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For generations, the descendants of the 20th US president shared stories about his extraordinary achievements but rarely mentioned his tragic assassination. “We knew what had happened, that he was shot in a railway depot,” notes one of his living relatives. “We studied the story in books but, for various reasons, we just skimmed through it.”

Renewed Attention in a Forgotten President

This changed in 2011 with the publication of a presidential biography, which generated attention in Garfield's cut-short presidency. This work has now led to a streaming series titled the presidential series, featuring an acclaimed actor as the commander-in-chief and another skilled actor as the unstable individual who gunned him down.

The series seeks to shine a light on Garfield, who rose from poverty to the highest office during the Gilded Age only to succumb to its toxic political divisions. His presidency was truncated after only 200 days not only by the assassin's bullet but by physician mistakes – an event now largely forgotten while the deaths of the Civil War president and JFK continue to captivate the public.

“You can't help but be proud what he did. He was like a multi-threat: he was a legal professional, he was a religious leader, he was a land worker. He was multiple professions which also influenced his personality and his approach and the complete story about him the family carries down with us.”

From Humble Beginnings to the Presidency

Garfield was the most recent commander-in-chief raised in rustic conditions in Ohio in 1831. His dad perished when he was very young, leaving his mom, Eliza, to raise five children in difficult circumstances. An voracious learner, Garfield worked on canal boats to earn money for an education.

He learned legal principles, was ordained as minister, became president of Hiram College in Ohio and was a political representative. In 1858 he entered matrimony with a educational contemporary, his future wife, with whom he would have multiple offspring. An dedicated federalist, Garfield viewed the civil war as a holy crusade against human bondage and advanced to the rank of major general.

“When I started researching him, I was astonished. He was remarkably smart. He was incredibly brave. He was very progressive for the period. He was kind. He was a decent human being and would have been an outstanding leader had he survived.”

Government Service and Shocking Selection

Garfield was convinced by Lincoln to depart military life when he was elected to the House of Representatives, where he would function as a Republican for 17 years. He was strong supporter of black suffrage, viewing it as a issue of rights and the completion of a wartime covenant.

“His oration on the legislative arena will move you deeply. He was an incredibly powerful orator and this topic was very important to him.”

At the political assembly in Chicago the political organization was deeply divided between the “Stalwarts”, led by a powerful politician, who supported a third term for former president, and the “rival group”, who supported James G Blaine. Garfield attended as a advocate of his state colleague John Sherman.

When the massive gathering was deadlocked between Grant and Blaine, representatives began searching for a middle ground. Garfield's impassioned speech proposing Sherman won them over. During the speech, he reportedly declared, “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 rush of supporters made Garfield the shocking choice. To placate the Stalwart faction, the vice presidential pick, a political ally from New York, was chosen as his vice president. In the presidential race Garfield overcame the Democratic nominee to become the only sitting member of the House ever to be chosen as leader.

Short Presidency and Political Battles

“Garfield's potential greatness and what is remarkably uncommon and maybe unique to the American presidency is he hadn't campaigned aggressively. It's not that he had entirely ignored the possibility but he was pushed toward it.”

The defining conflict of Garfield's brief term was his confrontation with Conkling over the “political favors”. Conkling required power over political positions 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 presidential authority”. He nominated a rival of Conkling to the post.

The confrontation turned into a open fight but Garfield outmaneuvered Conkling in the Senate. Facing a public failure, Conkling and his associate quit Congress in protest. The next day, Garfield's nominee was confirmed. It was a significant win for the presidential control over the political organization and for the improvement efforts over “machine politics”.

The Assassin and His Psychological Issues

But even as Garfield confronted influential people of his party, he was being stalked by a mentally unstable individual who embodied the problematic element of the patronage system. The gunman was a drifter with a history of professional failures, psychological problems and early life difficulties. He had failed as a legal professional, bill collector, minister and member of a unconventional group.

“He was mentally ill and his specific type of insanity was false belief. He always believed that divine selection for importance. He actually had financially a better start than Garfield but where Garfield progressed and improved, Guiteau was unsuccessful in all endeavors.”

But Guiteau believed he had eventually located a route to achievement: politics. Swept up in the excitement of the presidential race, he wrote and delivered an minor oration, and became convinced in his own mind that he was solely accountable for Garfield's victory.

Under this thinking, Guiteau determined he had deserved a high-level government job. He went to the capital and continuously bothered Garfield, Blaine and other officials, requiring to be made the US consul in Paris — a post for which he had zero qualifications. He became such a problem that he was eventually excluded from the White House.

The Assassination and Physician Mistakes

On the tragic date, just a short time into his presidency, Garfield was traveling from DC for his college reunion. As he walked through the transportation center, Guiteau appeared suddenly, pulled an handgun from his coat pocket and fired multiple rounds in the back.

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