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Throughout history, the heirs of President Garfield shared stories about his remarkable life but seldom discussed his violent end. We were aware what had happened, that he was assassinated in a railway depot,” notes one of his modern descendants. “We learned about the story in historical accounts but, somehow, we just skimmed through it.”

Revived Interest in a Forgotten President

This transformed in 2011 with the release of Destiny of the Republic, which revived interest in Garfield's truncated career. The publication has now inspired a television production titled Death by Lightning, starring Michael Shannon as the national leader and Matthew Macfadyen as the drifter who assassinated him.

The series seeks to shine a light on Garfield, who rose from poverty to the presidency during the economic era only to become a casualty to its toxic political divisions. His presidency was truncated after only half a year not only by the assassin's bullet but by physician mistakes – an incident now largely forgotten while the killings of the Civil War president and JFK continue to fascinate the public.

“One cannot help but admire what he did. He was like a multi-threat: he was a lawyer, he was a minister, he was a land worker. He was so many things which also influenced his personality and his approach and the complete story about him the relatives maintain with us.”

Starting from Nothing to the Presidency

Garfield was the most recent commander-in-chief born in a log cabin in the Midwest in 1831. His dad perished when he was just a toddler, leaving his parent, Eliza, to raise five children in difficult circumstances. An voracious learner, Garfield worked on canal boats to generate income for an formal learning.

He pursued jurisprudence, was ordained as minister, became leader of an institution in Ohio and was a government official. In 1858 he married a previous schoolmate, his partner, with whom he would have a large family. An passionate nationalist, Garfield viewed the internal struggle as a moral battle against human bondage and rose to the rank of major general.

“As I studied his life, I was astonished. He was absolutely brilliant. He was incredibly brave. He was innovative for the period. He was kind. He was a decent human being and would have been one of our great presidents had he survived.”

Political Career and Shocking Selection

Garfield was convinced by the wartime leader to leave army service when he was chosen to the House of Representatives, where he would serve as a party member for nearly two decades. He was strong supporter of racial equality in elections, viewing it as a question of fairness and the realization of a military promise.

“The speech he gave on the floor of Congress will tear your heart out. He was an remarkable speaker and this issue was very important to him.”

At the 1880 Republican National Convention in Chicago the faction was deeply divided between the “Stalwarts”, led by Senator Roscoe Conkling, who supported a third term for former president, and the “Half-Breeds”, who supported political contender. Garfield attended as a backer of his friend and fellow Ohioan John Sherman.

When the massive gathering was deadlocked between Grant and Blaine, representatives began seeking a middle ground. Garfield's emotional address nominating Sherman caught their attention. During the speech, he reportedly declared, “And now, delegates, what do we want?” to which a audience member unexpectedly replied, “We want Garfield!”

On the multiple voting round, a stampede of delegates made Garfield the unexpected candidate. To appease the Stalwart faction, Chester Arthur, a Conkling loyalist from New York, was chosen as his vice president. In the national vote Garfield defeated the opposing candidate to become the only sitting member of the House ever to be selected for the highest office.

Short Presidency and Government Conflicts

“What would have made Garfield great and what is extremely rare 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 major battle of Garfield's limited administration was his confrontation with Conkling over the “spoils system”. Conkling insisted on authority over government appointments in New York, particularly the influential position of Collector of the Port of New York. Garfield declined, stating the issue was “concerning if the national leader becomes registering clerk of the senate or the presidential authority”. He nominated a opponent of Conkling to the post.

The conflict escalated into a open fight but Garfield outmaneuvered Conkling in the Senate. Facing a embarrassing loss, Conkling and his junior senator quit Congress in protest. The next day, Garfield's nominee was ratified. It was a landmark victory for the executive authority over the faction system and for the improvement efforts over “machine politics”.

The Killer and His Mental Illness

But even as Garfield battled the titans of his party, he was being followed by a disturbed and delusional man who exemplified the negative aspect of the political appointment process. The gunman was a unstable individual with a background of career disappointments, emotional issues and physical and psychological abuse. He had been unsuccessful as a lawyer, financial agent, minister and member of a alternative community.

“He was emotionally unstable and his specific type of insanity was false belief. He always believed that divine selection for greatness. He actually had financially a better start than Garfield but where Garfield succeeded and advanced, Guiteau could not accomplish anything.”

But Guiteau believed he had finally found a way to accomplishment: politics. Carried away in the events of the presidential race, he prepared and gave an insignificant speech, and became certain in his thoughts that he was personally instrumental for Garfield's victory.

Under this logic, Guiteau reckoned he had merited a high-level government job. He journeyed to DC and constantly harassed Garfield, Blaine and other officials, demanding to be made the diplomatic representative — a position for which he had inadequate skills. He became such a problem that he was eventually excluded from the White House.

The Attack and Physician Mistakes

On 2 July 1881, just several weeks into his presidency, Garfield was departing the capital for his alumni event. As he moved through the Baltimore & Potomac Railroad station, Guiteau stepped from the shadows, withdrew an weapon from his jacket and shot the president twice in the back.

Garfield exclaimed: “Why is this occurring?” and fell on the depot ground. When a {police officer|law