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Over many years, the heirs of President Garfield spoke proudly about his extraordinary achievements but seldom discussed his violent end. We were aware what had happened, that he was gunned down in a railway depot,” explains one of his living relatives. “We studied the story in publications but, for various reasons, we just passed over it quickly.”

Revived Interest in a Forgotten President

This transformed in 2011 with the issuing of a historical book, which generated attention in Garfield's unfinished life. The publication has now led to a television production titled the historical drama, starring a talented performer as the national leader and another skilled actor as the wanderer who assassinated him.

The series promises to highlight Garfield, who emerged from difficult circumstances to the highest office during the Gilded Age only to become a casualty to its deep political rifts. His time in office was cut short after only 200 days not only by the gunman's shot but by physician mistakes – an tragedy now largely forgotten while the assassinations of President Lincoln and John F Kennedy 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 agriculturalist. He was so many things which also shaped who he was and his behavior and everything that we know about him the family carries down with us.”

Starting from Nothing to the Highest Office

Garfield was the last president coming from pioneer roots in Ohio in 1831. His dad perished when he was just a toddler, leaving his mom, Eliza, to care for multiple kids in difficult circumstances. An voracious learner, Garfield worked on canal boats to generate income for an education.

He studied law, was became a preacher, became head of a school in Ohio and was a government official. In 1858 he married a educational contemporary, Lucretia Rudolph, with whom he would have seven children. An dedicated federalist, Garfield viewed the national conflict as a righteous fight against slavery and advanced to the officer status.

“When I started researching him, I was astonished. He was exceptionally intelligent. He was extremely courageous. He was ahead of his time for the era. He was compassionate. He was a moral individual and would have been one of our great presidents had he survived.”

Government Service and Unexpected Nomination

Garfield was encouraged by President Lincoln to depart military life when he was elected to the House of Representatives, where he would function as a political representative for multiple terms. He was dedicated proponent of African American voting rights, viewing it as a matter of justice and the fulfillment of a wartime covenant.

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

At the 1880 Republican National Convention in Chicago the political organization was deeply divided between the “political group”, led by an influential figure, who supported a additional presidency for military hero, and the “opposing faction”, who supported James G Blaine. Garfield attended as a advocate of his friend and fellow Ohioan John Sherman.

When the huge assembly was deadlocked between Grant and Blaine, party members began seeking a middle ground. Garfield's powerful oration nominating Sherman impressed them. During the speech, he reportedly exclaimed, “And now, delegates, what do we want?” to which a attendee unexpectedly replied, “We want Garfield!”

On the extended selection process, a rush of supporters made Garfield the unexpected candidate. To appease the Stalwart faction, Chester Arthur, a political ally from New York, was chosen as his vice president. In the presidential race Garfield overcame the opposing candidate to become the sole representative of the House ever to be selected for the highest office.

Short Presidency and Political Battles

“His possible achievements and what is extremely rare and maybe particular about the American presidency is he hadn't campaigned aggressively. It's not that he had never thought about it but he was pushed toward it.”

The central struggle of Garfield's short presidency was his clash with Conkling over the “political favors”. Conkling required power over political positions in New York, particularly the prestigious role of port authority. Garfield refused, stating the issue was “concerning if the national leader becomes registering clerk of the senate or the nation's leader”. He proposed a opponent of Conkling to the post.

The confrontation became a public battle but Garfield outmaneuvered Conkling in the Senate. Facing a humiliating public defeat, Conkling and his junior senator resigned their seats in protest. The next day, Garfield's candidate was approved. It was a landmark victory for the power of the presidency over the faction system and for the change movement over “machine politics”.

The Killer and His Psychological Issues

But even as Garfield confronted influential people of his party, he was being followed by a mentally unstable individual who represented the negative aspect of the patronage system. The gunman was a wanderer with a record of professional failures, psychological problems and childhood trauma. He had been unsuccessful as a legal professional, bill collector, religious figure and member of a free-love commune.

“He was emotionally unstable and his unique form of delusion was false belief. He always believed that divine selection for significance. He actually had financially a better start than Garfield but where Garfield achieved and rose, Guiteau was unsuccessful in all endeavors.”

But Guiteau believed he had eventually located a pathway to success: politics. Swept up in the drama of the 1880 election, he wrote and delivered an insignificant speech, and became persuaded internally that he was personally instrumental for Garfield's victory.

Under this logic, Guiteau reckoned he had earned a high-level government job. He went to the capital and continuously bothered Garfield, Blaine and other leaders, requiring to be made the US consul in Paris — 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 the tragic date, just several weeks into his presidency, Garfield was leaving Washington for his educational gathering. As he moved through the train depot, Guiteau stepped from the shadows, produced an handgun from his jacket and assassinated the leader in the back.

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