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Over many years, the family members of the 20th US president spoke proudly about his extraordinary achievements but avoided talking about his violent end. “We knew what had happened, that he was gunned down in a railway depot,” notes one of his family members. “We read about the story in historical accounts but, in one way or another, we just passed over it quickly.”

Revived Interest in a Historical Figure

This shifted in 2011 with the release of a historical book, which sparked curiosity in Garfield's truncated career. The book has now inspired a streaming series titled Death by Lightning, starring Michael Shannon as the president and his co-star as the wanderer who shot him.

The series promises to shine a light on Garfield, who rose from poverty to the presidency during the Gilded Age only to fall victim to its bitter partisan conflicts. His time in office was truncated after only several months not only by the killer's weapon but by physician mistakes – an tragedy now frequently ignored while the killings of the Civil War president and John F Kennedy continue to intrigue the public.

“One cannot help but admire what he did. He was incredibly versatile: he was a lawyer, he was a preacher, he was a farmer. He was so many things which also shaped who he was and his approach and all the information about him the relatives maintain with us.”

From Humble Beginnings to the Presidency

Garfield was the most recent commander-in-chief born in a log cabin in Cuyahoga County in 1831. His parent passed away when he was very young, leaving his mom, Eliza, to support a large family in challenging conditions. An insatiable reader, Garfield worked on canal boats to make funds for an schooling.

He learned legal principles, was ordained as minister, became president of Hiram College in Ohio and was a state senator. In 1858 he wed a educational contemporary, his partner, with whom he would have a large family. An dedicated federalist, Garfield viewed the civil war as a moral battle against human bondage and advanced to the officer status.

“When I started researching him, I was astonished. He was remarkably smart. He was incredibly brave. He was very progressive for the time. He was caring. He was a decent human being and would have been one of our great presidents had he lived.”

Government Service and Shocking Selection

Garfield was encouraged by President Lincoln to depart military life when he was elected to the legislative branch, where he would function as a Republican for 17 years. He was strong supporter of racial equality in elections, viewing it as a question of fairness and the completion of a wartime covenant.

“His oration on the House chamber will affect you emotionally. He was an incredibly powerful orator and this issue was extremely significant to him.”

At the party gathering in Chicago the political organization was fundamentally fractured between the “faction members”, led by a powerful politician, who supported a third term for military hero, and the “opposing faction”, who supported another candidate. Garfield attended as a advocate of his state colleague John Sherman.

When the 15,000-person convention was stalled between Grant and Blaine, party members began searching for a compromise. Garfield's powerful oration supporting Sherman won them over. During the speech, he reportedly shouted, “And now, representatives, 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 unexpected candidate. To placate the Stalwart faction, another politician, a Conkling loyalist from New York, was chosen as his second in command. In the presidential race Garfield beat the Democratic nominee to become the sole representative of the House ever to be chosen as leader.

Brief Administration and Political Battles

“What would have made Garfield great and what is very unusual and maybe special for the American presidency is he hadn't campaigned aggressively. It's not that he had never thought about it but he was forced into the role.”

The defining conflict of Garfield's brief term was his confrontation with Conkling over the “political favors”. Conkling insisted on authority over political positions in New York, particularly the powerful and lucrative post of customs official. Garfield rejected, stating the issue was “concerning if the national leader becomes registering clerk of the senate or the nation's leader”. He selected a political foe of Conkling to the post.

The confrontation escalated into a open fight but Garfield outsmarted Conkling in the Senate. Experiencing a public failure, Conkling and his associate quit Congress in protest. The next day, Garfield's candidate was ratified. It was a historic triumph for the power of the presidency over the political organization and for the change movement over “machine politics”.

The Killer and His Mental Illness

But even as Garfield fought powerful figures of his party, he was being pursued by a disturbed and delusional man who exemplified the negative aspect of the political appointment process. The assassin was a drifter with a background of career disappointments, emotional issues and early life difficulties. He had failed as a attorney, financial agent, minister and member of a alternative community.

“He was emotionally unstable and his particular brand of madness was delusion. He always believed that religious calling for significance. He actually had financially a better start than Garfield but where Garfield succeeded and advanced, Guiteau was unsuccessful in all endeavors.”

But Guiteau believed he had at last discovered a route to achievement: politics. Carried away in the excitement of the political contest, he wrote and delivered an unimportant address, and became convinced in his own mind that he was solely accountable for Garfield's victory.

Under this logic, Guiteau calculated he had merited a high-level government job. He went to the capital and continuously bothered Garfield, Blaine and other authorities, insisting to be made the US consul in Paris — a position for which he had inadequate skills. He became such a nuisance that he was eventually prohibited from the White House.

The Assassination and Doctor Errors

On that fateful day, just four months into his presidency, Garfield was leaving Washington for his educational gathering. As he walked through the transportation center, Guiteau stepped from the shadows, produced an handgun from his jacket and shot the president twice in the back.

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