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Throughout history, the heirs of President Garfield discussed openly about his impressive career but seldom discussed his untimely death. We were aware what had happened, that he was gunned down in a transportation hub,” reflects one of his living relatives. “We studied the story in historical accounts but, somehow, we just glanced over it.”

Fresh Curiosity in a Forgotten President

This changed in 2011 with the issuing of a presidential biography, which generated attention in Garfield's unfinished life. The publication has now inspired a streaming series titled Death by Lightning, starring an acclaimed actor as the national leader and Matthew Macfadyen as the drifter who assassinated him.

The series aims to highlight Garfield, who emerged from difficult circumstances to the White House during the Gilded Age only to become a casualty to its bitter partisan conflicts. His tenure was cut short after only several months not only by the gunman's shot but by physician mistakes – an tragedy now mostly overlooked while the deaths of President Lincoln and JFK continue to captivate the public.

“You can't help but be proud what he did. He was incredibly versatile: he was a legal professional, he was a preacher, he was a farmer. He was all of these things which also shaped who he was and his behavior and the complete story about him the family carries down with us.”

Starting from Nothing to the White House

Garfield was the most recent commander-in-chief raised in rustic conditions in Cuyahoga County in 1831. His dad perished when he was 18 months old, leaving his parent, Eliza, to raise five children in challenging conditions. An insatiable reader, Garfield labored on waterways to earn money for an education.

He studied law, was ordained as minister, became head of a school in Ohio and was a government official. In 1858 he wed a former classmate, his future wife, with whom he would have seven children. An passionate nationalist, Garfield viewed the internal struggle as a righteous fight against forced servitude and rose to the officer status.

“As I studied his life, I found it incredible. He was absolutely brilliant. He was fearless. He was ahead of his time for the period. He was kind. He was a decent human being and would have been an outstanding leader had he remained alive.”

Public Life and Surprise Candidacy

Garfield was convinced by Lincoln to leave army service when he was selected to the Congress, where he would function as a political representative for 17 years. He was strong supporter of African American voting rights, viewing it as a issue of rights and the fulfillment of a wartime covenant.

“The address he delivered on the legislative arena will tear your heart out. He was an incredibly powerful orator and this topic was very important to him.”

At the party gathering in Chicago the political organization was fundamentally fractured between the “political group”, led by a powerful politician, who supported a additional presidency for military hero, and the “rival group”, who supported political contender. Garfield attended as a supporter of his close associate John Sherman.

When the huge assembly was stalled between Grant and Blaine, representatives began searching for a compromise. Garfield's powerful oration supporting Sherman caught their attention. During the speech, he reportedly shouted, “And now, gentlemen of the convention, what do we want?” to which a voice from the crowd unexpectedly replied, “We want Garfield!”

On the extended selection process, a wave of backers made Garfield the unexpected candidate. To placate the Stalwart faction, the vice presidential pick, a political ally from New York, was chosen as his running mate. In the presidential race Garfield beat the opposing candidate to become the unique incumbent of the House ever to be chosen as leader.

Brief Administration and Political Battles

“What would have made Garfield great and what is extremely rare and maybe particular about 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 major battle of Garfield's brief term was his clash with Conkling over the “spoils system”. Conkling insisted on authority over political positions in New York, particularly the prestigious role of Collector of the Port of New York. Garfield refused, stating the issue was “if the commander-in-chief should be registering clerk of the senate or the executive of the United States”. He proposed a political foe of Conkling to the post.

The conflict became a public battle but Garfield defeated Conkling in the Senate. Confronting a embarrassing loss, 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 party machine and for the improvement efforts over “political control”.

The Assassin and His Psychological Issues

But even as Garfield confronted influential people of his party, he was being followed by a psychologically troubled person who exemplified the dark side of the patronage system. The gunman was a unstable individual with a record of occupational setbacks, psychological problems and physical and psychological abuse. He had failed as a attorney, bill collector, minister and member of a alternative community.

“He was mentally ill and his specific type of insanity was fantasy. He always believed that divine selection for importance. He actually had superior economic background than Garfield but where Garfield achieved and rose, Guiteau could not accomplish anything.”

But Guiteau believed he had finally found a pathway to success: politics. Carried away in the excitement of the presidential race, he prepared and gave an insignificant speech, and became convinced in his own mind that he was single-handedly responsible for Garfield's victory.

Under this reasoning, Guiteau reckoned he had merited a high-level government job. He journeyed to DC and constantly harassed Garfield, Blaine and other leaders, requiring to be made the foreign service officer — a post for which he had zero qualifications. He became such a annoyance that he was eventually excluded from the White House.

The Shooting and Physician Mistakes

On 2 July 1881, just several weeks into his presidency, Garfield was leaving Washington for his college reunion. As he moved through the transportation center, Guiteau emerged from hiding, pulled an weapon from his coat pocket and shot the president twice in the back.

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