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Over many years, the descendants of James Garfield spoke proudly about his extraordinary achievements but rarely mentioned his violent end. We were aware what had happened, that he was assassinated in a railway depot,” reflects one of his modern descendants. “We read about the story in books but, in one way or another, we just glanced over it.”

Fresh Curiosity in a Forgotten President

This changed in 2011 with the issuing of Destiny of the Republic, which sparked curiosity in Garfield's cut-short presidency. The publication has now resulted in a streaming series titled the historical drama, featuring a talented performer as the national leader and another skilled actor as the drifter who gunned him down.

The series aims to illuminate Garfield, who came from humble beginnings to the White House during the historical period only to succumb to its bitter partisan conflicts. His tenure was truncated after only 200 days not only by the killer's weapon but by doctor errors – 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 attorney, he was a religious leader, he was a land worker. He was all of these things which also influenced his personality and how he was and all the information about him the family carries down with us.”

From Humble Beginnings to the Highest Office

Garfield was the most recent commander-in-chief raised in rustic conditions in Ohio in 1831. His father died when he was just a toddler, leaving his parent, Eliza, to care for multiple kids in hard times. An insatiable reader, Garfield found employment on vessels to make funds for an education.

He pursued jurisprudence, was ordained as minister, became leader of an institution in Ohio and was a government official. In 1858 he wed a former classmate, Lucretia Rudolph, with whom he would have seven children. An passionate nationalist, Garfield viewed the civil war as a holy crusade against slavery and rose to the military position.

“As I studied his life, I couldn't believe it. He was absolutely brilliant. He was incredibly brave. He was ahead of his time for the time. He was caring. He was a good person and would have been one of our great presidents had he survived.”

Government Service and Unexpected Nomination

Garfield was persuaded by the wartime leader to depart military life when he was elected to the House of Representatives, where he would serve as a political representative for multiple terms. He was dedicated proponent of African American voting rights, viewing it as a issue of rights and the completion of a conflict agreement.

“His oration on the House chamber will move you deeply. He was an impressive communicator and this topic was very important to him.”

At the party gathering in Chicago the faction was fundamentally fractured between the “faction members”, led by an influential figure, who supported a continued leadership for Ulysses S Grant, and the “opposing faction”, who supported political contender. Garfield attended as a advocate of his close associate John Sherman.

When the 15,000-person convention was stalled between Grant and Blaine, representatives began searching for a middle ground. Garfield's powerful oration nominating Sherman won them over. During the speech, he reportedly shouted, “And now, delegates, what do we want?” to which a voice from the crowd unexpectedly replied, “We want Garfield!”

On the extended selection process, a stampede of delegates made Garfield the shocking choice. To placate the Stalwart faction, the vice presidential pick, a political ally from New York, was chosen as his vice president. In the national vote Garfield overcame the Democratic nominee to become the sole representative of the House ever to be elected president.

Brief Administration and Government Conflicts

“His possible achievements and what is remarkably uncommon 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 thrust into it.”

The major battle of Garfield's brief term was his clash with Conkling over the “political favors”. Conkling required power over federal patronage in New York, particularly the powerful and lucrative post 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 executive of the United States”. He selected a political foe of Conkling to the post.

The dispute escalated into a visible struggle but Garfield outmaneuvered Conkling in the Senate. Facing a embarrassing loss, Conkling and his colleague left their positions in protest. The next day, Garfield's candidate was approved. It was a significant win for the power of the presidency over the party machine and for the improvement efforts over “machine politics”.

The Killer and His Disturbed Mind

But even as Garfield fought powerful figures of his party, he was being pursued by a mentally unstable individual who represented the problematic element of the spoils network. The assassin was a wanderer with a background of professional failures, mental instability and physical and psychological abuse. He had not succeeded as a attorney, financial agent, minister and member of a free-love commune.

“He was emotionally unstable and his particular brand of madness was false belief. 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 eventually located a route to achievement: politics. Swept up in the events of the 1880 election, he prepared and gave an insignificant speech, and became persuaded internally that he was single-handedly responsible for Garfield's victory.

Under this logic, Guiteau reckoned he had earned a important role. He journeyed to DC and relentlessly pestered Garfield, Blaine and other leaders, insisting to be made the US consul in Paris — a position for which he had no experience. He became such a problem that he was eventually banned from the White House.

The Shooting and Medical Malpractice

On that fateful day, just a short time into his presidency, Garfield was leaving Washington for his educational gathering. As he walked through the train depot, Guiteau appeared suddenly, produced an ivory-handled British Bull Dog revolver from his clothing and fired multiple rounds in the back.

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