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Over many years, the family members of James Garfield shared stories about his extraordinary achievements but avoided talking about his violent end. We were aware what had happened, that he was assassinated in a railway depot,” notes one of his family members. “We studied the story in books but, for various reasons, we just skimmed through it.”

Revived Interest in a Overlooked Leader

This shifted in 2011 with the release of a presidential biography, which generated attention in Garfield's unfinished life. The book has now resulted in a Netflix drama titled the historical drama, featuring a talented performer as the president and Matthew Macfadyen as the unstable individual who shot him.

The series seeks to illuminate Garfield, who rose from poverty to the White House during the economic era only to fall victim to its bitter partisan conflicts. His time in office was truncated after only half a year not only by the assassin's bullet but by medical malpractice – an incident now mostly overlooked while the killings of Abraham Lincoln and President Kennedy continue to captivate the public.

“One cannot help but admire what he did. He was a true polymath: he was a lawyer, he was a minister, he was a agriculturalist. He was multiple professions which also influenced his personality and how he was and all the information about him the family carries down with us.”

From Humble Beginnings to the White House

Garfield was the most recent commander-in-chief born in a log cabin in Ohio in 1831. His parent passed away when he was very young, leaving his mom, Eliza, to support a large family in hard times. An insatiable reader, Garfield labored on waterways to generate income for an education.

He learned legal principles, was became a preacher, became head of a school in Ohio and was a government official. In 1858 he entered matrimony with a educational contemporary, his partner, with whom he would have multiple offspring. An ardent Unionist, Garfield viewed the civil war as a holy crusade against forced servitude and rose to the military position.

“When I started researching him, I couldn't believe it. He was absolutely brilliant. He was incredibly brave. He was very progressive for the time. He was kind. He was a good person and would have been an outstanding leader had he lived.”

Government Service and Surprise Candidacy

Garfield was encouraged by President Lincoln to leave army service when he was selected to the legislative branch, where he would function as a Republican for multiple terms. He was dedicated proponent of African American voting rights, 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 matter was deeply meaningful to him.”

At the 1880 Republican National Convention in Chicago the faction was deeply divided between the “political group”, led by a powerful politician, who supported a continued leadership for Ulysses S Grant, and the “rival group”, who supported another candidate. Garfield attended as a backer of his close associate John Sherman.

When the huge assembly was gridlocked between Grant and Blaine, representatives began looking for a compromise. Garfield's powerful oration proposing Sherman impressed them. During the speech, he reportedly shouted, “And now, delegates, 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 unexpected candidate. To placate the Stalwart faction, Chester Arthur, a Conkling loyalist from New York, was chosen as his vice president. In the general election Garfield defeated the rival politician to become the unique incumbent of the House ever to be chosen as leader.

Truncated Term and Power Struggles

“What would have made Garfield great and what is remarkably uncommon and maybe particular about the American presidency is he didn't want the job. It's not that he had completely dismissed it but he was forced into the role.”

The central struggle of Garfield's limited administration was his confrontation with Conkling over the “political favors”. Conkling insisted on authority over political positions in New York, particularly the prestigious role of port authority. Garfield rejected, stating the issue was “whether the president is registering clerk of the senate or the executive of the United States”. He proposed a opponent of Conkling to the post.

The dispute became a public battle but Garfield outmaneuvered Conkling in the Senate. Facing a embarrassing loss, Conkling and his associate resigned their seats in protest. The next day, Garfield's selection was confirmed. It was a significant win for the power of the presidency over the faction system and for the change movement over “machine politics”.

The Killer and His Mental Illness

But even as Garfield fought powerful figures of his party, he was being followed by a disturbed and delusional man who embodied the negative aspect of the political appointment process. The gunman was a wanderer with a record of professional failures, emotional issues and early life difficulties. He had been unsuccessful as a attorney, financial agent, religious figure and member of a alternative community.

“He was emotionally unstable and his particular brand of madness was fantasy. He always believed that religious calling for importance. He actually had more privileged beginning than Garfield but where Garfield succeeded and advanced, Guiteau was unsuccessful in all endeavors.”

But Guiteau believed he had eventually located a way to accomplishment: politics. Swept up in the drama of the 1880 election, 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 logic, Guiteau determined he had deserved a prestigious position. He travelled to Washington and relentlessly pestered Garfield, Blaine and other leaders, demanding to be made the foreign service officer — a post for which he had zero qualifications. He became such a nuisance that he was eventually prohibited from the White House.

The Assassination and Physician Mistakes

On the tragic date, just four months into his presidency, Garfield was traveling from DC for his educational gathering. As he moved through the transportation center, Guiteau emerged from hiding, produced an ivory-handled British Bull Dog revolver from his clothing and assassinated the leader in the back.

Garfield shouted: “Why is this occurring?” and fell on the depot ground. When a {police officer|law