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Throughout history, the family members of President Garfield shared stories about his remarkable life but avoided talking about his violent end. We understood what had happened, that he was assassinated in a railway depot,” notes one of his modern descendants. “We studied the story in historical accounts but, for various reasons, we just skimmed through it.”

Fresh Curiosity in a Forgotten President

This changed in 2011 with the issuing of Destiny of the Republic, which generated attention in Garfield's unfinished life. The publication has now resulted in a Netflix drama titled Death by Lightning, featuring a talented performer as the commander-in-chief and another skilled actor as the wanderer who shot him.

The series aims to shine a light on Garfield, who rose from poverty to the presidency during the Gilded Age only to fall victim to its toxic political divisions. His presidency was truncated after only several months not only by the killer's weapon but by doctor errors – an event now frequently ignored while the assassinations of Abraham Lincoln and John F Kennedy continue to fascinate 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 agriculturalist. He was so many things which also influenced his personality and how he was and the complete story about him the family carries down with us.”

Rising from Poverty to the Presidency

Garfield was the last president born in a log cabin in Ohio in 1831. His dad perished when he was just a toddler, leaving his mother, Eliza, to raise five children in challenging conditions. An voracious learner, Garfield worked on canal boats to generate income for an formal learning.

He learned legal principles, was ordained as minister, became president of Hiram College in Ohio and was a political representative. In 1858 he wed a educational contemporary, Lucretia Rudolph, with whom he would have seven children. An ardent Unionist, Garfield viewed the civil war as a holy crusade against slavery and advanced to the officer status.

“When I started researching him, I couldn't believe it. He was absolutely brilliant. He was fearless. He was innovative for the era. He was kind. He was a good person and would have been a remarkable commander-in-chief had he remained alive.”

Government Service and Shocking Selection

Garfield was persuaded by Lincoln to resign his military commission when he was chosen to the Congress, where he would serve as a party member for nearly two decades. He was strong supporter of African American voting rights, viewing it as a question of fairness and the fulfillment of a conflict agreement.

“The speech he gave on the legislative arena will tear your heart out. He was an impressive communicator and this topic was very important to him.”

At the 1880 Republican National Convention in Chicago the faction was fundamentally fractured between the “Stalwarts”, led by an influential figure, who supported a continued leadership for former president, and the “opposing faction”, who supported political contender. Garfield attended as a advocate of his close associate John Sherman.

When the 15,000-person convention was deadlocked between Grant and Blaine, delegates began seeking a middle ground. Garfield's impassioned speech supporting 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 extended selection process, a rush of supporters made Garfield the unexpected candidate. To appease the Stalwart faction, the vice presidential pick, a political ally from New York, was chosen as his second in command. In the national vote Garfield overcame the opposing candidate to become the sole representative of the House ever to be selected for the highest office.

Truncated Term and Political Battles

“His possible achievements and what is extremely rare and maybe special for the American presidency is he didn't want the job. It's not that he had completely dismissed it but he was thrust into it.”

The central struggle of Garfield's brief term was his disagreement with Conkling over the “patronage network”. Conkling insisted on authority over political positions in New York, particularly the prestigious role of customs official. Garfield declined, stating the issue was “concerning if the national leader becomes registering clerk of the senate or the executive of the United States”. He selected a opponent of Conkling to the post.

The conflict escalated into a public battle but Garfield outsmarted Conkling in the Senate. Experiencing a embarrassing loss, Conkling and his colleague quit Congress in protest. The next day, Garfield's nominee was ratified. It was a significant win for the executive authority over the political organization and for the change movement over “political control”.

The Assassin and His Mental Illness

But even as Garfield confronted influential people of his party, he was being pursued by a psychologically troubled person who embodied the dark side of the patronage system. Charles Guiteau was a drifter with a history of professional failures, mental instability and childhood trauma. He had been unsuccessful as a legal professional, financial agent, minister and member of a unconventional group.

“He was mentally ill and his specific type of insanity was fantasy. He always believed that religious calling for importance. He actually had financially a better start than Garfield but where Garfield succeeded and advanced, Guiteau failed at everything.”

But Guiteau believed he had at last discovered a pathway to success: politics. Carried away in the drama of the 1880 election, he created and presented an unimportant address, and became persuaded internally that he was solely accountable for Garfield's victory.

Under this reasoning, Guiteau reckoned he had earned a high-level government job. He journeyed to DC and relentlessly pestered Garfield, Blaine and other authorities, requiring to be made the foreign service officer — a role for which he had no experience. He became such a problem that he was eventually prohibited from the White House.

The Attack and Medical Malpractice

On the tragic date, just four months into his presidency, Garfield was leaving Washington for his alumni event. As he passed through the Baltimore & Potomac Railroad station, Guiteau stepped from the shadows, produced an ivory-handled British Bull Dog revolver from his coat pocket and fired multiple rounds in the back.

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