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Throughout history, the family members of James Garfield discussed openly about his impressive career but avoided talking about his tragic assassination. “We knew what had happened, that he was shot in a railway depot,” reflects one of his family members. “We studied the story in publications but, somehow, we just skimmed through it.”

Fresh Curiosity in a Overlooked Leader

This shifted in 2011 with the release of a historical book, which sparked curiosity in Garfield's cut-short presidency. The book has now inspired a streaming series titled Death by Lightning, including an acclaimed actor as the national leader and another skilled actor as the drifter who assassinated him.

The series promises to shine a light on Garfield, who rose from poverty to the highest office during the Gilded Age only to become a casualty to its bitter partisan conflicts. His tenure was ended prematurely after only 200 days not only by the assassin's bullet but by physician mistakes – an event now mostly overlooked while the deaths of the Civil War president and President Kennedy continue to captivate the public.

“It's impossible not to respect what he did. He was a true polymath: he was a attorney, he was a minister, he was a land worker. He was all of these things which also influenced his personality and his behavior and all the information about him the relatives maintain with us.”

From Humble Beginnings to the Highest Office

Garfield was the last president raised in rustic conditions in the Midwest in 1831. His dad perished when he was just a toddler, leaving his mother, Eliza, to care for multiple kids in hard times. An insatiable reader, Garfield worked on canal boats to earn money for an schooling.

He learned legal principles, was became a preacher, became leader of an institution in Ohio and was a political representative. In 1858 he entered matrimony with a previous schoolmate, his partner, with whom he would have a large family. An ardent Unionist, Garfield viewed the internal struggle as a holy crusade against slavery and rose to the military position.

“As I studied his life, I couldn't believe it. He was exceptionally intelligent. He was fearless. He was innovative for the time. He was kind. He was a moral individual and would have been an outstanding leader had he survived.”

Public Life and Surprise Candidacy

Garfield was convinced by the wartime leader to resign his military commission when he was selected to the Congress, where he would work as a Republican for 17 years. He was ardent advocate of racial equality in elections, viewing it as a question of fairness and the realization of a wartime covenant.

“His oration on the legislative arena will move you deeply. He was an incredibly powerful orator and this matter was extremely significant to him.”

At the party gathering in Chicago the faction was fundamentally fractured between the “Stalwarts”, led by a powerful politician, who supported a third term for military hero, and the “Half-Breeds”, who supported political contender. Garfield attended as a advocate of his close associate John Sherman.

When the massive gathering was deadlocked between Grant and Blaine, party members began searching for a solution. Garfield's impassioned speech nominating Sherman won them over. During the speech, he reportedly shouted, “And now, gentlemen of the convention, what do we want?” to which a attendee unexpectedly replied, “We want Garfield!”

On the extended selection process, a rush of supporters made Garfield the surprise nominee. To appease the Stalwart faction, the vice presidential pick, a Conkling loyalist from New York, was chosen as his second in command. In the presidential race Garfield beat the rival politician to become the unique incumbent of the House ever to be elected president.

Short Presidency and Government Conflicts

“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 forced into the role.”

The defining conflict of Garfield's short presidency was his clash with Conkling over the “patronage network”. Conkling insisted on authority over government appointments in New York, particularly the influential position of port authority. Garfield refused, stating the issue was “if the commander-in-chief should be registering clerk of the senate or the executive of the United States”. He proposed a rival of Conkling to the post.

The dispute turned into a open fight but Garfield outmaneuvered Conkling in the Senate. Confronting a embarrassing loss, Conkling and his colleague quit Congress in protest. The next day, Garfield's nominee was approved. It was a historic triumph for the executive authority over the party machine and for the improvement efforts over “boss rule”.

The Killer and His Psychological Issues

But even as Garfield fought powerful figures of his party, he was being pursued by a disturbed and delusional man who exemplified the problematic element of the spoils network. Charles Guiteau was a drifter with a record of occupational setbacks, mental instability and early life difficulties. He had been unsuccessful as a attorney, financial agent, preacher and member of a unconventional group.

“He was mentally ill and his specific type of insanity was delusion. He always believed that God had chosen him for importance. He actually had superior economic background than Garfield but where Garfield achieved and rose, Guiteau was unsuccessful in all endeavors.”

But Guiteau believed he had eventually located a way to accomplishment: politics. Carried away in the excitement of the presidential race, he wrote and delivered an unimportant address, and became convinced in his own mind that he was single-handedly responsible for Garfield's victory.

Under this thinking, Guiteau calculated he had deserved a important role. He went to the capital and constantly harassed Garfield, Blaine and other leaders, insisting to be made the US consul in Paris — a role for which he had inadequate skills. He became such a nuisance that he was eventually banned from the White House.

The Shooting and Medical Malpractice

On 2 July 1881, just four months into his presidency, Garfield was leaving Washington for his alumni event. As he walked through the Baltimore & Potomac Railroad station, Guiteau emerged from hiding, withdrew an weapon from his jacket and shot the president twice in the back.

Garfield shouted: “Why is this occurring?” and dropped on the depot ground. When a {police officer|law