🔗 Share this article

Throughout history, the descendants of James Garfield discussed openly about his remarkable life but seldom discussed his untimely death. We understood what had happened, that he was assassinated in a transportation hub,” reflects one of his living relatives. “We studied the story in publications but, for various reasons, we just passed over it quickly.”

Revived Interest in a Forgotten President

This shifted in 2011 with the release of a presidential biography, which sparked curiosity in Garfield's cut-short presidency. The book has now led to a television production titled Death by Lightning, featuring Michael Shannon as the commander-in-chief and Matthew Macfadyen as the drifter who gunned him down.

The series promises to highlight Garfield, who rose from poverty to the presidency during the Gilded Age only to become a casualty to its toxic political divisions. His tenure was ended prematurely after only 200 days not only by the assassin's bullet but by medical malpractice – an tragedy now largely forgotten while the assassinations of the Civil War president and John F Kennedy continue to fascinate the public.

“One cannot help but admire what he did. He was a true polymath: he was a legal professional, he was a minister, he was a land worker. He was so many things which also shaped who he was and how he was 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 raised in rustic conditions in Ohio in 1831. His father died when he was 18 months old, leaving his mother, Eliza, to support a large family in challenging conditions. An dedicated student, Garfield worked on canal boats to earn money for an education.

He studied law, was ordained as minister, became head of a school in Ohio and was a state senator. In 1858 he entered matrimony with a previous schoolmate, Lucretia Rudolph, with whom he would have a large family. An dedicated federalist, 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 innovative for the time. He was compassionate. He was a moral individual and would have been an outstanding leader had he lived.”

Public Life and Shocking Selection

Garfield was encouraged by the wartime leader to depart military life when he was chosen to the House of Representatives, where he would serve as a Republican for 17 years. He was strong supporter of racial equality in elections, viewing it as a matter of justice and the completion of a wartime covenant.

“The address he delivered on the legislative arena will move you deeply. He was an impressive communicator and this issue was extremely significant to him.”

At the party gathering in Chicago the political organization was sharply split between the “political group”, led by an influential figure, who supported a third term for Ulysses S Grant, and the “opposing faction”, who supported another candidate. Garfield attended as a advocate of his state colleague John Sherman.

When the huge assembly was gridlocked between Grant and Blaine, party members began seeking a compromise. Garfield's impassioned speech proposing Sherman won them over. During the speech, he reportedly exclaimed, “And now, representatives, what do we want?” to which a audience member unexpectedly replied, “We want Garfield!”

On the 36th ballot, a stampede of delegates made Garfield the shocking choice. To satisfy the Stalwart faction, Chester Arthur, a faction member from New York, was chosen as his second in command. In the presidential race Garfield beat the opposing candidate to become the only sitting member of the House ever to be selected for the highest office.

Brief Administration and Political Battles

“What would have made Garfield great and what is remarkably uncommon and maybe particular about the American presidency is he hadn't campaigned aggressively. It's not that he had completely dismissed it but he was forced into the role.”

The central struggle of Garfield's limited administration was his clash with Conkling over the “political favors”. Conkling insisted on authority over government appointments in New York, particularly the prestigious role of Collector of the Port of New York. Garfield refused, stating the issue was “if the commander-in-chief should be registering clerk of the senate or the nation's leader”. He proposed a opponent of Conkling to the post.

The dispute escalated into a open fight but Garfield outsmarted Conkling in the Senate. Experiencing a humiliating public defeat, Conkling and his junior senator left their positions in protest. The next day, Garfield's candidate was confirmed. It was a significant win for the power of the presidency over the political organization and for the improvement efforts over “political control”.

The Killer and His Psychological Issues

But even as Garfield fought powerful figures of his party, he was being stalked by a disturbed and delusional man who exemplified the dark side of the patronage system. The assassin was a wanderer with a record of professional failures, emotional issues and childhood trauma. He had been unsuccessful as a attorney, financial agent, religious figure and member of a alternative community.

“He was emotionally unstable and his specific type of insanity was delusion. He always believed that divine selection for importance. He actually had financially a better start than Garfield but where Garfield progressed and improved, 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 1880 election, he wrote and delivered an minor oration, and became convinced in his own mind that he was personally instrumental for Garfield's victory.

Under this logic, Guiteau reckoned he had earned a prestigious position. He went to the capital and relentlessly pestered Garfield, Blaine and other leaders, demanding to be made the foreign service officer — a position for which he had no experience. He became such a nuisance that he was eventually excluded from the White House.

The Assassination and Physician Mistakes

On 2 July 1881, just a short time into his presidency, Garfield was departing the capital for his alumni event. As he walked through the train depot, Guiteau stepped from the shadows, produced an ivory-handled British Bull Dog revolver from his clothing and assassinated the leader in the back.

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