🔗 Share this article

Over many years, the heirs of the 20th US president shared stories about his extraordinary achievements but rarely mentioned his untimely death. We understood what had happened, that he was gunned down in a train station,” notes one of his modern descendants. “We studied the story in historical accounts but, for various reasons, we just passed over it quickly.”

Renewed Attention in a Forgotten President

This transformed in 2011 with the publication of Destiny of the Republic, which revived interest in Garfield's cut-short presidency. The publication has now led to a streaming series titled Death by Lightning, starring a talented performer as the president and another skilled actor as the unstable individual who shot him.

The series promises to illuminate Garfield, who came from humble beginnings to the White House during the Gilded Age only to succumb to its deep political rifts. His tenure was truncated after only 200 days not only by the gunman's shot but by medical malpractice – an incident now largely forgotten while the assassinations of President Lincoln and President Kennedy continue to fascinate the public.

“You can't help but be proud what he did. He was a true polymath: he was a lawyer, he was a religious leader, he was a farmer. He was all of these things which also influenced his personality and his behavior and everything that we know about him the relatives maintain with us.”

Rising from Poverty to the White House

Garfield was the most recent commander-in-chief coming from pioneer roots in the Midwest in 1831. His father died when he was very young, leaving his mother, Eliza, to raise five children in difficult circumstances. An dedicated student, Garfield found employment on vessels to earn money for an formal learning.

He learned legal principles, was ordained as minister, became head of a school in Ohio and was a state senator. In 1858 he wed a former classmate, Lucretia Rudolph, with whom he would have a large family. An ardent Unionist, Garfield viewed the civil war as a holy crusade against slavery and advanced to the officer status.

“As I studied his life, I was astonished. He was absolutely brilliant. He was incredibly brave. He was innovative for the era. He was caring. He was a moral individual and would have been an outstanding leader had he survived.”

Public Life and Surprise Candidacy

Garfield was convinced by Lincoln to leave army service when he was elected to the Congress, where he would work as a political representative for multiple terms. He was strong supporter of racial equality in elections, viewing it as a matter of justice and the fulfillment of a military promise.

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

At the party gathering in Chicago the party was fundamentally fractured between the “Stalwarts”, led by an influential figure, who supported a third term for Ulysses S Grant, and the “opposing faction”, who supported another candidate. Garfield attended as a backer of his state colleague John Sherman.

When the 15,000-person convention was deadlocked between Grant and Blaine, representatives began seeking a compromise. Garfield's impassioned speech supporting Sherman caught their attention. During the speech, he reportedly exclaimed, “And now, gentlemen of the convention, what do we want?” to which a attendee unexpectedly replied, “We want Garfield!”

On the multiple voting round, a wave of backers made Garfield the shocking choice. To appease the Stalwart faction, Chester Arthur, a Conkling loyalist from New York, was chosen as his second in command. In the general election Garfield overcame the Democratic nominee to become the sole representative of the House ever to be chosen as leader.

Short Presidency and Political Battles

“Garfield's potential greatness and what is very unusual and maybe unique to the American presidency is he wasn't seeking the position. It's not that he had entirely ignored the possibility but he was pushed toward it.”

The major battle of Garfield's limited administration was his clash with Conkling over the “political favors”. Conkling insisted on authority 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 “whether the president is registering clerk of the senate or the executive of the United States”. He selected a opponent of Conkling to the post.

The confrontation escalated into a public battle but Garfield defeated Conkling in the Senate. Facing a embarrassing loss, Conkling and his colleague left their positions in protest. The next day, Garfield's selection was approved. It was a landmark victory for the executive authority over the party machine and for the cause of reform over “political control”.

The Killer and His Psychological Issues

But even as Garfield confronted influential people of his party, he was being pursued by a disturbed and delusional man who exemplified the dark side of the political appointment process. The gunman was a wanderer with a background of occupational setbacks, emotional issues and childhood trauma. He had been unsuccessful as a legal professional, debt recovery agent, religious figure and member of a alternative community.

“He was mentally ill and his unique form of delusion was fantasy. He always believed that God had chosen him for significance. He actually had financially a better start than Garfield but where Garfield progressed and improved, Guiteau could not accomplish anything.”

But Guiteau believed he had eventually located a pathway to success: politics. Carried away in the events of the political contest, he wrote and delivered an insignificant speech, and became convinced in his own mind that he was solely accountable for Garfield's victory.

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

The Assassination and Medical Malpractice

On that fateful day, just several weeks into his presidency, Garfield was departing the capital for his college reunion. As he walked through the transportation center, Guiteau emerged from hiding, withdrew an handgun from his clothing and assassinated the leader in the back.

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