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Throughout history, the family members of the 20th US president spoke proudly about his impressive career but rarely mentioned his tragic assassination. “We knew what had happened, that he was assassinated in a railway depot,” notes one of his living relatives. “We read about the story in books but, for various reasons, we just glanced over it.”

Revived Interest in a Historical Figure

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 Netflix drama titled the presidential series, starring an acclaimed actor as the national leader and his co-star as the wanderer who assassinated him.

The series promises to shine a light on Garfield, who emerged from difficult circumstances to the presidency during the Gilded Age only to succumb to its bitter partisan conflicts. His tenure was truncated after only half a year not only by the assassin's bullet but by physician mistakes – an event now largely forgotten while the assassinations of Abraham Lincoln and John F Kennedy continue to captivate the public.

“You can't help but be proud what he did. He was incredibly versatile: he was a lawyer, he was a preacher, he was a land worker. He was all of these things which also shaped who he was and how he was and the complete story about him the family carries down with us.”

Rising from Poverty to the White House

Garfield was the final national leader coming from pioneer roots in the Midwest in 1831. His dad perished when he was very young, leaving his mom, Eliza, to raise five children in hard times. An dedicated student, Garfield found employment on vessels to earn money for an formal learning.

He pursued jurisprudence, was ordained as minister, became head of a school in Ohio and was a government official. In 1858 he married a previous schoolmate, his partner, with whom he would have seven children. An ardent Unionist, Garfield viewed the national conflict as a moral battle against human bondage and progressed to the rank of major general.

“During my investigation, I couldn't believe it. He was remarkably smart. He was extremely courageous. He was ahead of his time for the era. He was kind. He was a good person and would have been an outstanding leader had he lived.”

Government Service and Surprise Candidacy

Garfield was encouraged by Lincoln to depart military life when he was selected to the House of Representatives, where he would serve as a political representative for nearly two decades. He was dedicated proponent of racial equality in elections, viewing it as a matter of justice and the fulfillment of a military promise.

“His oration on the legislative arena will tear your heart out. He was an remarkable speaker and this topic was deeply meaningful to him.”

At the political assembly in Chicago the faction was deeply divided between the “Stalwarts”, led by Senator Roscoe Conkling, who supported a continued leadership for Ulysses S Grant, and the “Half-Breeds”, who supported James G Blaine. Garfield attended as a backer of his state colleague John Sherman.

When the 15,000-person convention was deadlocked between Grant and Blaine, party members began searching for a middle ground. Garfield's impassioned speech nominating Sherman impressed them. During the speech, he reportedly shouted, “And now, gentlemen of the convention, what do we want?” to which a voice from the crowd unexpectedly replied, “We want Garfield!”

On the 36th ballot, a rush of supporters made Garfield the shocking choice. To satisfy the Stalwart faction, another politician, a faction member from New York, was chosen as his vice president. In the presidential race Garfield overcame the opposing candidate to become the unique incumbent of the House ever to be chosen as leader.

Truncated Term and Power Struggles

“What would have made Garfield great 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 major battle of Garfield's brief term was his confrontation with Conkling over the “spoils system”. Conkling insisted on authority over political positions in New York, particularly the influential position of customs official. Garfield rejected, stating the issue was “if the commander-in-chief should be registering clerk of the senate or the executive of the United States”. He selected a political foe of Conkling to the post.

The conflict became a public battle but Garfield outmaneuvered Conkling in the Senate. Confronting a humiliating public defeat, Conkling and his associate quit Congress in protest. The next day, Garfield's candidate was confirmed. It was a significant win for the power of the presidency over the political organization and for the change movement over “political control”.

The Killer and His Psychological Issues

But even as Garfield fought powerful figures of his party, he was being pursued by a mentally unstable individual who represented the dark side of the patronage system. Charles Guiteau was a unstable individual with a record of occupational setbacks, mental instability and early life difficulties. He had not succeeded as a legal professional, bill collector, religious figure and member of a alternative community.

“He was psychologically disturbed and his unique form of delusion was fantasy. He always believed that God had chosen him for importance. He actually had superior economic background than Garfield but where Garfield succeeded and advanced, Guiteau failed at everything.”

But Guiteau believed he had eventually located a way to accomplishment: politics. Caught up in the excitement of the 1880 election, he created and presented an insignificant speech, and became convinced in his own mind that he was single-handedly responsible for Garfield's victory.

Under this reasoning, Guiteau determined he had earned a high-level government job. He journeyed to DC and constantly harassed Garfield, Blaine and other authorities, requiring to be made the US consul in Paris — a role 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 2 July 1881, just a short time into his presidency, Garfield was leaving Washington for his educational gathering. As he passed through the Baltimore & Potomac Railroad station, Guiteau appeared suddenly, produced an ivory-handled British Bull Dog revolver from his coat pocket and assassinated the leader in the back.

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