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Over many years, the descendants of the 20th US president discussed openly about his impressive career but rarely mentioned his untimely death. “We knew what had happened, that he was assassinated in a train station,” explains one of his modern descendants. “We read about the story in publications but, somehow, we just passed over it quickly.”

Revived Interest in a Overlooked Leader

This shifted in 2011 with the issuing of a presidential biography, which revived interest in Garfield's truncated career. The book has now led to a Netflix drama titled the historical drama, featuring a talented performer as the president and Matthew Macfadyen as the drifter who gunned him down.

The series aims to illuminate Garfield, who came from humble beginnings to the highest office during the historical period only to succumb to its deep political rifts. His time in office was cut short after only 200 days not only by the killer's weapon but by doctor errors – an tragedy now mostly overlooked while the deaths of President Lincoln and President Kennedy continue to captivate the public.

“You can't help but be proud what he did. He was incredibly versatile: he was a attorney, he was a religious leader, he was a farmer. 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 last president born in a log cabin in Cuyahoga County in 1831. His father died when he was very young, leaving his parent, Eliza, to raise five children in difficult circumstances. An insatiable reader, Garfield labored on waterways to generate income for an formal learning.

He pursued jurisprudence, was became a preacher, became leader of an institution in Ohio and was a government official. In 1858 he entered matrimony with a previous schoolmate, his partner, with whom he would have multiple offspring. An passionate nationalist, Garfield viewed the civil war as a righteous fight against slavery and progressed to the rank of major general.

“As I studied his life, I was astonished. He was absolutely brilliant. He was fearless. He was very progressive 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 Shocking Selection

Garfield was convinced by the wartime leader to resign his military commission when he was selected to the House of Representatives, where he would function as a political representative for nearly two decades. He was ardent advocate of African American voting rights, viewing it as a matter of justice and the realization of a conflict agreement.

“The address he delivered on the House chamber will tear your heart out. He was an incredibly powerful orator and this issue was extremely significant 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 former president, and the “rival group”, who supported political contender. Garfield attended as a supporter of his state colleague John Sherman.

When the 15,000-person convention was deadlocked between Grant and Blaine, party members began looking for a compromise. Garfield's impassioned speech nominating Sherman caught their attention. During the speech, he reportedly declared, “And now, delegates, what do we want?” to which a voice from the crowd unexpectedly replied, “We want Garfield!”

On the multiple voting round, a stampede of delegates made Garfield the surprise nominee. To appease the Stalwart faction, Chester Arthur, a political ally from New York, was chosen as his vice president. In the general election Garfield defeated the opposing candidate to become the only sitting member of the House ever to be elected president.

Truncated Term and Political Battles

“His possible achievements and what is very unusual and maybe particular about 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 major battle of Garfield's short presidency was his clash with Conkling over the “spoils system”. Conkling demanded control over federal patronage in New York, particularly the powerful and lucrative post of port authority. Garfield refused, stating the issue was “whether the president is registering clerk of the senate or the executive of the United States”. He nominated a political foe of Conkling to the post.

The conflict turned into a visible struggle but Garfield outmaneuvered Conkling in the Senate. Facing a humiliating public defeat, Conkling and his colleague left their positions in protest. The next day, Garfield's selection was approved. It was a landmark victory for the power of the presidency over the party machine and for the cause of reform over “boss rule”.

The Killer and His Disturbed Mind

But even as Garfield confronted influential people of his party, he was being pursued by a psychologically troubled person who represented the problematic element of the patronage system. Charles Guiteau was a wanderer with a background of professional failures, mental instability and childhood trauma. He had been unsuccessful as a legal professional, debt recovery agent, religious figure and member of a unconventional group.

“He was psychologically disturbed and his unique form of delusion was fantasy. 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 pathway to success: politics. Carried away in the events of the presidential race, he prepared and gave an insignificant speech, and became convinced in his own mind that he was single-handedly responsible for Garfield's victory.

Under this thinking, Guiteau reckoned he had deserved a important role. He journeyed to DC and constantly harassed Garfield, Blaine and other authorities, insisting to be made the US consul in Paris — a post for which he had no experience. He became such a problem that he was eventually excluded from the White House.

The Attack and Physician Mistakes

On the tragic date, just four months into his presidency, Garfield was departing the capital for his alumni event. As he moved through the Baltimore & Potomac Railroad station, Guiteau stepped from the shadows, pulled an handgun from his coat pocket and fired multiple rounds in the back.

Garfield cried out: “What's happening?” and dropped on the station floor. When a {police officer|law