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For generations, the family members of President Garfield shared stories about his remarkable life but seldom discussed his violent end. We were aware what had happened, that he was shot in a train station,” explains one of his living relatives. “We learned about the story in historical accounts but, in one way or another, we just glanced over it.”

Fresh Curiosity in a Overlooked Leader

This changed in 2011 with the publication of a presidential biography, which generated attention in Garfield's truncated career. The publication has now led to a Netflix drama titled the historical drama, starring Michael Shannon as the president and his co-star as the wanderer who assassinated him.

The series aims to highlight Garfield, who rose from poverty to the highest office during the Gilded Age only to succumb to its deep political rifts. His presidency was cut short after only 200 days not only by the gunman's shot but by physician mistakes – an tragedy now mostly overlooked while the killings of President Lincoln and John F Kennedy continue to intrigue the public.

“It's impossible not to respect what he did. He was incredibly versatile: he was a lawyer, he was a preacher, he was a agriculturalist. He was all of these things which also shaped who he was and his approach and everything that we know about him the family carries down with us.”

Starting from Nothing to the Highest Office

Garfield was the last president coming from pioneer roots in the Midwest in 1831. His father died when he was just a toddler, leaving his parent, Eliza, to care for multiple kids in difficult circumstances. An voracious learner, Garfield labored on waterways to generate income for an formal learning.

He pursued jurisprudence, was ordained as minister, became leader of an institution in Ohio and was a political representative. In 1858 he married a former classmate, Lucretia Rudolph, with whom he would have a large family. An ardent Unionist, Garfield viewed the national conflict as a righteous fight against slavery and progressed to the rank of major general.

“During my investigation, I couldn't believe it. He was absolutely brilliant. He was fearless. He was ahead of his time for the time. He was caring. He was a good person and would have been one of our great presidents had he remained alive.”

Political Career and Shocking Selection

Garfield was convinced by Lincoln to resign his military commission when he was chosen to the legislative branch, where he would work as a political representative for multiple terms. He was ardent advocate of African American voting rights, viewing it as a question of fairness and the fulfillment of a wartime covenant.

“His oration on the floor of Congress will tear your heart out. He was an incredibly powerful orator and this matter was extremely significant to him.”

At the political assembly in Chicago the faction was deeply divided between the “faction members”, led by Senator Roscoe Conkling, who supported a continued leadership for former president, and the “Half-Breeds”, who supported another candidate. Garfield attended as a backer of his friend and fellow Ohioan John Sherman.

When the 15,000-person convention was stalled between Grant and Blaine, delegates began seeking a compromise. Garfield's emotional address supporting Sherman impressed them. During the speech, he reportedly declared, “And now, delegates, what do we want?” to which a audience member unexpectedly replied, “We want Garfield!”

On the multiple voting round, a rush of supporters made Garfield the unexpected candidate. To placate the Stalwart faction, the vice presidential pick, a political ally from New York, was chosen as his running mate. In the presidential race Garfield overcame the Democratic nominee to become the unique incumbent of the House ever to be elected president.

Truncated Term and Power Struggles

“What would have made Garfield great 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 completely dismissed it but he was forced into the role.”

The major battle of Garfield's limited administration was his confrontation with Conkling over the “patronage network”. Conkling insisted on authority over federal patronage 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 nation's leader”. He proposed a rival of Conkling to the post.

The confrontation became a public battle but Garfield outsmarted Conkling in the Senate. Experiencing a humiliating public defeat, Conkling and his associate resigned their seats in protest. The next day, Garfield's nominee was confirmed. It was a significant win for the executive authority over the political organization and for the cause of reform over “machine politics”.

The Gunman and His Disturbed Mind

But even as Garfield fought powerful figures of his party, he was being followed by a mentally unstable individual who exemplified the negative aspect of the spoils network. The assassin was a unstable individual with a record 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 free-love commune.

“He was emotionally unstable and his unique form of delusion was fantasy. He always believed that divine selection for greatness. He actually had superior economic background than Garfield but where Garfield succeeded and advanced, Guiteau failed at everything.”

But Guiteau believed he had at last discovered a way to accomplishment: politics. Caught up in the events of the presidential race, he created and presented an minor oration, and became persuaded internally that he was personally instrumental for Garfield's victory.

Under this reasoning, Guiteau calculated he had earned a important role. He went to the capital and continuously bothered Garfield, Blaine and other officials, requiring to be made the foreign service officer — a position for which he had inadequate skills. He became such a annoyance that he was eventually excluded from the White House.

The Assassination and Physician Mistakes

On 2 July 1881, just a short time into his presidency, Garfield was departing the capital for his college reunion. As he passed through the transportation center, Guiteau emerged from hiding, pulled an handgun from his coat pocket and fired multiple rounds in the back.

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