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For generations, the descendants of James Garfield discussed openly about his remarkable life but seldom discussed his untimely death. “We knew what had happened, that he was assassinated in a train station,” notes one of his family members. “We learned about the story in historical accounts but, for various reasons, we just glanced over it.”

Fresh Curiosity in a Historical Figure

This shifted in 2011 with the publication of Destiny of the Republic, which sparked curiosity in Garfield's truncated career. The book has now inspired a Netflix drama titled Death by Lightning, featuring an acclaimed actor as the national leader and Matthew Macfadyen as the drifter who gunned him down.

The series aims to shine a light on Garfield, who came from humble beginnings to the White House during the historical period only to become a casualty to its toxic political divisions. His time in office was cut short after only several months not only by the killer's weapon but by physician mistakes – an tragedy now mostly overlooked while the deaths of Abraham Lincoln and JFK continue to captivate the public.

“It's impossible not to respect what he did. He was incredibly versatile: he was a legal professional, he was a minister, he was a agriculturalist. He was all of these things which also influenced his personality and his behavior and all the information about him the family carries down with us.”

Starting from Nothing to the White House

Garfield was the last president raised in rustic conditions in the Midwest in 1831. His dad perished when he was very young, leaving his parent, Eliza, to support a large family in difficult circumstances. An voracious learner, Garfield found employment on vessels to earn money for an formal learning.

He studied law, was became a preacher, became head of a school in Ohio and was a government official. In 1858 he married a former classmate, his partner, with whom he would have seven children. An ardent Unionist, Garfield viewed the civil war as a holy crusade against human bondage and rose to the officer status.

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

Political Career and Unexpected Nomination

Garfield was convinced by President Lincoln to resign his military commission when he was chosen to the legislative branch, where he would serve as a party member for multiple terms. He was ardent advocate of black suffrage, viewing it as a question of fairness and the fulfillment of a conflict agreement.

“The speech he gave on the floor of Congress will tear your heart out. He was an incredibly powerful orator and this topic was extremely significant to him.”

At the political assembly in Chicago the party was deeply divided between the “political group”, led by an influential figure, who supported a additional presidency for former president, and the “Half-Breeds”, who supported James G Blaine. Garfield attended as a backer of his close associate John Sherman.

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

On the multiple voting round, a wave of backers made Garfield the unexpected candidate. To satisfy the Stalwart faction, the vice presidential pick, a Conkling loyalist from New York, was chosen as his vice president. In the national vote Garfield beat the rival politician to become the sole representative of the House ever to be selected for the highest office.

Truncated Term and Government Conflicts

“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 completely dismissed it but he was thrust into it.”

The defining conflict of Garfield's short presidency was his disagreement with Conkling over the “patronage network”. Conkling demanded control over political positions in New York, particularly the powerful and lucrative post of Collector of the Port of New York. Garfield rejected, stating the issue was “concerning if the national leader becomes registering clerk of the senate or the presidential authority”. He selected a political foe of Conkling to the post.

The confrontation escalated into a public battle but Garfield defeated Conkling in the Senate. Facing a public failure, Conkling and his associate resigned their seats in protest. The next day, Garfield's selection was approved. It was a landmark victory for the executive authority over the party machine and for the improvement efforts over “machine politics”.

The Assassin and His Disturbed Mind

But even as Garfield confronted influential people of his party, he was being followed by a psychologically troubled person who represented the problematic element of the political appointment process. Charles Guiteau was a wanderer with a history of career disappointments, psychological problems and physical and psychological abuse. He had not succeeded as a lawyer, debt recovery agent, preacher and member of a unconventional group.

“He was emotionally unstable and his unique form of delusion was false belief. He always believed that religious calling for significance. He actually had more privileged beginning than Garfield but where Garfield achieved and rose, Guiteau failed at everything.”

But Guiteau believed he had at last discovered a pathway to success: politics. Carried away in the drama of the 1880 election, he wrote and delivered an minor oration, and became convinced in his own mind that he was personally instrumental for Garfield's victory.

Under this reasoning, Guiteau calculated he had earned a high-level government job. He journeyed to DC and continuously bothered Garfield, Blaine and other officials, demanding to be made the foreign service officer — a post for which he had no experience. He became such a problem that he was eventually banned from the White House.

The Assassination and Medical Malpractice

On that fateful day, just a short time into his presidency, Garfield was leaving Washington for his alumni event. As he passed through the transportation center, Guiteau appeared suddenly, withdrew an ivory-handled British Bull Dog revolver from his clothing and shot the president twice in the back.

Garfield shouted: “Why is this occurring?” and collapsed on the station floor. When a {police officer|law