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Over many years, the heirs of the 20th US president shared stories about his extraordinary achievements but avoided talking about his violent end. “We knew what had happened, that he was assassinated in a railway depot,” notes one of his living relatives. “We read about the story in books but, in one way or another, we just skimmed through it.”

Revived Interest in a Historical Figure

This transformed in 2011 with the issuing of Destiny of the Republic, which revived interest in Garfield's cut-short presidency. The book has now led to a Netflix drama titled the historical drama, including an acclaimed actor as the national leader and Matthew Macfadyen as the drifter who gunned him down.

The series promises to highlight Garfield, who emerged from difficult circumstances to the presidency during the economic era only to succumb to its bitter partisan conflicts. His presidency was ended prematurely after only several months not only by the assassin's bullet but by physician mistakes – an tragedy now mostly overlooked while the killings of Abraham Lincoln and JFK continue to intrigue the public.

“It's impossible not to respect what he did. He was a true polymath: he was a legal professional, he was a preacher, he was a agriculturalist. He was all of these things which also influenced his personality and how he was and everything that we know about him the relatives maintain 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 dad perished 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 generate income for an schooling.

He learned legal principles, was ordained as minister, became head of a school in Ohio and was a government official. In 1858 he married a educational contemporary, his partner, with whom he would have seven children. An ardent Unionist, 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 fearless. He was ahead of his time for the period. He was kind. He was a decent human being and would have been a remarkable commander-in-chief had he survived.”

Government Service and Surprise Candidacy

Garfield was persuaded by President Lincoln to depart military life when he was elected to the legislative branch, where he would function as a party member for nearly two decades. He was ardent advocate 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 legislative arena will tear your heart out. He was an impressive communicator and this topic was deeply meaningful to him.”

At the 1880 Republican National Convention in Chicago the party was sharply split between the “faction members”, led by an influential figure, who supported a additional presidency for Ulysses S Grant, and the “rival group”, who supported James G Blaine. Garfield attended as a advocate of his friend and fellow Ohioan John Sherman.

When the 15,000-person convention was deadlocked between Grant and Blaine, party members began seeking a middle ground. Garfield's impassioned speech proposing Sherman won them over. During the speech, he reportedly shouted, “And now, representatives, what do we want?” to which a audience member unexpectedly replied, “We want Garfield!”

On the multiple voting round, a rush of supporters made Garfield the surprise nominee. To appease the Stalwart faction, another politician, a faction member from New York, was chosen as his second in command. In the presidential race Garfield beat the Democratic nominee to become the only sitting member of the House ever to be selected for the highest office.

Truncated Term and Power Struggles

“Garfield's potential greatness and what is very unusual 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 forced into the role.”

The major battle of Garfield's short presidency was his disagreement with Conkling over the “spoils system”. Conkling insisted on authority over federal patronage in New York, particularly the prestigious role of Collector of the Port of New York. Garfield declined, stating the issue was “whether the president is registering clerk of the senate or the executive of the United States”. He proposed a political foe of Conkling to the post.

The conflict escalated into a public battle but Garfield defeated Conkling in the Senate. Confronting a public failure, Conkling and his junior senator quit Congress in protest. The next day, Garfield's selection was ratified. It was a landmark victory for the power of the presidency over the party machine and for the improvement efforts over “political control”.

The Assassin and His Psychological Issues

But even as Garfield fought powerful figures of his party, he was being stalked by a disturbed and delusional man who embodied the negative aspect of the spoils network. The assassin was a unstable individual with a background of occupational setbacks, mental instability and physical and psychological abuse. He had failed as a lawyer, financial agent, minister and member of a free-love commune.

“He was mentally ill and his particular brand of madness was false belief. He always believed that religious calling for greatness. He actually had more privileged beginning than Garfield but where Garfield succeeded and advanced, Guiteau failed at everything.”

But Guiteau believed he had finally found a route to achievement: politics. Carried away in the events of the 1880 election, he wrote and delivered an unimportant address, and became persuaded internally that he was single-handedly responsible for Garfield's victory.

Under this logic, Guiteau calculated he had merited a prestigious position. He went to the capital and continuously bothered Garfield, Blaine and other authorities, demanding to be made the foreign service officer — a role for which he had zero qualifications. He became such a nuisance that he was eventually excluded from the White House.

The Attack and Doctor Errors

On the tragic date, just four months into his presidency, Garfield was leaving Washington for his college reunion. As he walked through the Baltimore & Potomac Railroad station, Guiteau stepped from the shadows, produced an ivory-handled British Bull Dog revolver from his clothing and fired multiple rounds in the back.

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