, a Conkling loyalist from New York, was chosen as his vice president. In the national vote Garfield defeated the Democratic nominee to become the only sitting member of the House ever to be elected president.

Short Presidency and Political Battles

“What would have made Garfield great 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 short presidency was his disagreement with Conkling over the “patronage network”. Conkling demanded control over government appointments in New York, particularly the powerful and lucrative post of port authority. Garfield rejected, stating the issue was “whether the president is registering clerk of the senate or the presidential authority”. He proposed a rival of Conkling to the post.

The dispute became a public battle but Garfield outsmarted Conkling in the Senate. Confronting a humiliating public defeat, Conkling and his associate quit Congress in protest. The next day, Garfield's nominee was confirmed. It was a significant win for the power of the presidency over the political organization and for the change movement over “machine politics”.

The Gunman and His Disturbed Mind

But even as Garfield battled the titans of his party, he was being pursued by a disturbed and delusional man who represented the problematic element of the spoils network. The gunman was a drifter with a record of professional failures, mental instability and early life difficulties. He had not succeeded as a lawyer, debt recovery agent, minister 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 financially a better start than Garfield but where Garfield progressed and improved, Guiteau failed at everything.”

But Guiteau believed he had eventually located a way to accomplishment: politics. Swept up in the events of the 1880 election, he created and presented an minor oration, and became certain in his thoughts that he was single-handedly responsible for Garfield's victory.

Under this thinking, Guiteau reckoned he had merited a prestigious position. He travelled to Washington and relentlessly pestered Garfield, Blaine and other leaders, requiring to be made the US consul in Paris — a position for which he had inadequate skills. He became such a annoyance that he was eventually prohibited from the White House.

The Shooting and Medical Malpractice

On 2 July 1881, just four months into his presidency, Garfield was leaving Washington for his alumni event. As he moved through the train depot, Guiteau stepped from the shadows, withdrew an ivory-handled British Bull Dog revolver from his jacket and fired multiple rounds in the back.

Garfield cried out: “What's happening?” and dropped on the station floor. When a {police officer|law