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For generations, the family members of President Garfield spoke proudly about his impressive career but rarely mentioned his tragic assassination. “We knew what had happened, that he was assassinated in a train station,” explains one of his modern descendants. “We read 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 publication of Destiny of the Republic, which sparked curiosity in Garfield's truncated career. The book has now led to a television production titled the presidential series, including Michael Shannon as the national leader and his co-star as the unstable individual who shot him.

The series aims to illuminate Garfield, who emerged from difficult circumstances to the presidency during the historical period only to succumb to its bitter partisan conflicts. His time in office was cut short after only half a year not only by the gunman's shot but by medical malpractice – an event now frequently ignored while the deaths of President Lincoln and JFK continue to captivate the public.

“It's impossible not to respect what he did. He was like a multi-threat: he was a lawyer, he was a minister, he was a land worker. He was multiple professions which also influenced his personality and his approach and the complete story about him the relatives maintain with us.”

Starting from Nothing to the White House

Garfield was the most recent commander-in-chief raised in rustic conditions in Cuyahoga County in 1831. His father died when he was 18 months old, leaving his parent, Eliza, to raise five children in hard times. An insatiable reader, Garfield found employment on vessels to generate income for an schooling.

He studied law, was entered the clergy, became leader of an institution in Ohio and was a government official. In 1858 he married a educational contemporary, his future wife, with whom he would have multiple offspring. An ardent Unionist, Garfield viewed the internal struggle as a holy crusade against slavery and rose to the officer status.

“During my investigation, I was astonished. He was absolutely brilliant. He was extremely courageous. He was very progressive for the period. He was kind. He was a good person and would have been an outstanding leader had he lived.”

Public Life and Shocking Selection

Garfield was convinced by President Lincoln to depart military life when he was chosen to the legislative branch, where he would serve as a Republican for nearly two decades. He was strong supporter of black suffrage, viewing it as a question of fairness and the completion of a conflict agreement.

“The speech he gave on the floor of Congress will tear your heart out. He was an incredibly powerful orator and this matter was deeply meaningful to him.”

At the political assembly in Chicago the party was fundamentally fractured between the “political group”, led by Senator Roscoe Conkling, who supported a continued leadership for Ulysses S Grant, and the “Half-Breeds”, who supported James G Blaine. Garfield attended as a supporter of his close associate John Sherman.

When the huge assembly was deadlocked between Grant and Blaine, delegates began looking for a solution. Garfield's emotional address nominating Sherman impressed them. During the speech, he reportedly exclaimed, “And now, delegates, what do we want?” to which a voice from the crowd unexpectedly replied, “We want Garfield!”

On the multiple voting round, a rush of supporters made Garfield the shocking choice. To appease the Stalwart faction, another politician, a Conkling loyalist from New York, was chosen as his second in command. In the general election Garfield defeated the opposing candidate to become the sole representative of the House ever to be elected president.

Short Presidency and Government Conflicts

“His possible achievements 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 completely dismissed it but he was thrust into it.”

The major battle of Garfield's limited administration was his clash with Conkling over the “political favors”. Conkling required power over government appointments in New York, particularly the prestigious role of customs official. Garfield declined, stating the issue was “if the commander-in-chief should be registering clerk of the senate or the executive of the United States”. He selected a rival of Conkling to the post.

The dispute turned into a public battle but Garfield outmaneuvered Conkling in the Senate. Confronting a embarrassing loss, Conkling and his junior senator quit Congress in protest. The next day, Garfield's candidate was approved. It was a historic triumph for the presidential control over the party machine and for the change movement over “machine politics”.

The Assassin and His Psychological Issues

But even as Garfield battled the titans of his party, he was being pursued by a mentally unstable individual who exemplified the problematic element of the political appointment process. The assassin was a unstable individual with a record of professional failures, mental instability and physical and psychological abuse. He had been unsuccessful as a legal professional, debt recovery agent, preacher and member of a unconventional group.

“He was emotionally unstable and his specific type of insanity was delusion. He always believed that divine selection for significance. 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. Caught up in the events of the political contest, he prepared and gave an minor oration, and became certain in his thoughts that he was solely accountable for Garfield's victory.

Under this reasoning, Guiteau reckoned he had deserved a prestigious position. He journeyed to DC and continuously bothered Garfield, Blaine and other authorities, insisting to be made the diplomatic representative — a position for which he had inadequate skills. He became such a annoyance that he was eventually excluded from the White House.

The Shooting and Physician Mistakes

On that fateful day, just four months into his presidency, Garfield was leaving Washington for his educational gathering. As he walked through the Baltimore & Potomac Railroad station, Guiteau appeared suddenly, withdrew an ivory-handled British Bull Dog revolver from his jacket and shot the president twice in the back.

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