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Throughout history, the family members of James Garfield discussed openly about his impressive career but rarely mentioned his tragic assassination. “We knew what had happened, that he was shot in a transportation hub,” reflects one of his family members. “We studied the story in books but, somehow, we just glanced over it.”

Revived Interest in a Forgotten President

This shifted in 2011 with the release of a presidential biography, which revived interest in Garfield's cut-short presidency. This work has now resulted in a television production titled the historical drama, featuring Michael Shannon as the national leader and Matthew Macfadyen as the drifter who gunned him down.

The series aims to shine a light on Garfield, who emerged from difficult circumstances to the presidency during the economic era only to succumb to its deep political rifts. His tenure was cut short after only half a year not only by the assassin's bullet but by physician mistakes – an tragedy now mostly overlooked while the killings of the Civil War president and John F Kennedy continue to fascinate the public.

“It's impossible not to respect what he did. He was incredibly versatile: he was a lawyer, he was a minister, he was a agriculturalist. He was so many things which also influenced his personality and his behavior and all the information about him the descendants preserve with us.”

Starting from Nothing to the Highest Office

Garfield was the most recent commander-in-chief born in a log cabin in the Midwest in 1831. His parent passed away when he was just a toddler, leaving his mom, Eliza, to support a large family in hard times. An voracious learner, Garfield labored on waterways to make funds for an schooling.

He studied law, was ordained as minister, became leader of an institution 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 passionate nationalist, Garfield viewed the civil war as a righteous fight against human bondage and progressed to the officer status.

“During my investigation, I couldn't believe it. He was exceptionally intelligent. He was incredibly brave. He was very progressive for the period. He was caring. He was a moral individual and would have been a remarkable commander-in-chief had he survived.”

Government Service and Unexpected Nomination

Garfield was encouraged by the wartime leader to leave army service when he was chosen to the House of Representatives, where he would serve as a political representative for 17 years. He was ardent advocate of racial equality in elections, viewing it as a matter of justice and the realization of a military promise.

“The speech he gave on the legislative arena will tear your heart out. He was an incredibly powerful orator and this issue was deeply meaningful to him.”

At the political assembly in Chicago the faction was sharply split between the “political group”, led by Senator Roscoe Conkling, who supported a third term for Ulysses S Grant, and the “rival group”, who supported another candidate. Garfield attended as a advocate of his close associate John Sherman.

When the 15,000-person convention was stalled between Grant and Blaine, delegates began looking for a compromise. Garfield's emotional address nominating Sherman caught their attention. During the speech, he reportedly declared, “And now, delegates, what do we want?” to which a voice from the crowd unexpectedly replied, “We want Garfield!”

On the 36th ballot, a stampede of delegates made Garfield the shocking choice. To satisfy the Stalwart faction, the vice presidential pick, a Conkling loyalist from New York, was chosen as his second in command. In the general election Garfield defeated the opposing candidate to become the only sitting member of the House ever to be selected for the highest office.

Brief Administration and Government Conflicts

“Garfield's potential greatness 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 short presidency was his disagreement with Conkling over the “patronage network”. Conkling demanded control over political positions in New York, particularly the influential position of customs official. Garfield declined, stating the issue was “if the commander-in-chief should be registering clerk of the senate or the nation's leader”. He proposed a rival of Conkling to the post.

The conflict escalated into a visible struggle but Garfield defeated Conkling in the Senate. Facing a public failure, Conkling and his junior senator quit Congress in protest. The next day, Garfield's nominee was ratified. It was a significant win for the power of the presidency over the party machine and for the cause of reform over “boss rule”.

The Assassin and His Disturbed Mind

But even as Garfield fought powerful figures of his party, he was being pursued by a psychologically troubled person who embodied the negative aspect of the political appointment process. The assassin was a drifter with a background of career disappointments, mental instability and early life difficulties. He had not succeeded as a lawyer, financial agent, preacher and member of a free-love commune.

“He was mentally ill and his specific type of insanity was false belief. He always believed that God had chosen him for significance. He actually had superior economic background 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 excitement of the presidential race, he prepared and gave an minor oration, and became certain in his thoughts that he was single-handedly responsible for Garfield's victory.

Under this thinking, Guiteau calculated he had earned a high-level government job. He went to the capital and relentlessly pestered Garfield, Blaine and other leaders, demanding 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 Attack and Medical Malpractice

On that fateful day, just four months into his presidency, Garfield was traveling from DC for his alumni event. As he moved through the train depot, Guiteau stepped from the shadows, pulled an handgun from his coat pocket and fired multiple rounds in the back.

Garfield exclaimed: “What's happening?” and dropped on the depot ground. When a {police officer|law