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For generations, the descendants of the 20th US president spoke proudly about his impressive career but seldom discussed his untimely death. We were aware what had happened, that he was assassinated in a train station,” notes one of his living relatives. “We learned about the story in books but, somehow, we just passed over it quickly.”

Fresh Curiosity in a Forgotten President

This shifted in 2011 with the issuing of a presidential biography, which sparked curiosity in Garfield's truncated career. This work has now led to a television production titled the presidential series, featuring an acclaimed actor as the national leader and his co-star as the wanderer who shot him.

The series seeks to illuminate Garfield, who emerged from difficult circumstances to the White House during the historical period only to succumb to its toxic political divisions. His tenure was truncated after only 200 days not only by the killer's weapon but by doctor errors – an incident now frequently ignored while the assassinations of the Civil War president and JFK continue to intrigue the public.

“You can't help but be proud what he did. He was a true polymath: he was a lawyer, he was a minister, he was a farmer. He was all of these things which also formed his character and how he was and everything that we know about him the descendants preserve with us.”

Starting from Nothing to the Presidency

Garfield was the most recent commander-in-chief raised in rustic conditions in Cuyahoga County in 1831. His dad perished when he was very young, leaving his parent, Eliza, to care for multiple kids in difficult circumstances. An dedicated student, Garfield found employment on vessels to earn money for an schooling.

He learned legal principles, was ordained as minister, 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 multiple offspring. An dedicated federalist, Garfield viewed the national conflict as a moral battle against human bondage and progressed to the military position.

“As I studied his life, I found it incredible. He was absolutely brilliant. He was incredibly brave. He was ahead of his time for the time. He was caring. He was a good person and would have been an outstanding leader had he survived.”

Political Career and Unexpected Nomination

Garfield was encouraged by President Lincoln to depart military life when he was elected to the House of Representatives, where he would serve as a political representative for 17 years. He was strong supporter of racial equality in elections, viewing it as a issue of rights and the fulfillment of a wartime covenant.

“The address he delivered on the floor of Congress will tear your heart out. He was an impressive communicator and this matter was very important to him.”

At the party gathering in Chicago the party was deeply divided between the “faction members”, led by Senator Roscoe Conkling, who supported a third term for former president, and the “Half-Breeds”, who supported another candidate. Garfield attended as a supporter of his state colleague John Sherman.

When the 15,000-person convention was gridlocked between Grant and Blaine, party members began seeking a solution. Garfield's powerful oration proposing Sherman caught their attention. During the speech, he reportedly declared, “And now, gentlemen of the convention, what do we want?” to which a audience member unexpectedly replied, “We want Garfield!”

On the extended selection process, a wave of backers made Garfield the shocking choice. To appease the Stalwart faction, another politician, a Conkling loyalist from New York, was chosen as his running mate. In the national vote Garfield overcame the Democratic nominee to become the sole representative of the House ever to be selected for the highest office.

Brief Administration and Political Battles

“His possible achievements and what is very unusual and maybe special for the American presidency is he hadn't campaigned aggressively. It's not that he had entirely ignored the possibility but he was forced into the role.”

The central struggle of Garfield's short presidency was his clash with Conkling over the “spoils system”. Conkling required power over government appointments in New York, particularly the influential position of Collector of the Port of New York. Garfield declined, stating the issue was “whether the president is registering clerk of the senate or the nation's leader”. He nominated a political foe of Conkling to the post.

The confrontation escalated into a open fight but Garfield outmaneuvered Conkling in the Senate. Facing a public failure, Conkling and his colleague resigned their seats in protest. The next day, Garfield's nominee was approved. It was a historic triumph for the presidential control over the faction system and for the improvement efforts over “political control”.

The Killer and His Psychological Issues

But even as Garfield battled the titans of his party, he was being followed by a psychologically troubled person who exemplified the dark side of the patronage system. The assassin was a unstable individual with a background of career disappointments, mental instability and early life difficulties. He had not succeeded as a attorney, bill collector, religious figure and member of a unconventional group.

“He was psychologically disturbed and his unique form of delusion was fantasy. He always believed that God had chosen him for importance. He actually had financially a better start than Garfield but where Garfield progressed and improved, Guiteau could not accomplish anything.”

But Guiteau believed he had eventually located a route to achievement: politics. Caught up in the drama of the presidential race, he created and presented an insignificant speech, and became convinced in his own mind that he was personally instrumental for Garfield's victory.

Under this logic, Guiteau reckoned he had merited a high-level government job. He went to the capital and relentlessly pestered Garfield, Blaine and other leaders, demanding to be made the foreign service officer — a position for which he had no experience. He became such a nuisance that he was eventually prohibited from the White House.

The Assassination and Doctor Errors

On that fateful day, just several weeks into his presidency, Garfield was departing the capital for his educational gathering. As he moved through the Baltimore & Potomac Railroad station, Guiteau emerged from hiding, withdrew an handgun from his coat pocket and fired multiple rounds in the back.

Garfield cried out: “What's happening?” and collapsed on the waiting area. When a {police officer|law