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Over many years, the family members of President Garfield discussed openly about his remarkable life but rarely mentioned his tragic assassination. “We knew what had happened, that he was assassinated in a train station,” reflects one of his family members. “We read about the story in publications but, somehow, we just glanced over it.”

Fresh Curiosity in a Historical Figure

This changed in 2011 with the publication of a historical book, which sparked curiosity in Garfield's unfinished life. The publication has now inspired a television production titled the presidential series, starring an acclaimed actor as the commander-in-chief and his co-star as the unstable individual who gunned him down.

The series seeks to shine a light on Garfield, who emerged from difficult circumstances to the highest office during the economic era only to fall victim to its bitter partisan conflicts. His presidency was cut short after only several months not only by the assassin's bullet but by medical malpractice – an event now frequently ignored while the deaths of President Lincoln 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 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 all the information about him the descendants preserve with us.”

From Humble Beginnings to the White House

Garfield was the last president coming from pioneer roots in Cuyahoga County in 1831. His dad perished when he was 18 months old, leaving his mother, Eliza, to support a large family in difficult circumstances. An voracious learner, Garfield labored on waterways to earn money for an schooling.

He pursued jurisprudence, was ordained as minister, became leader of an institution in Ohio and was a state senator. In 1858 he married a educational contemporary, his future wife, with whom he would have seven children. An ardent Unionist, Garfield viewed the internal struggle as a holy crusade against slavery and progressed to the military position.

“When I started researching him, I found it incredible. He was absolutely brilliant. He was extremely courageous. He was innovative for the era. He was compassionate. 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 the wartime leader to resign his military commission when he was selected to the legislative branch, where he would work as a Republican for nearly two decades. He was ardent advocate of racial equality in elections, viewing it as a issue of rights and the completion 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 matter was very important to him.”

At the 1880 Republican National Convention in Chicago the faction was fundamentally fractured between the “faction members”, led by Senator Roscoe Conkling, who supported a continued leadership for Ulysses S Grant, and the “rival group”, who supported James G Blaine. Garfield attended as a backer of his friend and fellow Ohioan John Sherman.

When the huge assembly was deadlocked between Grant and Blaine, representatives began seeking a compromise. Garfield's emotional address proposing Sherman impressed them. During the speech, he reportedly shouted, “And now, representatives, what do we want?” to which a attendee unexpectedly replied, “We want Garfield!”

On the 36th ballot, a wave of backers made Garfield the surprise nominee. To placate the Stalwart faction, another politician, a faction member from New York, was chosen as his second in command. In the national vote Garfield defeated the Democratic nominee to become the unique incumbent of the House ever to be elected president.

Truncated Term and Political Battles

“What would have made Garfield great and what is very unusual and maybe special for the American presidency is he hadn't campaigned aggressively. It's not that he had never thought about it but he was pushed toward it.”

The major battle of Garfield's limited administration was his confrontation with Conkling over the “spoils system”. Conkling demanded control over political positions in New York, particularly the prestigious role of Collector of the Port of New York. Garfield rejected, stating the issue was “whether the president is registering clerk of the senate or the presidential authority”. He proposed a political foe of Conkling to the post.

The conflict turned into a public battle but Garfield outmaneuvered Conkling in the Senate. Facing a embarrassing loss, Conkling and his junior senator quit Congress in protest. The next day, Garfield's selection was ratified. It was a historic triumph for the presidential control over the political organization and for the improvement efforts over “machine politics”.

The Assassin and His Disturbed Mind

But even as Garfield battled the titans of his party, he was being followed by a mentally unstable individual who exemplified the negative aspect of the spoils network. The assassin was a wanderer with a background of professional failures, psychological problems and physical and psychological abuse. He had not succeeded as a legal professional, financial agent, preacher and member of a free-love commune.

“He was psychologically disturbed and his specific type of insanity was fantasy. He always believed that religious calling for importance. He actually had financially a better start than Garfield but where Garfield progressed and improved, Guiteau could not accomplish anything.”

But Guiteau believed he had at last discovered a way to accomplishment: politics. Carried away in the events 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 thinking, Guiteau reckoned he had merited a high-level government job. He travelled to Washington and continuously bothered Garfield, Blaine and other authorities, requiring to be made the US consul in Paris — a role for which he had zero qualifications. He became such a problem that he was eventually excluded from the White House.

The Shooting and Medical Malpractice

On 2 July 1881, just a short time into his presidency, Garfield was traveling from DC for his alumni event. As he walked through the train depot, Guiteau stepped from the shadows, produced an weapon from his coat pocket and fired multiple rounds in the back.

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