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Throughout history, the family members of President Garfield spoke proudly about his remarkable life but rarely mentioned his tragic assassination. We understood what had happened, that he was assassinated in a railway depot,” reflects one of his living relatives. “We learned about the story in historical accounts but, in one way or another, we just skimmed through it.”

Renewed Attention in a Forgotten President

This changed in 2011 with the issuing of Destiny of the Republic, which revived interest in Garfield's truncated career. This work has now led to a Netflix drama titled the presidential series, featuring an acclaimed actor as the national leader and another skilled actor as the wanderer who assassinated him.

The series seeks to shine a light on Garfield, who came from humble beginnings to the White House during the historical period only to succumb to its bitter partisan conflicts. His tenure was cut short after only half a year not only by the gunman's shot but by physician mistakes – an event now largely forgotten while the deaths of President Lincoln and JFK continue to captivate the public.

“One cannot help but admire what he did. He was like a multi-threat: he was a lawyer, he was a minister, he was a farmer. He was all of these things which also shaped who he was and his approach and all the information about him the family carries down with us.”

Starting from Nothing to the Presidency

Garfield was the most recent commander-in-chief born in a log cabin in Ohio in 1831. His dad perished when he was just a toddler, leaving his parent, Eliza, to raise five children in hard times. An voracious learner, Garfield worked on canal boats to generate income for an schooling.

He learned legal principles, was entered the clergy, became leader of an institution in Ohio and was a government official. In 1858 he married a educational contemporary, Lucretia Rudolph, with whom he would have a large family. An passionate nationalist, Garfield viewed the national conflict as a holy crusade against forced servitude and rose to the rank of major general.

“As I studied his life, I found it incredible. He was exceptionally intelligent. He was extremely courageous. He was very progressive for the period. He was kind. He was a decent human being and would have been a remarkable commander-in-chief had he remained alive.”

Government Service and Unexpected Nomination

Garfield was encouraged by the wartime leader to leave army service when he was elected to the legislative branch, where he would function as a party member for nearly two decades. He was strong supporter of racial equality in elections, viewing it as a question of fairness and the fulfillment of a conflict agreement.

“His oration on the legislative arena will affect you emotionally. He was an incredibly powerful orator and this issue was extremely significant to him.”

At the party gathering in Chicago the party was fundamentally fractured between the “political group”, led by a powerful politician, who supported a third term for former president, and the “rival group”, who supported another candidate. Garfield attended as a advocate of his close associate John Sherman.

When the huge assembly was deadlocked between Grant and Blaine, delegates began seeking a solution. Garfield's emotional address nominating Sherman impressed them. During the speech, he reportedly exclaimed, “And now, delegates, what do we want?” to which a audience member unexpectedly replied, “We want Garfield!”

On the multiple voting round, a wave of backers made Garfield the unexpected candidate. To appease the Stalwart faction, the vice presidential pick, a Conkling loyalist from New York, was chosen as his vice president. In the national vote Garfield defeated the Democratic nominee to become the unique incumbent of the House ever to be selected for the highest office.

Truncated Term and Government Conflicts

“Garfield's potential greatness and what is extremely rare and maybe unique to the American presidency is he wasn't seeking the position. It's not that he had never thought about it but he was forced into the role.”

The defining conflict of Garfield's limited administration was his disagreement with Conkling over the “patronage network”. Conkling insisted on authority over government appointments in New York, particularly the powerful and lucrative post 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 rival of Conkling to the post.

The dispute escalated into a public battle but Garfield outmaneuvered Conkling in the Senate. Experiencing a public failure, Conkling and his associate resigned their seats in protest. The next day, Garfield's nominee was ratified. It was a significant win for the presidential control over the political organization and for the change movement over “machine politics”.

The Gunman and His Disturbed Mind

But even as Garfield battled the titans of his party, he was being followed by a psychologically troubled person who embodied the negative aspect of the political appointment process. Charles Guiteau was a drifter with a background of career disappointments, psychological problems and physical and psychological abuse. He had been unsuccessful as a legal professional, financial agent, preacher and member of a alternative community.

“He was psychologically disturbed and his particular brand of madness was false belief. He always believed that divine selection for significance. He actually had financially a better start than Garfield but where Garfield achieved and rose, Guiteau could not accomplish anything.”

But Guiteau believed he had finally found a way to accomplishment: politics. Swept up in the events of the 1880 election, he created and presented an minor oration, and became convinced in his own mind that he was single-handedly responsible for Garfield's victory.

Under this thinking, Guiteau calculated he had merited a important role. He went to the capital and constantly harassed Garfield, Blaine and other officials, requiring to be made the US consul in Paris — a post for which he had inadequate skills. He became such a nuisance that he was eventually excluded from the White House.

The Assassination and Doctor Errors

On that fateful day, just a short time into his presidency, Garfield was traveling from DC for his college reunion. As he walked through the train depot, Guiteau appeared suddenly, pulled an ivory-handled British Bull Dog revolver from his coat pocket and assassinated the leader in the back.

Garfield shouted: “What's happening?” and dropped on the station floor. When a {police officer|law