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Over many years, the family members of the 20th US president discussed openly about his remarkable life but rarely mentioned his tragic assassination. “We knew what had happened, that he was gunned down in a train station,” explains one of his living relatives. “We studied the story in publications 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 sparked curiosity in Garfield's truncated career. The publication has now led to a Netflix drama titled Death by Lightning, starring a talented performer as the commander-in-chief and Matthew Macfadyen as the wanderer who shot him.

The series promises to highlight Garfield, who rose from poverty to the highest office during the economic era only to succumb to its toxic political divisions. His presidency was truncated after only several months not only by the killer's weapon but by medical malpractice – an event now frequently ignored while the assassinations of the Civil War president and John F Kennedy continue to captivate the public.

“One cannot help but admire what he did. He was like a multi-threat: he was a legal professional, he was a minister, he was a land worker. He was all of these things which also influenced his personality and his behavior and everything that we know about him the descendants preserve with us.”

From Humble Beginnings to the Highest Office

Garfield was the final national leader raised in rustic conditions in Cuyahoga County in 1831. His parent passed away when he was just a toddler, leaving his mother, Eliza, to raise five children in difficult circumstances. An insatiable reader, Garfield worked on canal boats to make funds for an schooling.

He learned legal principles, was ordained as minister, became leader of an institution in Ohio and was a state senator. In 1858 he married a educational contemporary, his future wife, with whom he would have multiple offspring. An passionate nationalist, Garfield viewed the internal struggle as a holy crusade against human bondage and advanced to the officer status.

“As I studied his life, I found it incredible. He was absolutely brilliant. He was fearless. He was very progressive for the period. He was kind. He was a good person and would have been an outstanding leader had he remained alive.”

Political Career and Shocking Selection

Garfield was persuaded by the wartime leader to resign his military commission when he was selected to the legislative branch, where he would function as a Republican for nearly two decades. He was ardent advocate of racial equality in elections, viewing it as a matter of justice and the fulfillment of a military promise.

“The speech he gave on the House chamber will affect you emotionally. He was an impressive communicator and this issue was very important to him.”

At the 1880 Republican National Convention in Chicago the faction was sharply split between the “faction members”, led by an influential figure, who supported a additional presidency for military hero, and the “Half-Breeds”, who supported James G Blaine. Garfield attended as a backer of his state colleague John Sherman.

When the massive gathering was stalled between Grant and Blaine, delegates began seeking a middle ground. Garfield's powerful oration proposing Sherman won them over. During the speech, he reportedly exclaimed, “And now, representatives, what do we want?” to which a attendee unexpectedly replied, “We want Garfield!”

On the 36th ballot, 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 vice president. In the general election Garfield defeated the rival politician to become the sole representative of the House ever to be chosen as leader.

Short Presidency and Political Battles

“His possible achievements and what is very unusual and maybe particular about the American presidency is he wasn't seeking the position. It's not that he had never thought about 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 required power over federal patronage in New York, particularly the powerful and lucrative post of port authority. Garfield declined, stating the issue was “if the commander-in-chief should be registering clerk of the senate or the executive of the United States”. He selected a political foe of Conkling to the post.

The confrontation turned into a visible struggle but Garfield outsmarted Conkling in the Senate. Confronting a embarrassing loss, Conkling and his colleague left their positions in protest. The next day, Garfield's selection was approved. It was a historic triumph for the presidential control over the faction system and for the improvement efforts over “machine politics”.

The Gunman and His Mental Illness

But even as Garfield fought powerful figures of his party, he was being followed by a mentally unstable individual who exemplified the dark side of the political appointment process. The gunman was a wanderer with a record of career disappointments, mental instability and childhood trauma. He had not succeeded as a legal professional, bill collector, preacher and member of a unconventional group.

“He was psychologically disturbed and his specific type of insanity was false belief. He always believed that religious calling for significance. He actually had superior economic background than Garfield but where Garfield achieved and rose, Guiteau was unsuccessful in all endeavors.”

But Guiteau believed he had finally found a route to achievement: politics. Carried away in the events of the political contest, he wrote and delivered an unimportant address, and became certain in his thoughts that he was solely accountable for Garfield's victory.

Under this logic, Guiteau reckoned he had deserved a important role. He travelled to Washington and continuously bothered Garfield, Blaine and other officials, 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 excluded from the White House.

The Shooting and Doctor Errors

On 2 July 1881, just several weeks into his presidency, Garfield was leaving Washington for his educational gathering. As he passed through the transportation center, Guiteau stepped from the shadows, withdrew an weapon from his coat pocket and shot the president twice in the back.

Garfield shouted: “My God, what is this?” and collapsed on the waiting area. When a {police officer|law