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For generations, the family members of the 20th US president discussed openly about his impressive career but seldom discussed his violent end. “We knew what had happened, that he was assassinated in a railway depot,” notes one of his living relatives. “We studied the story in publications but, somehow, we just passed over it quickly.”

Renewed Attention in a Overlooked Leader

This changed in 2011 with the release of a historical book, which revived interest in Garfield's truncated career. The publication has now resulted in a streaming series titled the presidential series, featuring a talented performer as the president and his co-star as the drifter who gunned him down.

The series promises to illuminate Garfield, who came from humble beginnings to the presidency during the economic era only to fall victim to its toxic political divisions. His presidency was ended prematurely after only 200 days not only by the killer's weapon but by medical malpractice – an tragedy now frequently ignored while the deaths of Abraham Lincoln and President Kennedy continue to intrigue 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 all of these things which also influenced his personality and his behavior and all the information about him the family carries down with us.”

From Humble Beginnings to the White House

Garfield was the final national leader raised in rustic conditions in Ohio in 1831. His father died when he was just a toddler, leaving his mom, Eliza, to care for multiple kids in hard times. An voracious learner, Garfield found employment on vessels to earn money for an formal learning.

He learned legal principles, was ordained as minister, became president of Hiram College in Ohio and was a political representative. In 1858 he married a educational contemporary, Lucretia Rudolph, with whom he would have seven children. An passionate nationalist, Garfield viewed the civil war as a moral battle against forced servitude and progressed to the officer status.

“As I studied his life, I was astonished. He was absolutely brilliant. He was fearless. He was very progressive for the time. He was kind. He was a good person and would have been an outstanding leader had he survived.”

Political Career and Surprise Candidacy

Garfield was convinced 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 nearly two decades. He was ardent advocate of racial equality in elections, viewing it as a matter of justice and the realization of a military promise.

“The address he delivered on the floor of Congress will tear your heart out. He was an impressive communicator and this topic was deeply meaningful to him.”

At the party gathering in Chicago the party was sharply split between the “political group”, led by an influential figure, who supported a additional presidency for Ulysses S Grant, and the “rival group”, who supported another candidate. 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 solution. Garfield's emotional address proposing Sherman impressed them. During the speech, he reportedly shouted, “And now, representatives, what do we want?” to which a attendee unexpectedly replied, “We want Garfield!”

On the extended selection process, a wave of backers made Garfield the shocking choice. To satisfy the Stalwart faction, the vice presidential pick, a faction member from New York, was chosen as his second in command. In the presidential race Garfield overcame the Democratic nominee to become the sole representative of the House ever to be elected president.

Brief Administration and Political Battles

“His possible achievements and what is extremely rare and maybe unique to the American presidency is he wasn't seeking the position. It's not that he had completely dismissed it but he was pushed toward it.”

The major battle of Garfield's brief term was his disagreement with Conkling over the “patronage network”. Conkling insisted on authority over federal patronage in New York, particularly the influential position of port authority. Garfield rejected, stating the issue was “concerning if the national leader becomes registering clerk of the senate or the nation's leader”. He selected a opponent of Conkling to the post.

The confrontation escalated into a public battle but Garfield outmaneuvered Conkling in the Senate. Confronting a humiliating public defeat, Conkling and his associate left their positions in protest. The next day, Garfield's nominee was approved. It was a significant win for the executive authority over the party machine and for the change movement over “political control”.

The Gunman and His Disturbed Mind

But even as Garfield battled the titans of his party, he was being pursued by a mentally unstable individual who exemplified the dark side of the patronage system. The gunman was a drifter with a background of occupational setbacks, psychological problems and early life difficulties. He had not succeeded as a legal professional, financial agent, preacher and member of a unconventional group.

“He was psychologically disturbed and his specific type of insanity was false belief. He always believed that divine selection for greatness. He actually had superior economic background than Garfield but where Garfield progressed and improved, Guiteau failed at everything.”

But Guiteau believed he had finally found a route to achievement: politics. Caught up in the excitement of the 1880 election, he created and presented an unimportant address, and became convinced in his own mind that he was single-handedly responsible for Garfield's victory.

Under this reasoning, Guiteau determined he had merited a prestigious position. He went to the capital and constantly harassed Garfield, Blaine and other officials, demanding to be made the diplomatic representative — 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 Medical Malpractice

On that fateful day, just several weeks into his presidency, Garfield was traveling from DC for his college reunion. As he passed through the Baltimore & Potomac Railroad station, Guiteau stepped from the shadows, withdrew an weapon from his coat pocket and fired multiple rounds in the back.

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