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Over many years, the descendants of President Garfield shared stories about his remarkable life but rarely mentioned his violent end. We understood what had happened, that he was assassinated in a transportation hub,” explains one of his living relatives. “We studied the story in books but, for various reasons, we just glanced over it.”

Renewed Attention in a Historical Figure

This changed in 2011 with the issuing of a historical book, which sparked curiosity in Garfield's cut-short presidency. This work has now led to a streaming series titled the historical drama, including Michael Shannon as the national leader and his co-star as the wanderer who assassinated him.

The series seeks to shine a light on Garfield, who came from humble beginnings to the presidency during the historical period only to become a casualty to its bitter partisan conflicts. His tenure was cut short after only 200 days not only by the killer's weapon but by medical malpractice – an incident now mostly overlooked while the killings of the Civil War president and JFK continue to captivate the public.

“You can't help but be proud what he did. He was like a multi-threat: he was a attorney, he was a preacher, he was a agriculturalist. He was so many things which also shaped who he was and how he was 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 just a toddler, leaving his parent, Eliza, to support a large family in hard times. An insatiable reader, Garfield worked on canal boats to earn money for an schooling.

He pursued jurisprudence, was became a preacher, became president of Hiram College in Ohio and was a government official. In 1858 he entered matrimony with a educational contemporary, Lucretia Rudolph, with whom he would have seven children. An passionate nationalist, Garfield viewed the internal struggle as a righteous fight against human bondage and progressed to the military position.

“When I started researching him, I found it incredible. He was remarkably smart. He was fearless. He was innovative for the period. He was caring. He was a moral individual and would have been one of our great presidents had he remained alive.”

Public Life and Surprise Candidacy

Garfield was convinced by the wartime leader to leave army service when he was selected to the House of Representatives, where he would work as a Republican for multiple terms. He was dedicated proponent of African American voting rights, viewing it as a question of fairness and the realization of a wartime covenant.

“The address he delivered on the legislative arena will move you deeply. He was an impressive communicator and this topic was deeply meaningful to him.”

At the 1880 Republican National Convention in Chicago the political organization was sharply split between the “Stalwarts”, led by Senator Roscoe Conkling, who supported a additional presidency for former president, and the “opposing faction”, who supported another candidate. Garfield attended as a supporter of his friend and fellow Ohioan John Sherman.

When the 15,000-person convention was deadlocked between Grant and Blaine, party members began looking for a compromise. Garfield's impassioned speech proposing Sherman caught their attention. During the speech, he reportedly declared, “And now, representatives, 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 satisfy the Stalwart faction, another politician, a political ally from New York, was chosen as his vice president. In the general election Garfield defeated the opposing candidate to become the sole representative of the House ever to be selected for the highest office.

Brief Administration and Government Conflicts

“What would have made Garfield great and what is very unusual 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 short presidency was his clash with Conkling over the “spoils system”. Conkling insisted on authority over government appointments in New York, particularly the powerful and lucrative post of Collector of the Port of New York. Garfield refused, stating the issue was “concerning if the national leader becomes registering clerk of the senate or the executive of the United States”. He selected a political foe of Conkling to the post.

The dispute escalated into a public battle but Garfield outsmarted Conkling in the Senate. Experiencing a public failure, Conkling and his associate resigned their seats in protest. The next day, Garfield's selection was approved. It was a historic triumph for the executive authority over the political organization and for the change movement over “machine politics”.

The Gunman and His Psychological Issues

But even as Garfield battled the titans of his party, he was being stalked by a disturbed and delusional man who exemplified the negative aspect of the patronage system. The assassin was a wanderer with a record of occupational setbacks, psychological problems and physical and psychological abuse. He had failed as a attorney, debt recovery agent, minister and member of a free-love commune.

“He was mentally ill and his unique form of delusion was delusion. He always believed that religious calling for greatness. He actually had more privileged beginning than Garfield but where Garfield achieved and rose, Guiteau could not accomplish anything.”

But Guiteau believed he had eventually located a route to achievement: politics. Carried away in the excitement of the political contest, he wrote and delivered an minor oration, and became convinced in his own mind that he was personally instrumental for Garfield's victory.

Under this reasoning, Guiteau determined he had merited a prestigious position. He went to the capital and relentlessly pestered Garfield, Blaine and other authorities, requiring to be made the foreign service officer — a post for which he had zero qualifications. He became such a annoyance that he was eventually prohibited from the White House.

The Shooting and Medical Malpractice

On 2 July 1881, just four months into his presidency, Garfield was departing the capital for his educational gathering. As he walked through the Baltimore & Potomac Railroad station, Guiteau stepped from the shadows, produced an handgun from his coat pocket and assassinated the leader in the back.

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