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Throughout history, the family members of the 20th US president shared stories about his extraordinary achievements but rarely mentioned his tragic assassination. We understood what had happened, that he was shot in a railway depot,” explains one of his living relatives. “We studied the story in historical accounts but, in one way or another, we just skimmed through it.”

Renewed Attention in a Forgotten President

This shifted in 2011 with the issuing of Destiny of the Republic, which revived interest in Garfield's truncated career. The publication has now inspired a streaming series titled Death by Lightning, featuring Michael Shannon as the national leader and Matthew Macfadyen as the wanderer who assassinated him.

The series aims to illuminate Garfield, who rose from poverty to the White House during the historical period only to become a casualty to its bitter partisan conflicts. His tenure was ended prematurely after only 200 days not only by the assassin's bullet but by medical malpractice – an tragedy now frequently ignored while the assassinations 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 a true polymath: he was a legal professional, he was a preacher, he was a agriculturalist. He was so many things which also formed his character and his behavior and all the information about him the family carries down with us.”

Starting from Nothing to the White House

Garfield was the final national leader raised in rustic conditions in Ohio in 1831. His father died when he was just a toddler, leaving his mom, Eliza, to care for multiple kids in hard times. An dedicated student, Garfield worked on canal boats to generate income for an schooling.

He pursued jurisprudence, was entered the clergy, became head of a school in Ohio and was a political representative. In 1858 he wed a previous schoolmate, his future wife, with whom he would have seven children. An passionate nationalist, Garfield viewed the national conflict as a moral battle against forced servitude and progressed to the military position.

“As I studied his life, I was astonished. He was exceptionally intelligent. He was incredibly brave. He was ahead of his time for the era. He was compassionate. He was a decent human being and would have been one of our great presidents had he remained alive.”

Public Life and Surprise Candidacy

Garfield was convinced by Lincoln to leave army service when he was chosen to the legislative branch, where he would function as a Republican for nearly two decades. He was dedicated proponent of black suffrage, viewing it as a question of fairness and the fulfillment of a wartime covenant.

“The speech he gave on the floor of Congress will affect you emotionally. He was an remarkable speaker and this matter was very important to him.”

At the 1880 Republican National Convention in Chicago the party was deeply divided between the “faction members”, led by an influential figure, who supported a third term for military hero, and the “Half-Breeds”, who supported another candidate. Garfield attended as a advocate of his friend and fellow Ohioan John Sherman.

When the massive gathering was deadlocked between Grant and Blaine, party members began looking for a middle ground. Garfield's powerful oration proposing Sherman won them over. During the speech, he reportedly shouted, “And now, delegates, what do we want?” to which a attendee unexpectedly replied, “We want Garfield!”

On the multiple voting round, a wave of backers made Garfield the unexpected candidate. To appease the Stalwart faction, Chester Arthur, a faction member from New York, was chosen as his running mate. In the national vote Garfield defeated the Democratic nominee to become the sole representative of the House ever to be chosen as leader.

Short Presidency and Government Conflicts

“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 entirely ignored the possibility but he was thrust into it.”

The central struggle of Garfield's short presidency was his confrontation with Conkling over the “patronage network”. Conkling demanded control over political positions in New York, particularly the prestigious role of customs official. Garfield refused, 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 dispute turned into a visible struggle but Garfield outsmarted Conkling in the Senate. Experiencing a humiliating public defeat, Conkling and his associate left their positions 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 “political control”.

The Gunman and His Mental Illness

But even as Garfield battled the titans of his party, he was being pursued by a psychologically troubled person who embodied the dark side of the political appointment process. The gunman was a drifter with a history of occupational setbacks, psychological problems and childhood trauma. He had failed as a attorney, debt recovery agent, minister and member of a unconventional group.

“He was emotionally unstable and his specific type of insanity was fantasy. He always believed that religious calling for greatness. He actually had financially a better start than Garfield but where Garfield progressed and improved, Guiteau failed at everything.”

But Guiteau believed he had at last discovered a way to accomplishment: politics. Caught up in the excitement of the political contest, he created and presented an unimportant address, and became certain in his thoughts that he was solely accountable for Garfield's victory.

Under this logic, Guiteau calculated he had merited a high-level government job. He travelled to Washington and continuously bothered Garfield, Blaine and other officials, demanding to be made the foreign service officer — a position for which he had no experience. He became such a problem that he was eventually excluded from the White House.

The Shooting and Doctor Errors

On the tragic date, just four months into his presidency, Garfield was leaving Washington for his educational gathering. As he walked through the Baltimore & Potomac Railroad station, Guiteau emerged from hiding, 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 station floor. When a {police officer|law