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Throughout history, the descendants of the 20th US president shared stories about his extraordinary achievements but rarely mentioned his tragic assassination. We understood what had happened, that he was assassinated in a train station,” reflects one of his modern descendants. “We studied the story in books but, somehow, we just glanced over it.”

Revived Interest in a Forgotten President

This transformed in 2011 with the issuing of Destiny of the Republic, which generated attention in Garfield's cut-short presidency. This work has now led to a television production titled the presidential series, featuring an acclaimed actor as the president and another skilled actor as the drifter who assassinated him.

The series aims to shine a light on Garfield, who rose from poverty to the White House during the historical period only to become a casualty to its toxic political divisions. His time in office was ended prematurely after only half a year not only by the killer's weapon but by doctor errors – an event now frequently ignored while the killings of President Lincoln and President Kennedy continue to captivate the public.

“It's impossible not to respect what he did. He was incredibly versatile: he was a lawyer, he was a preacher, he was a agriculturalist. He was so many things which also influenced his personality and his approach and everything that we know about him the relatives maintain with us.”

Starting from Nothing to the White House

Garfield was the final national leader born in a log cabin in Cuyahoga County in 1831. His dad perished when he was 18 months old, leaving his parent, Eliza, to support a large family in hard times. An dedicated student, Garfield labored on waterways to earn money for an education.

He learned legal principles, was ordained as minister, became leader of an institution in Ohio and was a political representative. In 1858 he entered matrimony with a former classmate, Lucretia Rudolph, with whom he would have a large family. An passionate nationalist, Garfield viewed the civil war as a righteous fight against human bondage and advanced to the rank of major general.

“As I studied his life, I was astonished. He was absolutely brilliant. He was extremely courageous. He was very progressive for the time. He was kind. He was a moral individual and would have been an outstanding leader had he lived.”

Public Life and Unexpected Nomination

Garfield was persuaded by President Lincoln to leave army service when he was elected to the House of Representatives, where he would serve as a political representative for multiple terms. He was ardent advocate of black suffrage, viewing it as a issue of rights and the realization of a wartime covenant.

“The address he delivered on the floor of Congress will move you deeply. He was an impressive communicator and this matter was extremely significant to him.”

At the 1880 Republican National Convention in Chicago the political organization was fundamentally fractured between the “political group”, led by Senator Roscoe Conkling, who supported a additional presidency for former president, and the “Half-Breeds”, who supported James G Blaine. Garfield attended as a backer of his close associate John Sherman.

When the 15,000-person convention was gridlocked between Grant and Blaine, delegates began searching for a middle ground. Garfield's powerful oration proposing Sherman caught their attention. During the speech, he reportedly exclaimed, “And now, gentlemen of the convention, what do we want?” to which a audience member unexpectedly replied, “We want Garfield!”

On the multiple voting round, a wave of backers made Garfield the surprise nominee. To placate the Stalwart faction, the vice presidential pick, a political ally from New York, was chosen as his second in command. In the general election Garfield beat the Democratic nominee to become the sole representative of the House ever to be elected president.

Truncated Term and Political Battles

“Garfield's potential greatness and what is very unusual and maybe special for the American presidency is he wasn't seeking the position. It's not that he had entirely ignored the possibility but he was forced into the role.”

The central struggle of Garfield's limited administration was his disagreement with Conkling over the “patronage network”. Conkling insisted on authority over federal patronage in New York, particularly the powerful and lucrative post of Collector of the Port of New York. Garfield refused, stating the issue was “concerning if the national leader becomes registering clerk of the senate or the presidential authority”. He selected a rival of Conkling to the post.

The conflict escalated into a open fight but Garfield outmaneuvered Conkling in the Senate. Experiencing a public failure, Conkling and his associate quit Congress in protest. The next day, Garfield's candidate was approved. It was a historic triumph for the power of the presidency over the party machine and for the cause of reform over “boss rule”.

The Gunman and His Mental Illness

But even as Garfield fought powerful figures of his party, he was being pursued by a psychologically troubled person who represented the dark side of the spoils network. The assassin was a drifter with a record of occupational setbacks, psychological problems and early life difficulties. He had failed as a attorney, debt recovery agent, religious figure and member of a unconventional group.

“He was emotionally unstable and his unique form of delusion 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 could not accomplish anything.”

But Guiteau believed he had finally found a route to achievement: politics. Caught up in the events of the 1880 election, he wrote and delivered an unimportant address, and became convinced in his own mind that he was solely accountable for Garfield's victory.

Under this reasoning, Guiteau determined he had deserved a high-level government job. He travelled to Washington and continuously bothered Garfield, Blaine and other leaders, demanding to be made the diplomatic representative — a role for which he had zero qualifications. He became such a problem that he was eventually prohibited from the White House.

The Shooting and Doctor Errors

On the tragic date, just a short time into his presidency, Garfield was leaving Washington for his alumni event. As he walked through the train depot, Guiteau emerged from hiding, produced an ivory-handled British Bull Dog revolver from his clothing and assassinated the leader in the back.

Garfield shouted: “What's happening?” and dropped on the depot ground. When a {police officer|law