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Over many years, the descendants of James Garfield spoke proudly about his extraordinary achievements but seldom discussed his violent end. “We knew what had happened, that he was gunned down in a railway depot,” notes one of his modern descendants. “We learned about the story in historical accounts but, for various reasons, we just skimmed through it.”

Renewed Attention in a Historical Figure

This shifted in 2011 with the issuing of Destiny of the Republic, which revived interest in Garfield's unfinished life. This work has now resulted in a streaming series titled the historical drama, including an acclaimed actor as the commander-in-chief and another skilled actor as the drifter who gunned him down.

The series aims to illuminate Garfield, who emerged from difficult circumstances to the presidency during the economic era only to succumb to its bitter partisan conflicts. His tenure was truncated after only half a year not only by the assassin's bullet but by doctor errors – an tragedy now mostly overlooked while the assassinations of President Lincoln and John F Kennedy continue to intrigue the public.

“You can't help but be proud what he did. He was incredibly versatile: he was a lawyer, he was a preacher, he was a land worker. He was all of these things which also shaped who he was and his approach and everything that we know about him the family carries down with us.”

Starting from Nothing to the White House

Garfield was the most recent commander-in-chief born in a log cabin in the Midwest in 1831. His father died when he was 18 months old, leaving his mother, Eliza, to care for multiple kids in hard times. An insatiable reader, Garfield worked on canal boats to make funds for an schooling.

He learned legal principles, was entered the clergy, became head of a school in Ohio and was a state senator. In 1858 he married a previous schoolmate, his partner, with whom he would have multiple offspring. An ardent Unionist, Garfield viewed the internal struggle as a righteous fight against slavery and progressed to the military position.

“As I studied his life, I was astonished. He was remarkably smart. He was fearless. He was very progressive for the time. He was caring. He was a decent human being and would have been one of our great presidents had he survived.”

Political Career and Surprise Candidacy

Garfield was persuaded by Lincoln to leave army service when he was chosen to the legislative branch, where he would serve as a political representative for multiple terms. He was ardent advocate of racial equality in elections, viewing it as a issue of rights and the completion of a wartime covenant.

“The speech he gave on the legislative arena will affect you emotionally. He was an impressive communicator and this matter was deeply meaningful to him.”

At the party gathering in Chicago the faction was fundamentally fractured between the “Stalwarts”, led by a powerful politician, who supported a continued leadership for military hero, and the “rival group”, who supported James G Blaine. Garfield attended as a supporter of his state colleague John Sherman.

When the huge assembly was gridlocked between Grant and Blaine, representatives began seeking a middle ground. Garfield's impassioned speech proposing Sherman won them over. During the speech, he reportedly exclaimed, “And now, representatives, what do we want?” to which a audience member unexpectedly replied, “We want Garfield!”

On the multiple voting round, a stampede of delegates made Garfield the unexpected candidate. To satisfy the Stalwart faction, the vice presidential pick, a political ally from New York, was chosen as his second in command. In the presidential race Garfield overcame the rival politician to become the unique incumbent of the House ever to be elected president.

Truncated Term and Political Battles

“Garfield's potential greatness and what is extremely rare and maybe particular about 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 major battle of Garfield's limited administration was his clash with Conkling over the “political favors”. Conkling required power over political positions in New York, particularly the powerful and lucrative post of Collector of the Port of New York. Garfield refused, stating the issue was “whether the president is registering clerk of the senate or the executive of the United States”. He selected a opponent of Conkling to the post.

The confrontation escalated into a open fight but Garfield defeated Conkling in the Senate. Facing a embarrassing loss, Conkling and his junior senator quit Congress in protest. The next day, Garfield's candidate was ratified. It was a significant win for the executive authority over the faction system and for the improvement efforts over “political control”.

The Assassin and His Disturbed Mind

But even as Garfield confronted influential people of his party, he was being pursued by a psychologically troubled person who exemplified the dark side of the patronage system. The assassin was a unstable individual with a record of career disappointments, psychological problems and childhood trauma. He had not succeeded as a lawyer, financial agent, religious figure and member of a free-love commune.

“He was emotionally unstable and his particular brand of madness was delusion. He always believed that religious calling for importance. He actually had financially a better start 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 events of the political contest, he wrote and delivered an unimportant address, and became certain in his thoughts that he was single-handedly responsible for Garfield's victory.

Under this thinking, Guiteau determined he had merited a high-level government job. He journeyed to DC and relentlessly pestered Garfield, Blaine and other leaders, demanding to be made the foreign service officer — a role for which he had no experience. He became such a annoyance that he was eventually banned from the White House.

The Attack and Doctor Errors

On the tragic date, just four months into his presidency, Garfield was traveling from DC for his alumni event. As he moved through the transportation center, Guiteau stepped from the shadows, withdrew an ivory-handled British Bull Dog revolver from his clothing and shot the president twice in the back.

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