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For generations, the descendants of President Garfield spoke proudly about his extraordinary achievements but avoided talking about his tragic assassination. “We knew what had happened, that he was shot in a railway depot,” explains one of his living relatives. “We studied the story in books but, in one way or another, we just skimmed through it.”

Fresh Curiosity in a Historical Figure

This transformed in 2011 with the publication of a historical book, which revived interest in Garfield's truncated career. This work has now resulted in a television production titled the presidential series, featuring a talented performer as the national leader and his co-star as the drifter who gunned him down.

The series promises to highlight Garfield, who rose from poverty to the White House 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 killer's weapon but by doctor errors – an incident now frequently ignored while the killings of Abraham Lincoln and President Kennedy continue to intrigue the public.

“You can't help but be proud what he did. He was like a multi-threat: he was a attorney, he was a religious leader, he was a land worker. He was all of these things which also shaped who he was 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 parent passed away when he was very young, leaving his mother, Eliza, to care for multiple kids in hard times. An insatiable reader, Garfield labored on waterways to earn money for an education.

He studied law, was became a preacher, became leader of an institution in Ohio and was a political representative. In 1858 he entered matrimony with a educational contemporary, Lucretia Rudolph, 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 military position.

“During my investigation, I was astonished. He was remarkably smart. He was fearless. He was innovative for the period. He was compassionate. He was a good person and would have been one of our great presidents had he survived.”

Political Career and Unexpected Nomination

Garfield was encouraged by Lincoln to resign his military commission when he was chosen to the legislative branch, where he would function as a party member for multiple terms. He was dedicated proponent of African American voting rights, viewing it as a issue of rights and the fulfillment of a conflict agreement.

“His oration on the floor of Congress will tear your heart out. He was an remarkable speaker and this matter was extremely significant to him.”

At the political assembly in Chicago the faction was sharply split between the “political group”, led by Senator Roscoe Conkling, who supported a third term for military hero, and the “opposing faction”, who supported another candidate. Garfield attended as a backer of his state colleague John Sherman.

When the massive gathering was stalled 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 exclaimed, “And now, gentlemen of the convention, what do we want?” to which a voice from the crowd unexpectedly replied, “We want Garfield!”

On the 36th ballot, a rush of supporters made Garfield the unexpected candidate. To satisfy the Stalwart faction, another politician, a faction member from New York, was chosen as his second in command. In the national vote Garfield overcame the opposing candidate to become the only sitting member of the House ever to be chosen as leader.

Brief Administration and Power Struggles

“His possible achievements and what is very unusual and maybe unique to the American presidency is he hadn't campaigned aggressively. It's not that he had completely dismissed it but he was pushed toward it.”

The defining conflict of Garfield's limited administration was his confrontation with Conkling over the “patronage network”. Conkling demanded control over government appointments in New York, particularly the influential position of Collector of the Port of New York. Garfield refused, stating the issue was “whether the president is registering clerk of the senate or the presidential authority”. He proposed a opponent of Conkling to the post.

The conflict became a visible struggle but Garfield outmaneuvered Conkling in the Senate. Experiencing a public failure, Conkling and his associate quit Congress in protest. The next day, Garfield's candidate was ratified. It was a historic triumph for the power of the presidency over the party machine and for the change movement over “political control”.

The Assassin and His Disturbed Mind

But even as Garfield battled the titans of his party, he was being stalked by a disturbed and delusional man who represented the negative aspect of the political appointment process. The gunman was a drifter with a history of career disappointments, mental instability and physical and psychological abuse. He had not succeeded as a attorney, debt recovery agent, religious figure and member of a unconventional group.

“He was mentally ill and his unique form of delusion was false belief. He always believed that religious calling for significance. He actually had financially a better start than Garfield but where Garfield achieved and rose, Guiteau failed at everything.”

But Guiteau believed he had eventually located a way to accomplishment: politics. Carried away in the excitement of the political contest, he wrote and delivered an unimportant address, and became convinced in his own mind that he was personally instrumental for Garfield's victory.

Under this thinking, Guiteau calculated he had deserved a important role. He travelled to Washington and relentlessly pestered Garfield, Blaine and other officials, demanding to be made the foreign service officer — a role for which he had no experience. He became such a problem that he was eventually excluded from the White House.

The Shooting and Physician Mistakes

On that fateful day, just several weeks into his presidency, Garfield was departing the capital for his college reunion. As he moved through the Baltimore & Potomac Railroad station, Guiteau stepped from the shadows, produced an handgun from his coat pocket and assassinated the leader in the back.

Garfield exclaimed: “Why is this occurring?” and dropped on the station floor. When a {police officer|law