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For generations, the descendants of the 20th US president shared stories about his remarkable life but seldom discussed his violent end. We understood what had happened, that he was shot in a train station,” notes one of his living relatives. “We read about the story in historical accounts but, somehow, we just skimmed through it.”

Fresh Curiosity in a Forgotten President

This shifted in 2011 with the release of a historical book, which revived interest in Garfield's cut-short presidency. The publication has now inspired a television production titled Death by Lightning, starring an acclaimed actor as the commander-in-chief and his co-star as the unstable individual who shot him.

The series aims to highlight Garfield, who emerged from difficult circumstances to the White House during the Gilded Age only to succumb to its bitter partisan conflicts. His time in office was truncated after only half a year not only by the gunman's shot but by medical malpractice – an incident now mostly overlooked while the assassinations of Abraham Lincoln and JFK continue to intrigue the public.

“It's impossible not to respect what he did. He was incredibly versatile: he was a legal professional, he was a minister, he was a farmer. He was so many things which also formed his character and his approach and all the information about him the family carries down with us.”

Rising from Poverty to the Highest Office

Garfield was the most recent commander-in-chief raised in rustic conditions in the Midwest in 1831. His parent passed away when he was just a toddler, leaving his mother, Eliza, to care for multiple kids in challenging conditions. An insatiable reader, Garfield found employment on vessels to generate income for an formal learning.

He pursued jurisprudence, was ordained as minister, 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 seven children. An passionate nationalist, Garfield viewed the national conflict as a moral battle against forced servitude and progressed to the rank of major general.

“When I started researching him, I found it incredible. He was exceptionally intelligent. He was fearless. He was innovative for the period. He was compassionate. He was a moral individual and would have been one of our great presidents had he lived.”

Government Service and Unexpected Nomination

Garfield was persuaded by the wartime leader to resign his military commission when he was elected to the Congress, where he would serve as a Republican for nearly two decades. He was strong supporter of racial equality in elections, viewing it as a issue of rights and the fulfillment of a military promise.

“The speech he gave on the House chamber will affect you emotionally. He was an impressive communicator and this topic was extremely significant to him.”

At the party gathering in Chicago the political organization was fundamentally fractured between the “faction members”, led by a powerful politician, who supported a third term for former president, and the “Half-Breeds”, who supported another candidate. Garfield attended as a advocate of his friend and fellow Ohioan John Sherman.

When the 15,000-person convention was gridlocked between Grant and Blaine, representatives began seeking a middle ground. Garfield's powerful oration nominating Sherman caught their attention. During the speech, he reportedly shouted, “And now, delegates, what do we want?” to which a attendee unexpectedly replied, “We want Garfield!”

On the multiple voting round, a rush of supporters made Garfield the unexpected candidate. To placate the Stalwart faction, the vice presidential pick, a faction member from New York, was chosen as his running mate. In the presidential race Garfield defeated the rival politician to become the only sitting member of the House ever to be chosen as leader.

Brief Administration and Government Conflicts

“Garfield's potential greatness and what is extremely rare and maybe unique to the American presidency is he didn't want the job. It's not that he had never thought about it but he was thrust into it.”

The defining conflict of Garfield's limited administration was his disagreement with Conkling over the “spoils system”. Conkling demanded control over federal patronage in New York, particularly the prestigious role of customs official. Garfield refused, stating the issue was “if the commander-in-chief should be registering clerk of the senate or the executive of the United States”. He nominated a political foe of Conkling to the post.

The confrontation escalated into a visible struggle but Garfield outsmarted Conkling in the Senate. Facing a humiliating public defeat, Conkling and his junior senator resigned their seats in protest. The next day, Garfield's selection was ratified. It was a historic triumph for the executive authority over the political organization and for the cause of reform over “boss rule”.

The Killer and His Mental Illness

But even as Garfield fought powerful figures of his party, he was being followed by a psychologically troubled person who represented the negative aspect of the patronage system. Charles Guiteau was a unstable individual with a history of career disappointments, emotional issues and childhood trauma. He had been unsuccessful as a lawyer, bill collector, preacher and member of a alternative community.

“He was mentally ill and his specific type of insanity was delusion. He always believed that divine selection for importance. He actually had more privileged beginning than Garfield but where Garfield progressed and improved, Guiteau failed at everything.”

But Guiteau believed he had eventually located a way to accomplishment: politics. Swept up in the excitement of the 1880 election, he wrote and delivered an minor oration, and became convinced in his own mind that he was solely accountable for Garfield's victory.

Under this logic, Guiteau calculated he had deserved a prestigious position. He went to the capital and constantly harassed Garfield, Blaine and other officials, demanding to be made the foreign service officer — a post for which he had zero qualifications. He became such a annoyance that he was eventually excluded from the White House.

The Assassination and Physician Mistakes

On that fateful day, just a short time into his presidency, Garfield was leaving Washington for his educational gathering. As he passed through the Baltimore & Potomac Railroad station, Guiteau stepped from the shadows, produced an weapon from his clothing and fired multiple rounds in the back.

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