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For generations, the family members of President Garfield shared stories about his extraordinary achievements but seldom discussed his untimely death. “We knew what had happened, that he was assassinated in a railway depot,” reflects one of his living relatives. “We read about the story in books but, in one way or another, we just glanced over it.”

Fresh Curiosity in a Overlooked Leader

This transformed in 2011 with the issuing of a presidential biography, which revived interest in Garfield's cut-short presidency. The publication has now inspired a Netflix drama titled the historical drama, starring a talented performer as the national leader and his co-star as the wanderer who gunned him down.

The series seeks to illuminate Garfield, who emerged from difficult circumstances to the White House during the Gilded Age only to fall victim to its bitter partisan conflicts. His time in office was cut short after only several months not only by the assassin's bullet but by physician mistakes – an incident now frequently ignored while the killings of the Civil War president and President 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 minister, he was a farmer. He was multiple professions 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 Highest Office

Garfield was the final national leader coming from pioneer roots in Cuyahoga County in 1831. His dad perished when he was very young, leaving his parent, Eliza, to care for multiple kids in difficult circumstances. An voracious learner, Garfield worked on canal boats to earn money for an formal learning.

He pursued jurisprudence, was became a preacher, became head of a school in Ohio and was a government official. In 1858 he wed a educational contemporary, his partner, with whom he would have multiple offspring. An passionate nationalist, Garfield viewed the internal struggle as a moral battle against forced servitude and rose to the rank of major general.

“As I studied his life, I found it incredible. He was exceptionally intelligent. He was incredibly brave. He was ahead of his time for the era. He was caring. He was a moral individual and would have been an outstanding leader had he survived.”

Government Service and Shocking Selection

Garfield was persuaded by President Lincoln to resign his military commission when he was elected to the legislative branch, where he would function as a political representative for 17 years. He was strong supporter of racial equality in elections, viewing it as a issue of rights and the completion of a conflict agreement.

“The address he delivered on the House chamber will tear your heart out. He was an impressive communicator and this matter was extremely significant to him.”

At the party gathering in Chicago the faction was deeply divided between the “political group”, led by Senator Roscoe Conkling, who supported a third term for military hero, and the “rival group”, who supported political contender. Garfield attended as a backer of his state colleague John Sherman.

When the massive gathering was deadlocked between Grant and Blaine, delegates began looking for a compromise. Garfield's powerful oration nominating Sherman caught their attention. During the speech, he reportedly shouted, “And now, gentlemen of the convention, what do we want?” to which a attendee unexpectedly replied, “We want Garfield!”

On the multiple voting round, a rush of supporters 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 defeated the rival politician to become the sole representative of the House ever to be chosen as leader.

Brief Administration and Political Battles

“What would have made Garfield great and what is very unusual 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 pushed toward it.”

The defining conflict of Garfield's brief term was his confrontation with Conkling over the “spoils system”. Conkling insisted on authority over federal patronage 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 nation's leader”. He proposed a opponent of Conkling to the post.

The confrontation turned into a open fight but Garfield outmaneuvered Conkling in the Senate. Confronting a embarrassing loss, Conkling and his associate resigned their seats in protest. The next day, Garfield's selection was confirmed. It was a significant win for the executive authority over the party machine and for the improvement efforts over “machine politics”.

The Killer and His Psychological Issues

But even as Garfield confronted influential people of his party, he was being pursued by a psychologically troubled person who embodied the negative aspect of the patronage system. The assassin was a drifter with a background of career disappointments, emotional issues and childhood trauma. He had been unsuccessful as a legal professional, bill collector, preacher and member of a unconventional group.

“He was psychologically disturbed and his unique form of delusion was false belief. He always believed that God had chosen him for significance. He actually had more privileged beginning than Garfield but where Garfield succeeded and advanced, Guiteau was unsuccessful in all endeavors.”

But Guiteau believed he had at last discovered a way to accomplishment: politics. Caught up in the drama of the political contest, he created and presented an minor oration, and became persuaded internally that he was solely accountable for Garfield's victory.

Under this reasoning, Guiteau determined he had deserved a high-level government job. He travelled to Washington and constantly harassed Garfield, Blaine and other officials, demanding to be made the diplomatic representative — a post for which he had no experience. He became such a annoyance that he was eventually prohibited from the White House.

The Assassination and Physician Mistakes

On that fateful day, just four months into his presidency, Garfield was traveling from DC for his college reunion. As he passed through the Baltimore & Potomac Railroad station, Guiteau stepped from the shadows, withdrew an handgun from his jacket and fired multiple rounds in the back.

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