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Over many years, the family members of the 20th US president spoke proudly about his extraordinary achievements but avoided talking about his tragic assassination. “We knew what had happened, that he was gunned down in a train station,” explains one of his modern descendants. “We learned about the story in publications but, in one way or another, we just glanced over it.”

Renewed Attention in a Forgotten President

This shifted in 2011 with the issuing of Destiny of the Republic, which generated attention in Garfield's cut-short presidency. The book has now inspired a Netflix drama titled the presidential series, featuring Michael Shannon as the national leader and his co-star as the unstable individual who gunned him down.

The series promises to illuminate Garfield, who emerged from difficult circumstances to the White House during the Gilded Age only to become a casualty to its bitter partisan conflicts. His time in office was ended prematurely after only 200 days not only by the assassin's bullet but by physician mistakes – an incident now largely forgotten while the killings of Abraham Lincoln and John F Kennedy continue to captivate the public.

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

Rising from Poverty to the White House

Garfield was the most recent commander-in-chief coming from pioneer roots in the Midwest in 1831. His father died when he was very young, leaving his parent, Eliza, to care for multiple kids in hard times. An dedicated student, Garfield labored on waterways to generate income for an formal learning.

He studied law, was entered the clergy, became president of Hiram College in Ohio and was a political representative. In 1858 he married a previous schoolmate, his future wife, with whom he would have a large family. An dedicated federalist, Garfield viewed the civil war as a moral battle against forced servitude and rose to the officer status.

“As I studied his life, I found it incredible. He was exceptionally intelligent. He was incredibly brave. He was ahead of his time for the time. He was compassionate. He was a decent human being and would have been an outstanding leader had he survived.”

Public Life and Surprise Candidacy

Garfield was persuaded by President Lincoln to resign his military commission when he was chosen to the Congress, where he would work as a Republican for 17 years. He was strong supporter of African American voting rights, viewing it as a question of fairness and the realization of a military promise.

“The address he delivered on the House chamber will tear your heart out. He was an remarkable speaker and this matter was extremely significant to him.”

At the political assembly in Chicago the party was sharply split between the “political group”, led by an influential figure, who supported a third term for Ulysses S Grant, and the “opposing faction”, who supported political contender. Garfield attended as a supporter of his friend and fellow Ohioan John Sherman.

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

On the 36th ballot, a rush of supporters made Garfield the shocking choice. To satisfy the Stalwart faction, the vice presidential pick, a Conkling loyalist from New York, was chosen as his vice president. In the general election Garfield overcame the Democratic nominee to become the unique incumbent of the House ever to be elected president.

Brief Administration and Power Struggles

“Garfield's potential greatness and what is remarkably uncommon and maybe unique to the American presidency is he didn't want the job. It's not that he had completely dismissed it but he was forced into the role.”

The central struggle of Garfield's short presidency was his disagreement with Conkling over the “patronage network”. Conkling required power over federal patronage in New York, particularly the prestigious role of customs official. Garfield declined, stating the issue was “concerning if the national leader becomes registering clerk of the senate or the executive of the United States”. He proposed a political foe of Conkling to the post.

The confrontation turned into a visible struggle but Garfield defeated Conkling in the Senate. Confronting a embarrassing loss, Conkling and his colleague quit Congress in protest. The next day, Garfield's selection was approved. It was a historic triumph for the executive authority over the political organization and for the cause of reform over “political control”.

The Killer and His Mental Illness

But even as Garfield confronted influential people of his party, he was being stalked by a psychologically troubled person who represented the problematic element of the patronage system. The gunman was a unstable individual with a record of occupational setbacks, mental instability and childhood trauma. He had been unsuccessful as a legal professional, bill collector, preacher and member of a unconventional group.

“He was emotionally unstable and his particular brand of madness was fantasy. He always believed that God had chosen him for importance. He actually had superior economic background than Garfield but where Garfield achieved and rose, Guiteau could not accomplish anything.”

But Guiteau believed he had at last discovered a way to accomplishment: politics. Carried away in the excitement of the political contest, he created and presented an unimportant address, and became convinced in his own mind that he was personally instrumental for Garfield's victory.

Under this reasoning, Guiteau calculated he had earned a prestigious position. He went to the capital and relentlessly pestered Garfield, Blaine and other authorities, insisting to be made the foreign service officer — a post for which he had zero qualifications. He became such a problem that he was eventually excluded from the White House.

The Assassination and Physician Mistakes

On that fateful day, just several weeks into his presidency, Garfield was leaving Washington for his college reunion. As he moved through the Baltimore & Potomac Railroad station, Guiteau stepped from the shadows, pulled an weapon from his jacket and shot the president twice in the back.

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