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Throughout history, the family members of James Garfield spoke proudly about his remarkable life but seldom discussed his violent end. We understood what had happened, that he was gunned down in a transportation hub,” explains one of his family members. “We studied the story in publications but, somehow, we just skimmed through it.”

Revived Interest in a Historical Figure

This changed in 2011 with the issuing of Destiny of the Republic, which sparked curiosity in Garfield's truncated career. The publication has now led to a Netflix drama titled Death by Lightning, featuring a talented performer as the commander-in-chief and his co-star as the unstable individual who shot him.

The series aims to illuminate Garfield, who emerged from difficult circumstances to the White House during the historical period only to fall victim to its deep political rifts. His tenure was ended prematurely after only several months not only by the assassin's bullet but by physician mistakes – an tragedy now largely forgotten while the deaths of the Civil War president and JFK continue to fascinate the public.

“You can't help but be proud what he did. He was incredibly versatile: he was a legal professional, he was a minister, he was a land worker. He was all of these things which also influenced his personality and his approach and the complete story about him the descendants preserve 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 parent passed away when he was 18 months old, leaving his parent, Eliza, to support a large family in challenging conditions. An voracious learner, Garfield found employment on vessels to generate income for an schooling.

He pursued jurisprudence, was ordained as minister, became head of a school in Ohio and was a political representative. In 1858 he entered matrimony with a educational contemporary, his future wife, with whom he would have multiple offspring. An dedicated federalist, Garfield viewed the national conflict as a righteous fight against slavery and rose to the military position.

“When I started researching him, I found it incredible. He was absolutely brilliant. He was extremely courageous. He was ahead of his time for the era. He was kind. He was a moral individual and would have been one of our great presidents had he survived.”

Political Career and Surprise Candidacy

Garfield was encouraged by Lincoln to resign his military commission when he was chosen to the House of Representatives, where he would work as a party member for nearly two decades. He was dedicated proponent of black suffrage, viewing it as a issue of rights and the fulfillment of a military promise.

“His oration on the House chamber will affect you emotionally. He was an incredibly powerful orator and this topic was very important to him.”

At the political assembly in Chicago the faction was deeply divided between the “political group”, led by a powerful politician, who supported a additional presidency for military hero, and the “rival group”, who supported James G Blaine. Garfield attended as a supporter of his close associate John Sherman.

When the 15,000-person convention was gridlocked between Grant and Blaine, delegates began seeking a solution. Garfield's powerful oration proposing Sherman impressed them. During the speech, he reportedly declared, “And now, representatives, what do we want?” to which a voice from the crowd unexpectedly replied, “We want Garfield!”

On the multiple voting round, a wave of backers made Garfield the shocking choice. To satisfy the Stalwart faction, another politician, a faction member from New York, was chosen as his vice president. In the national vote Garfield defeated the opposing candidate to become the unique incumbent of the House ever to be selected for the highest office.

Truncated Term and Government Conflicts

“His possible achievements and what is remarkably uncommon and maybe particular about the American presidency is he didn't want the job. It's not that he had never thought about it but he was pushed toward it.”

The defining conflict of Garfield's brief term was his confrontation with Conkling over the “patronage network”. Conkling required power over government appointments 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 nation's leader”. He selected a political foe of Conkling to the post.

The dispute became a visible struggle but Garfield defeated Conkling in the Senate. Facing a embarrassing loss, Conkling and his associate left their positions in protest. The next day, Garfield's selection was confirmed. It was a landmark victory for the executive authority over the party machine and for the improvement efforts over “machine politics”.

The Gunman and His Psychological Issues

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 assassin was a drifter with a record of professional failures, mental instability and childhood trauma. He had been unsuccessful as a lawyer, financial agent, preacher and member of a free-love commune.

“He was psychologically disturbed and his particular brand of madness was delusion. He always believed that divine selection for significance. He actually had superior economic background than Garfield but where Garfield achieved and rose, Guiteau could not accomplish anything.”

But Guiteau believed he had finally found a way to accomplishment: politics. Carried away in the drama of the political contest, he created and presented an insignificant speech, and became persuaded internally that he was single-handedly responsible for Garfield's victory.

Under this thinking, Guiteau calculated he had merited a high-level government job. He journeyed to DC and continuously bothered Garfield, Blaine and other officials, requiring to be made the foreign service officer — a role for which he had inadequate skills. He became such a problem that he was eventually excluded from the White House.

The Attack and Medical Malpractice

On that fateful day, just a short time into his presidency, Garfield was leaving Washington for his alumni event. As he walked through the transportation center, Guiteau stepped from the shadows, produced an ivory-handled British Bull Dog revolver from his coat pocket and assassinated the leader in the back.

Garfield shouted: “Why is this occurring?” and dropped on the waiting area. When a {police officer|law