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For generations, the descendants of James Garfield spoke proudly about his extraordinary achievements but seldom discussed his tragic assassination. We understood what had happened, that he was assassinated in a railway depot,” reflects one of his living relatives. “We read about the story in publications but, in one way or another, we just skimmed through it.”

Fresh Curiosity in a Historical Figure

This transformed in 2011 with the issuing of Destiny of the Republic, which revived interest in Garfield's unfinished life. This work has now led to a television production titled Death by Lightning, starring Michael Shannon as the national leader and Matthew Macfadyen as the wanderer who gunned him down.

The series aims to illuminate Garfield, who emerged from difficult circumstances to the presidency during the Gilded Age only to fall victim to its bitter partisan conflicts. His time in office was ended prematurely after only half a year not only by the assassin's bullet but by physician mistakes – an event now largely forgotten while the assassinations of the Civil War president and John F Kennedy continue to fascinate the public.

“One cannot help but admire what he did. He was incredibly versatile: he was a legal professional, he was a preacher, he was a land worker. He was multiple professions which also formed his character and his approach and the complete story about him the family carries down with us.”

Starting from Nothing to the Presidency

Garfield was the last president coming from pioneer roots in Ohio in 1831. His parent passed away when he was very young, leaving his mom, Eliza, to raise five children in challenging conditions. An voracious learner, Garfield found employment on vessels to make funds for an formal learning.

He learned legal principles, was entered the clergy, became president of Hiram College in Ohio and was a political representative. In 1858 he married a previous schoolmate, Lucretia Rudolph, with whom he would have seven children. An ardent Unionist, Garfield viewed the national conflict as a moral battle against human bondage and rose to the officer status.

“When I started researching him, I couldn't believe it. He was exceptionally intelligent. He was extremely courageous. He was ahead of his time for the era. He was caring. He was a good person and would have been one of our great presidents had he survived.”

Public Life and Surprise Candidacy

Garfield was encouraged by the wartime leader to resign his military commission when he was chosen to the Congress, where he would work as a Republican for multiple terms. He was ardent advocate of black suffrage, viewing it as a issue of rights and the completion of a military promise.

“His oration on the House chamber will tear your heart out. He was an remarkable speaker and this matter was very important to him.”

At the political assembly in Chicago the faction was fundamentally fractured between the “faction members”, led by a powerful politician, who supported a continued leadership for military hero, and the “rival group”, who supported political contender. Garfield attended as a backer of his friend and fellow Ohioan John Sherman.

When the massive gathering was gridlocked between Grant and Blaine, party members began looking for a middle ground. Garfield's powerful oration nominating Sherman caught their attention. During the speech, he reportedly exclaimed, “And now, representatives, what do we want?” to which a audience member unexpectedly replied, “We want Garfield!”

On the 36th ballot, a stampede of delegates made Garfield the unexpected candidate. To placate the Stalwart faction, another politician, a Conkling loyalist from New York, was chosen as his second in command. In the presidential race Garfield overcame the opposing candidate to become the only sitting member of the House ever to be selected for the highest office.

Brief Administration and Political Battles

“Garfield's potential greatness and what is remarkably uncommon 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 central struggle of Garfield's limited administration was his disagreement with Conkling over the “spoils system”. Conkling demanded control over political positions in New York, particularly the prestigious role of customs official. Garfield rejected, stating the issue was “concerning if the national leader becomes registering clerk of the senate or the executive of the United States”. He selected a opponent of Conkling to the post.

The conflict escalated into a open fight but Garfield defeated Conkling in the Senate. Confronting a humiliating public defeat, Conkling and his associate left their positions in protest. The next day, Garfield's candidate was approved. It was a landmark victory for the power of the presidency over the party machine and for the change movement over “boss rule”.

The Assassin and His Mental Illness

But even as Garfield battled the titans of his party, he was being followed by a mentally unstable individual who embodied the negative aspect of the patronage system. The assassin was a drifter with a background of career disappointments, mental instability and childhood trauma. He had failed as a attorney, debt recovery agent, minister and member of a free-love commune.

“He was mentally ill and his specific type of insanity was fantasy. He always believed that God had chosen him for importance. He actually had superior economic background than Garfield but where Garfield succeeded and advanced, Guiteau could not accomplish anything.”

But Guiteau believed he had finally found a way to accomplishment: politics. Carried away in the drama of the presidential race, he created and presented an unimportant address, and became convinced in his own mind that he was solely accountable for Garfield's victory.

Under this thinking, Guiteau determined he had deserved a prestigious position. He went to the capital and continuously bothered Garfield, Blaine and other authorities, insisting to be made the US consul in Paris — a position for which he had zero qualifications. He became such a problem that he was eventually banned from the White House.

The Assassination and Medical Malpractice

On that fateful day, just four months into his presidency, Garfield was departing the capital for his alumni event. As he passed through the train depot, Guiteau stepped from the shadows, withdrew an weapon from his clothing and shot the president twice in the back.

Garfield cried out: “My God, what is this?” and collapsed on the station floor. When a {police officer|law