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Throughout history, the descendants of the 20th US president shared stories about his remarkable life but rarely mentioned his violent end. We understood what had happened, that he was shot in a transportation hub,” reflects one of his living relatives. “We studied the story in publications but, for various reasons, we just glanced over it.”

Revived Interest in a Overlooked Leader

This shifted in 2011 with the issuing of a presidential biography, which generated attention in Garfield's unfinished life. The publication has now led to a television production titled the historical drama, including an acclaimed actor as the national leader and Matthew Macfadyen as the unstable individual who gunned him down.

The series aims to highlight Garfield, who came from humble beginnings to the presidency during the Gilded Age only to become a casualty to its deep political rifts. His tenure was truncated after only 200 days not only by the gunman's shot but by doctor errors – an event now mostly overlooked while the killings of Abraham Lincoln and JFK continue to fascinate the public.

“You can't help but be proud what he did. He was incredibly versatile: he was a legal professional, he was a preacher, he was a agriculturalist. He was multiple professions which also influenced his personality and his behavior and everything that we know about him the family carries down with us.”

Rising from Poverty to the Presidency

Garfield was the last president coming from pioneer roots in the Midwest in 1831. His father died when he was very young, leaving his parent, Eliza, to care for multiple kids in difficult circumstances. An insatiable reader, Garfield found employment on vessels to make funds for an education.

He studied law, was ordained as minister, became president of Hiram College in Ohio and was a government official. In 1858 he wed a previous schoolmate, his partner, with whom he would have seven children. An passionate nationalist, Garfield viewed the civil war as a moral battle against human bondage and progressed to the officer status.

“As I studied his life, I found it incredible. He was remarkably smart. He was fearless. He was very progressive for the era. He was kind. He was a good person and would have been one of our great presidents had he remained alive.”

Public Life and Shocking Selection

Garfield was encouraged by President Lincoln to resign his military commission when he was elected to the legislative branch, where he would serve as a party member for 17 years. He was strong supporter of African American voting rights, viewing it as a matter of justice and the fulfillment of a wartime covenant.

“The speech he gave on the legislative arena will affect you emotionally. He was an remarkable speaker and this matter was extremely significant to him.”

At the 1880 Republican National Convention in Chicago the faction was deeply divided between the “Stalwarts”, led by an influential figure, who supported a continued leadership for military hero, and the “opposing faction”, who supported another candidate. Garfield attended as a supporter of his close associate John Sherman.

When the huge assembly was stalled between Grant and Blaine, representatives began looking for a middle ground. Garfield's emotional address proposing Sherman caught their attention. During the speech, he reportedly shouted, “And now, delegates, what do we want?” to which a audience member unexpectedly replied, “We want Garfield!”

On the extended selection process, a stampede of delegates made Garfield the unexpected candidate. To appease the Stalwart faction, the vice presidential pick, a Conkling loyalist from New York, was chosen as his vice president. In the presidential race Garfield beat the rival politician to become the only sitting member of the House ever to be chosen as leader.

Truncated Term and Political Battles

“Garfield's potential greatness and what is extremely rare and maybe unique to the American presidency is he hadn't campaigned aggressively. It's not that he had entirely ignored the possibility but he was forced into the role.”

The defining conflict of Garfield's brief term was his disagreement with Conkling over the “political favors”. Conkling required power over federal patronage in New York, particularly the powerful and lucrative post of port authority. Garfield declined, stating the issue was “if the commander-in-chief should be registering clerk of the senate or the nation's leader”. He selected a political foe of Conkling to the post.

The confrontation became a open fight but Garfield outsmarted Conkling in the Senate. Confronting a humiliating public defeat, Conkling and his colleague quit Congress in protest. The next day, Garfield's candidate was ratified. It was a historic triumph for the presidential control over the faction system and for the cause of reform over “political control”.

The Assassin and His Disturbed Mind

But even as Garfield battled the titans of his party, he was being stalked by a psychologically troubled person who embodied the dark side of the patronage system. The gunman was a unstable individual with a background of professional failures, psychological problems and physical and psychological abuse. He had failed as a lawyer, bill collector, preacher and member of a unconventional group.

“He was mentally ill and his unique form of delusion was fantasy. He always believed that God had chosen him for significance. He actually had more privileged beginning than Garfield but where Garfield achieved and rose, Guiteau failed at everything.”

But Guiteau believed he had finally found a route to achievement: politics. Carried away in the excitement of the 1880 election, he wrote and delivered an unimportant address, and became certain in his thoughts that he was solely accountable for Garfield's victory.

Under this reasoning, Guiteau reckoned he had deserved a high-level government job. He went to the capital and continuously bothered Garfield, Blaine and other leaders, demanding to be made the US consul in Paris — a role for which he had inadequate skills. He became such a annoyance that he was eventually banned from the White House.

The Assassination and Medical Malpractice

On 2 July 1881, just several weeks into his presidency, Garfield was departing the capital for his educational gathering. As he walked through the transportation center, Guiteau appeared suddenly, withdrew an weapon from his jacket and assassinated the leader in the back.

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