🔗 Share this article

Throughout history, the family members of James Garfield discussed openly about his remarkable life but avoided talking about his violent end. We understood what had happened, that he was shot in a train station,” explains one of his living relatives. “We read about the story in historical accounts but, somehow, we just passed over it quickly.”

Fresh Curiosity in a Forgotten President

This shifted in 2011 with the issuing of a presidential biography, which revived interest in Garfield's unfinished life. The book has now led to a television production titled the historical drama, including Michael Shannon as the president and his co-star as the unstable individual who shot him.

The series promises to shine a light on Garfield, who emerged from difficult circumstances to the White House during the Gilded Age only to become a casualty to its toxic political divisions. His tenure was truncated after only 200 days not only by the killer's weapon but by physician mistakes – an tragedy now mostly overlooked while the deaths of President Lincoln and President Kennedy continue to captivate the public.

“It's impossible not to respect what he did. He was a true polymath: he was a lawyer, he was a minister, he was a farmer. He was so many things which also shaped who he was and his behavior and everything that we know about him the family carries down with us.”

Rising from Poverty to the Presidency

Garfield was the most recent commander-in-chief born in a log cabin in the Midwest in 1831. His dad perished when he was very young, leaving his parent, Eliza, to care for multiple kids in hard times. An dedicated student, Garfield labored on waterways to generate income for an education.

He pursued jurisprudence, was became a preacher, became president of Hiram College in Ohio and was a political representative. In 1858 he entered matrimony with a former classmate, 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 progressed to the rank of major general.

“During my investigation, I couldn't believe it. He was remarkably smart. He was fearless. He was ahead of his time for the period. He was caring. He was a decent human being and would have been an outstanding leader had he survived.”

Public Life and Surprise Candidacy

Garfield was convinced by Lincoln to depart military life when he was chosen to the legislative branch, where he would function as a political representative for 17 years. He was strong supporter of racial equality in elections, viewing it as a question of fairness and the completion of a conflict agreement.

“The address he delivered on the House chamber will move you deeply. He was an incredibly powerful orator and this matter was extremely significant to him.”

At the political assembly in Chicago the political organization was sharply split between the “faction members”, led by a powerful politician, who supported a additional presidency for former president, and the “opposing faction”, who supported another candidate. Garfield attended as a backer of his friend and fellow Ohioan John Sherman.

When the huge assembly was gridlocked between Grant and Blaine, party members began looking for a compromise. Garfield's powerful oration supporting Sherman impressed them. During the speech, he reportedly declared, “And now, gentlemen of the convention, what do we want?” to which a attendee unexpectedly replied, “We want Garfield!”

On the 36th ballot, a rush of supporters made Garfield the shocking choice. To satisfy the Stalwart faction, the vice presidential pick, a Conkling loyalist from New York, was chosen as his running mate. In the general election Garfield beat the rival politician to become the only sitting member of the House ever to be elected president.

Brief Administration and Power Struggles

“His possible achievements and what is remarkably uncommon and maybe special for the American presidency is he didn't want the job. It's not that he had entirely ignored the possibility but he was forced into the role.”

The central struggle of Garfield's limited administration was his clash with Conkling over the “political favors”. Conkling insisted on authority over political positions in New York, particularly the powerful and lucrative post of Collector of the Port of New York. Garfield rejected, stating the issue was “concerning if the national leader becomes registering clerk of the senate or the presidential authority”. He proposed a opponent of Conkling to the post.

The dispute became a open fight but Garfield outmaneuvered Conkling in the Senate. Facing a public failure, Conkling and his associate quit Congress in protest. The next day, Garfield's nominee was confirmed. It was a landmark victory for the presidential control over the party machine and for the improvement efforts over “political control”.

The Assassin and His Mental Illness

But even as Garfield battled the titans of his party, he was being followed by a psychologically troubled person who exemplified the problematic element of the political appointment process. The assassin was a wanderer with a record of career disappointments, emotional issues and physical and psychological abuse. He had failed as a legal professional, financial agent, preacher and member of a free-love commune.

“He was emotionally unstable and his particular brand of madness was false belief. He always believed that divine selection for importance. He actually had financially a better start than Garfield but where Garfield achieved and rose, Guiteau failed at everything.”

But Guiteau believed he had finally found a route to achievement: politics. Carried away in the drama of the political contest, he wrote and delivered an insignificant speech, and became certain in his thoughts that he was single-handedly responsible for Garfield's victory.

Under this reasoning, Guiteau calculated he had earned a high-level government job. He went to the capital and constantly harassed 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 banned from the White House.

The Attack and Physician Mistakes

On that fateful day, just several weeks into his presidency, Garfield was leaving Washington for his educational gathering. As he passed through the train depot, Guiteau appeared suddenly, pulled an handgun from his clothing and fired multiple rounds in the back.

Garfield cried out: “My God, what is this?” and collapsed on the station floor. When a {police officer|law