🔗 Share this article

For generations, the family members of the 20th US president shared stories about his impressive career but seldom discussed his untimely death. “We knew what had happened, that he was shot in a train station,” explains one of his family members. “We studied the story in books but, in one way or another, we just skimmed through it.”

Revived Interest in a Overlooked Leader

This transformed in 2011 with the release of Destiny of the Republic, which generated attention in Garfield's unfinished life. This work has now inspired a streaming series titled Death by Lightning, featuring Michael Shannon as the national leader and another skilled actor as the drifter who assassinated him.

The series aims to illuminate Garfield, who rose from poverty to the presidency during the Gilded Age only to succumb to its bitter partisan conflicts. His tenure was ended prematurely after only 200 days not only by the killer's weapon but by doctor errors – an tragedy now mostly overlooked while the assassinations of Abraham Lincoln and JFK 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 minister, he was a agriculturalist. He was so many things which also shaped who he was 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 last president born in a log cabin in Ohio in 1831. His parent passed away when he was 18 months old, leaving his mom, Eliza, to care for multiple kids in challenging conditions. An voracious learner, Garfield labored on waterways to make funds 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 wed a educational contemporary, his future wife, with whom he would have seven children. An passionate nationalist, Garfield viewed the national conflict as a righteous fight against forced servitude and rose to the military position.

“When I started researching him, I couldn't believe it. He was absolutely brilliant. He was fearless. He was very progressive for the time. He was caring. He was a decent human being and would have been a remarkable commander-in-chief had he lived.”

Public Life and Surprise Candidacy

Garfield was encouraged by President Lincoln to leave army service when he was selected to the Congress, where he would serve as a Republican for 17 years. He was ardent advocate of black suffrage, viewing it as a issue of rights and the realization of a wartime covenant.

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

At the political assembly in Chicago the political organization was fundamentally fractured between the “Stalwarts”, led by an influential figure, who supported a continued leadership for military hero, and the “Half-Breeds”, who supported another candidate. Garfield attended as a backer of his state colleague John Sherman.

When the 15,000-person convention was gridlocked between Grant and Blaine, party members began seeking a middle ground. Garfield's emotional address nominating Sherman won them over. During the speech, he reportedly declared, “And now, gentlemen of the convention, what do we want?” to which a voice from the crowd unexpectedly replied, “We want Garfield!”

On the extended selection process, a stampede of delegates made Garfield the surprise nominee. To placate the Stalwart faction, the vice presidential pick, a faction member from New York, was chosen as his second in command. In the general election Garfield beat the opposing candidate to become the sole representative of the House ever to be elected president.

Brief Administration and Political Battles

“His possible achievements and what is very unusual 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 pushed toward it.”

The central struggle of Garfield's short presidency was his confrontation with Conkling over the “political favors”. Conkling required power over government appointments in New York, particularly the influential position of Collector of the Port of New York. Garfield refused, 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 rival of Conkling to the post.

The dispute became a open fight but Garfield outsmarted Conkling in the Senate. Facing a public failure, Conkling and his associate resigned their seats in protest. The next day, Garfield's selection was confirmed. It was a historic triumph for the executive authority over the faction system 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 dark side of the patronage system. The gunman was a unstable individual with a history of professional failures, mental instability and childhood trauma. He had failed as a legal professional, bill collector, minister 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 importance. He actually had financially a better start than Garfield but where Garfield progressed and improved, Guiteau failed at everything.”

But Guiteau believed he had eventually located a route to achievement: politics. Carried away in the excitement of the political contest, he created and presented an minor oration, and became convinced in his own mind that he was single-handedly responsible for Garfield's victory.

Under this logic, Guiteau reckoned he had earned a important role. He journeyed to DC and constantly harassed Garfield, Blaine and other officials, requiring to be made the diplomatic representative — a position for which he had inadequate skills. He became such a nuisance that he was eventually excluded from the White House.

The Attack and Medical Malpractice

On the tragic date, just several weeks into his presidency, Garfield was traveling from DC for his educational gathering. As he walked through the Baltimore & Potomac Railroad station, Guiteau emerged from hiding, produced an ivory-handled British Bull Dog revolver from his clothing and assassinated the leader in the back.

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