🔗 Share this article

Over many years, the family members of President Garfield shared stories about his impressive career but avoided talking about his violent end. We were aware what had happened, that he was shot in a transportation hub,” reflects one of his modern descendants. “We read about the story in publications but, somehow, we just glanced over it.”

Fresh Curiosity in a Overlooked Leader

This transformed in 2011 with the release of Destiny of the Republic, which generated attention in Garfield's truncated career. The publication has now inspired a Netflix drama titled the historical drama, including an acclaimed actor as the president and Matthew Macfadyen as the unstable individual who assassinated him.

The series aims to shine a light on Garfield, who rose from poverty to the highest office during the Gilded Age only to become a casualty to its deep political rifts. His time in office was ended prematurely after only several months not only by the gunman's shot but by medical malpractice – an tragedy now mostly overlooked while the killings of President Lincoln and John F 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 legal professional, he was a religious leader, he was a agriculturalist. He was multiple professions which also shaped who he was and his approach and all the information about him the family carries down with us.”

Rising from Poverty to the White House

Garfield was the most recent commander-in-chief born in a log cabin in the Midwest in 1831. His father died when he was very young, leaving his mom, Eliza, to support a large family in challenging conditions. An insatiable reader, Garfield labored on waterways to generate income for an schooling.

He pursued jurisprudence, was became a preacher, 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 advanced to the officer status.

“During my investigation, I couldn't believe it. He was remarkably smart. He was incredibly brave. He was ahead of his time for the era. He was compassionate. He was a moral individual and would have been a remarkable commander-in-chief had he remained alive.”

Public Life and Surprise Candidacy

Garfield was persuaded by Lincoln to resign his military commission when he was elected to the House of Representatives, where he would serve as a party member for 17 years. 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 legislative arena will move you deeply. He was an remarkable speaker and this issue was deeply meaningful to him.”

At the 1880 Republican National Convention in Chicago the party was deeply divided between the “Stalwarts”, led by Senator Roscoe Conkling, who supported a third term for military hero, and the “opposing faction”, who supported James G Blaine. Garfield attended as a backer of his friend and fellow Ohioan John Sherman.

When the huge assembly was gridlocked between Grant and Blaine, representatives began searching for a middle ground. Garfield's powerful oration supporting Sherman impressed them. During the speech, he reportedly declared, “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 surprise nominee. To appease the Stalwart faction, another politician, a political ally from New York, was chosen as his second in command. In the national vote Garfield beat the Democratic nominee to become the sole representative of the House ever to be chosen as leader.

Brief Administration and Power Struggles

“Garfield's potential greatness and what is very unusual and maybe particular about the American presidency is he hadn't campaigned aggressively. It's not that he had never thought about it but he was forced into the role.”

The central struggle of Garfield's limited administration was his clash with Conkling over the “patronage network”. Conkling demanded control over political positions in New York, particularly the powerful and lucrative post of Collector of the Port of New York. Garfield refused, 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 outmaneuvered Conkling in the Senate. Confronting a humiliating public defeat, Conkling and his associate quit Congress in protest. The next day, Garfield's nominee was confirmed. It was a significant win for the power of the presidency over the party machine and for the change movement over “boss rule”.

The Gunman and His Disturbed Mind

But even as Garfield fought powerful figures of his party, he was being pursued by a disturbed and delusional man who exemplified the problematic element of the political appointment process. The assassin was a drifter with a history of professional failures, psychological problems and early life difficulties. He had been unsuccessful as a legal professional, debt recovery agent, preacher and member of a free-love commune.

“He was emotionally unstable and his particular brand of madness was delusion. He always believed that divine selection for significance. He actually had financially a better start than Garfield but where Garfield progressed and improved, Guiteau failed at everything.”

But Guiteau believed he had eventually located a pathway to success: politics. Carried away in the excitement of the 1880 election, he created and presented an insignificant speech, and became convinced in his own mind that he was solely accountable for Garfield's victory.

Under this reasoning, Guiteau determined he had merited a prestigious position. He journeyed to DC and relentlessly pestered Garfield, Blaine and other officials, insisting to be made the US consul in Paris — a position for which he had inadequate skills. He became such a nuisance that he was eventually prohibited from the White House.

The Assassination and Physician Mistakes

On 2 July 1881, just several weeks into his presidency, Garfield was leaving Washington for his alumni event. As he walked through the train depot, Guiteau appeared suddenly, produced an handgun from his coat pocket and shot the president twice in the back.

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