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Over many years, the heirs of James Garfield spoke proudly about his extraordinary achievements but seldom discussed his untimely death. We understood what had happened, that he was assassinated in a transportation hub,” reflects one of his living relatives. “We studied the story in books but, somehow, we just glanced over it.”

Revived Interest in a Overlooked Leader

This transformed in 2011 with the issuing of a presidential biography, which sparked curiosity in Garfield's unfinished life. The publication has now resulted in a television production titled the presidential series, including an acclaimed actor as the president and Matthew Macfadyen as the drifter who shot him.

The series promises to highlight Garfield, who rose from poverty to the White House during the Gilded Age only to become a casualty to its toxic political divisions. His time in office was truncated after only several months not only by the assassin's bullet but by physician mistakes – an event now largely forgotten while the deaths of the Civil War president and John F Kennedy continue to intrigue the public.

“It's impossible not to respect what he did. He was like a multi-threat: he was a attorney, he was a minister, he was a land worker. He was multiple professions which also formed his character and his approach and all the information about him the relatives maintain with us.”

Starting from Nothing to the Presidency

Garfield was the final national leader born in a log cabin in Cuyahoga County in 1831. His father died when he was 18 months old, leaving his mom, Eliza, to support a large family in hard times. An voracious learner, Garfield labored on waterways to earn money for an formal learning.

He pursued jurisprudence, was became a preacher, became leader of an institution in Ohio and was a government official. In 1858 he wed a former classmate, his future wife, with whom he would have multiple offspring. An dedicated federalist, Garfield viewed the national conflict as a moral battle against slavery and rose to the military position.

“As I studied his life, I found it incredible. He was absolutely brilliant. He was extremely courageous. He was very progressive for the period. He was compassionate. He was a decent human being and would have been one of our great presidents had he lived.”

Public Life and Unexpected Nomination

Garfield was encouraged by the wartime leader to leave army service when he was elected to the House of Representatives, where he would work as a Republican for 17 years. He was ardent advocate of racial equality in elections, viewing it as a question of fairness and the completion of a military promise.

“His oration on the House chamber will tear your heart out. He was an incredibly powerful orator and this matter was very important to him.”

At the political assembly in Chicago the faction was fundamentally fractured between the “Stalwarts”, led by a powerful politician, who supported a additional presidency for Ulysses S Grant, and the “Half-Breeds”, who supported political contender. Garfield attended as a backer of his state colleague John Sherman.

When the 15,000-person convention was stalled between Grant and Blaine, delegates began searching for a solution. Garfield's powerful oration proposing Sherman caught their attention. During the speech, he reportedly declared, “And now, delegates, what do we want?” to which a attendee unexpectedly replied, “We want Garfield!”

On the extended selection process, a wave of backers made Garfield the unexpected candidate. To appease the Stalwart faction, another politician, a faction member from New York, was chosen as his second in command. In the national vote Garfield beat the opposing candidate to become the sole representative of the House ever to be selected for the highest office.

Short Presidency and Political Battles

“What would have made Garfield great 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 entirely ignored the possibility but he was pushed toward it.”

The defining conflict of Garfield's limited administration was his confrontation with Conkling over the “patronage network”. Conkling required power over federal patronage in New York, particularly the influential position of port authority. Garfield rejected, 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 opponent of Conkling to the post.

The conflict turned into a visible struggle but Garfield outsmarted Conkling in the Senate. Confronting a humiliating public defeat, Conkling and his junior senator 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 cause of reform over “political control”.

The Gunman and His Psychological Issues

But even as Garfield battled the titans of his party, he was being pursued by a disturbed and delusional man who embodied the negative aspect of the spoils network. The gunman was a wanderer with a background of occupational setbacks, emotional issues and physical and psychological abuse. He had failed as a legal professional, financial agent, minister and member of a alternative community.

“He was emotionally unstable and his specific type of insanity was fantasy. He always believed that divine selection for importance. He actually had financially a better start than Garfield but where Garfield succeeded and advanced, Guiteau failed at everything.”

But Guiteau believed he had finally found a pathway to success: politics. Caught up in the drama of the political contest, he prepared and gave an insignificant speech, and became certain in his thoughts that he was personally instrumental for Garfield's victory.

Under this thinking, Guiteau reckoned he had earned a high-level government job. He went to the capital and continuously bothered Garfield, Blaine and other authorities, insisting to be made the diplomatic representative — a role for which he had no experience. He became such a problem that he was eventually banned from the White House.

The Assassination and Medical Malpractice

On the tragic date, just a short time into his presidency, Garfield was leaving Washington for his alumni event. As he walked through the transportation center, Guiteau emerged from hiding, produced an handgun from his jacket and fired multiple rounds in the back.

Garfield shouted: “What's happening?” and fell on the waiting area. When a {police officer|law