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For generations, the heirs of the 20th US president shared stories about his extraordinary achievements but seldom discussed his violent end. We understood what had happened, that he was gunned down in a train station,” explains one of his modern descendants. “We read about the story in historical accounts but, for various reasons, we just skimmed through it.”

Revived Interest in a Forgotten President

This transformed in 2011 with the publication of a presidential biography, which sparked curiosity in Garfield's cut-short presidency. The book has now resulted in a Netflix drama titled the historical drama, featuring Michael Shannon as the national leader and his co-star as the wanderer who gunned him down.

The series aims to highlight Garfield, who rose from poverty to the highest office during the economic era only to fall victim to its bitter partisan conflicts. His tenure was truncated after only 200 days not only by the gunman's shot but by doctor errors – an incident now mostly overlooked while the assassinations of the Civil War president and President Kennedy continue to fascinate the public.

“One cannot help but admire what he did. He was a true polymath: he was a lawyer, he was a religious leader, 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.”

From Humble Beginnings to the Presidency

Garfield was the most recent commander-in-chief born in a log cabin in the Midwest in 1831. His father died when he was very young, leaving his parent, Eliza, to care for multiple kids in challenging conditions. An insatiable reader, Garfield worked on canal boats to earn money for an education.

He pursued jurisprudence, was ordained as minister, became president of Hiram College 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 passionate nationalist, Garfield viewed the civil war as a moral battle against human bondage and progressed to the officer status.

“When I started researching him, I found it incredible. He was absolutely brilliant. He was extremely courageous. 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 survived.”

Political Career and Unexpected Nomination

Garfield was encouraged by President Lincoln to depart military life when he was chosen to the legislative branch, where he would work as a political representative for nearly two decades. He was dedicated proponent of racial equality in elections, viewing it as a issue of rights and the fulfillment of a military promise.

“The speech he gave on the legislative arena will tear your heart out. He was an impressive communicator and this topic was deeply meaningful to him.”

At the 1880 Republican National Convention in Chicago the party was sharply split between the “faction members”, led by a powerful politician, who supported a additional presidency for former president, and the “opposing faction”, who supported James G Blaine. Garfield attended as a backer of his close associate John Sherman.

When the huge assembly was stalled between Grant and Blaine, representatives began seeking a middle ground. Garfield's impassioned speech supporting Sherman caught their attention. During the speech, he reportedly exclaimed, “And now, representatives, what do we want?” to which a attendee unexpectedly replied, “We want Garfield!”

On the extended selection process, a wave of backers made Garfield the shocking choice. To appease the Stalwart faction, the vice presidential pick, a Conkling loyalist from New York, was chosen as his running mate. In the national vote Garfield defeated the rival politician to become the unique incumbent of the House ever to be elected president.

Brief Administration and Political Battles

“Garfield's potential greatness and what is extremely rare and maybe special for the American presidency is he didn't want the job. It's not that he had completely dismissed it but he was thrust into it.”

The major battle of Garfield's limited administration was his confrontation with Conkling over the “spoils system”. Conkling demanded control over federal patronage in New York, particularly the prestigious role of port authority. Garfield declined, stating the issue was “if the commander-in-chief should be registering clerk of the senate or the presidential authority”. He nominated a rival of Conkling to the post.

The conflict became a open fight but Garfield outsmarted Conkling in the Senate. Confronting a public failure, Conkling and his junior senator quit Congress in protest. The next day, Garfield's candidate was approved. It was a landmark victory for the executive authority over the faction system and for the cause of reform over “machine politics”.

The Killer and His Disturbed Mind

But even as Garfield fought powerful figures of his party, he was being pursued by a mentally unstable individual who exemplified the problematic element of the spoils network. Charles Guiteau was a wanderer with a background of career disappointments, mental instability and physical and psychological abuse. He had failed as a lawyer, debt recovery agent, preacher and member of a free-love commune.

“He was psychologically disturbed and his unique form of delusion was fantasy. He always believed that God had chosen him for greatness. He actually had superior economic background than Garfield but where Garfield succeeded and advanced, Guiteau was unsuccessful in all endeavors.”

But Guiteau believed he had at last discovered a pathway to success: politics. Caught up in the excitement of the political contest, he prepared and gave an unimportant address, and became convinced in his own mind that he was single-handedly responsible for Garfield's victory.

Under this logic, Guiteau determined he had deserved a prestigious position. He travelled to Washington and continuously bothered Garfield, Blaine and other authorities, demanding to be made the foreign service officer — a position for which he had inadequate skills. He became such a annoyance that he was eventually banned from the White House.

The Shooting and Medical Malpractice

On the tragic date, just four months into his presidency, Garfield was departing the capital for his alumni event. As he moved through the Baltimore & Potomac Railroad station, Guiteau stepped from the shadows, produced an handgun from his coat pocket and shot the president twice in the back.

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