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Over many years, the heirs of James Garfield spoke proudly about his remarkable life but seldom discussed his violent end. We understood what had happened, that he was assassinated in a railway depot,” reflects one of his family members. “We learned about the story in historical accounts but, for various reasons, we just glanced over it.”

Fresh Curiosity in a Historical Figure

This shifted in 2011 with the issuing of a presidential biography, which generated attention in Garfield's truncated career. The book has now inspired a Netflix drama titled the historical drama, starring Michael Shannon as the commander-in-chief and Matthew Macfadyen as the wanderer who assassinated him.

The series aims to shine a light on Garfield, who came from humble beginnings to the highest office during the Gilded Age only to become a casualty to its deep political rifts. His presidency was cut short after only 200 days not only by the killer's weapon but by physician mistakes – an tragedy now mostly overlooked while the assassinations of the Civil War president and President Kennedy continue to intrigue the public.

“One cannot help but admire what he did. He was like a multi-threat: he was a attorney, he was a preacher, he was a land worker. He was all of these things which also influenced his personality and how he was and all the information about him the relatives maintain with us.”

Starting from Nothing to the Highest Office

Garfield was the most recent commander-in-chief born in a log cabin in the Midwest in 1831. His parent passed away when he was just a toddler, leaving his mother, Eliza, to care for multiple kids in hard times. An voracious learner, Garfield worked on canal boats to earn money for an education.

He studied law, was entered the clergy, became leader of an institution in Ohio and was a political representative. In 1858 he entered matrimony with a educational contemporary, his partner, with whom he would have multiple offspring. An ardent Unionist, Garfield viewed the internal struggle as a moral battle against forced servitude and rose to the military position.

“When I started researching him, I found it incredible. He was absolutely brilliant. He was extremely courageous. He was ahead of his time for the era. He was caring. He was a moral individual and would have been a remarkable commander-in-chief had he lived.”

Government Service and Surprise Candidacy

Garfield was persuaded by President Lincoln to depart military life when he was chosen to the House of Representatives, where he would work as a Republican for nearly two decades. He was dedicated proponent of black suffrage, viewing it as a question of fairness and the fulfillment of a wartime covenant.

“The speech he gave on the legislative arena will tear your heart out. He was an incredibly powerful orator and this issue was extremely significant to him.”

At the party gathering in Chicago the political organization was fundamentally fractured between the “political group”, led by Senator Roscoe Conkling, who supported a continued leadership for Ulysses S Grant, and the “Half-Breeds”, who supported another candidate. Garfield attended as a supporter of his close associate John Sherman.

When the massive gathering was deadlocked between Grant and Blaine, party members began searching 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 rush of supporters made Garfield the surprise nominee. To satisfy the Stalwart faction, another politician, a political ally from New York, was chosen as his second in command. In the presidential race Garfield defeated the opposing candidate to become the only sitting member of the House ever to be chosen as leader.

Truncated Term and Political Battles

“His possible achievements and what is extremely rare and maybe unique to the American presidency is he didn't want the job. It's not that he had entirely ignored the possibility but he was thrust into it.”

The central struggle of Garfield's short presidency was his confrontation with Conkling over the “spoils system”. Conkling demanded control over political positions in New York, particularly the prestigious role of Collector of the Port of New York. Garfield rejected, stating the issue was “whether the president is registering clerk of the senate or the nation's leader”. He selected a opponent of Conkling to the post.

The conflict escalated into a public battle but Garfield outsmarted Conkling in the Senate. Experiencing a public failure, Conkling and his colleague quit Congress in protest. The next day, Garfield's selection was approved. It was a landmark victory for the power of the presidency over the faction system and for the improvement efforts over “machine politics”.

The Assassin and His Disturbed Mind

But even as Garfield fought powerful figures of his party, he was being followed by a disturbed and delusional man who exemplified the problematic element of the spoils network. The gunman was a drifter with a record of professional failures, psychological problems and childhood trauma. He had been unsuccessful as a lawyer, bill collector, religious figure and member of a unconventional group.

“He was emotionally unstable and his unique form of delusion was delusion. He always believed that divine selection for significance. He actually had superior economic background than Garfield but where Garfield progressed and improved, Guiteau could not accomplish anything.”

But Guiteau believed he had eventually located a route to achievement: politics. Swept up in the drama of the 1880 election, he prepared and gave an minor oration, and became certain in his thoughts that he was single-handedly responsible for Garfield's victory.

Under this thinking, Guiteau calculated he had merited a prestigious position. He journeyed to DC and constantly harassed Garfield, Blaine and other leaders, insisting to be made the diplomatic representative — a position for which he had inadequate skills. He became such a annoyance that he was eventually excluded from the White House.

The Attack and Doctor Errors

On the tragic date, just a short time into his presidency, Garfield was departing the capital for his alumni event. As he walked through the train depot, Guiteau appeared suddenly, withdrew an weapon from his coat pocket and fired multiple rounds in the back.

Garfield exclaimed: “My God, what is this?” and dropped on the depot ground. When a {police officer|law