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For generations, the family members of the 20th US president shared stories about his impressive career but avoided talking about his tragic assassination. We understood what had happened, that he was gunned down in a train station,” notes one of his living relatives. “We learned about the story in publications but, in one way or another, we just glanced over it.”

Renewed Attention in a Historical Figure

This shifted in 2011 with the issuing of a historical book, which revived interest in Garfield's truncated career. The publication has now inspired a streaming series titled the presidential series, including an acclaimed actor as the commander-in-chief and his co-star as the unstable individual who gunned him down.

The series aims to highlight Garfield, who rose from poverty to the highest office during the Gilded Age only to become a casualty to its deep political rifts. His presidency was truncated after only several months not only by the killer's weapon but by medical malpractice – an tragedy now frequently ignored while the killings of Abraham Lincoln and JFK continue to fascinate the public.

“It's impossible not to respect what he did. He was like a multi-threat: he was a attorney, he was a religious leader, he was a farmer. He was multiple professions which also formed his character and his approach and everything that we know about him the family carries down with us.”

Starting from Nothing to the Highest Office

Garfield was the final national leader born in a log cabin in the Midwest in 1831. His parent passed away when he was just a toddler, leaving his mother, Eliza, to care for multiple kids in challenging conditions. An voracious learner, Garfield worked on canal boats to make funds for an schooling.

He learned legal principles, was became a preacher, became head of a school in Ohio and was a political representative. In 1858 he married a former classmate, Lucretia Rudolph, with whom he would have seven children. An dedicated federalist, Garfield viewed the civil war as a holy crusade against human bondage and rose to the rank of major general.

“As I studied his life, I was astonished. He was exceptionally intelligent. He was extremely courageous. He was innovative for the period. He was compassionate. He was a moral individual and would have been one of our great presidents had he survived.”

Government Service and Unexpected Nomination

Garfield was persuaded by Lincoln to resign his military commission when he was chosen to the Congress, where he would serve as a Republican for multiple terms. He was strong supporter of black suffrage, viewing it as a matter of justice and the fulfillment of a conflict agreement.

“The address he delivered on the floor of Congress will affect you emotionally. He was an remarkable speaker and this matter was extremely significant to him.”

At the party gathering in Chicago the party was sharply split between the “faction members”, led by an influential figure, who supported a third term for military hero, and the “opposing faction”, who supported James G Blaine. Garfield attended as a advocate of his close associate John Sherman.

When the 15,000-person convention was stalled between Grant and Blaine, party members began seeking a solution. Garfield's emotional address nominating Sherman impressed them. During the speech, he reportedly shouted, “And now, delegates, what do we want?” to which a attendee unexpectedly replied, “We want Garfield!”

On the extended selection process, a stampede of delegates made Garfield the shocking choice. To satisfy the Stalwart faction, the vice presidential pick, a faction member from New York, was chosen as his running mate. In the national vote Garfield beat the opposing candidate to become the sole representative of the House ever to be selected for the highest office.

Brief Administration and Government Conflicts

“His possible achievements and what is very unusual and maybe unique to the American presidency is he hadn't campaigned aggressively. It's not that he had completely dismissed it but he was pushed toward it.”

The defining conflict of Garfield's limited administration was his clash with Conkling over the “patronage network”. Conkling required power over federal patronage in New York, particularly the powerful and lucrative post of port authority. Garfield refused, stating the issue was “concerning if the national leader becomes registering clerk of the senate or the presidential authority”. He nominated a rival of Conkling to the post.

The conflict turned into a open fight but Garfield defeated Conkling in the Senate. Experiencing a public failure, Conkling and his associate left their positions in protest. The next day, Garfield's selection was ratified. It was a historic triumph for the power of the presidency over the party machine and for the change movement over “political control”.

The Assassin and His Mental Illness

But even as Garfield confronted influential people of his party, he was being stalked by a disturbed and delusional man who exemplified the negative aspect of the political appointment process. The assassin was a unstable individual with a history of occupational setbacks, mental instability and early life difficulties. He had failed as a legal professional, bill collector, preacher and member of a free-love commune.

“He was emotionally unstable and his unique form of delusion was false belief. He always believed that divine selection for significance. He actually had superior economic background than Garfield but where Garfield achieved and rose, Guiteau could not accomplish anything.”

But Guiteau believed he had at last discovered a way to accomplishment: politics. Carried away in the excitement of the 1880 election, he created and presented an unimportant address, and became convinced in his own mind that he was solely accountable for Garfield's victory.

Under this thinking, Guiteau calculated he had deserved a prestigious position. He travelled to Washington and constantly harassed Garfield, Blaine and other authorities, insisting to be made the foreign service officer — a position for which he had inadequate skills. He became such a problem that he was eventually prohibited from the White House.

The Shooting and Medical Malpractice

On that fateful day, just a short time into his presidency, Garfield was departing the capital for his college reunion. As he passed through the train depot, Guiteau emerged from hiding, pulled an ivory-handled British Bull Dog revolver from his coat pocket and assassinated the leader in the back.

Garfield cried out: “My God, what is this?” and dropped on the depot ground. When a {police officer|law