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Over many years, the family members of the 20th US president discussed openly about his extraordinary achievements but rarely mentioned his tragic assassination. We understood what had happened, that he was gunned down in a railway depot,” reflects one of his family members. “We studied the story in publications but, in one way or another, we just skimmed through it.”

Fresh Curiosity in a Forgotten President

This shifted in 2011 with the publication of a historical book, which revived interest in Garfield's truncated career. The publication has now resulted in a Netflix drama titled Death by Lightning, featuring a talented performer as the national leader and another skilled actor as the wanderer who gunned him down.

The series aims to illuminate Garfield, who rose from poverty to the White House during the historical period only to become a casualty to its bitter partisan conflicts. His time in office was ended prematurely after only several months not only by the gunman's shot but by doctor errors – an tragedy now largely forgotten while the deaths of the Civil War president and John F Kennedy continue to intrigue the public.

“One cannot help but admire what he did. He was a true polymath: he was a attorney, he was a minister, he was a farmer. He was so many things which also shaped who he was and his behavior and everything that we know about him the relatives maintain with us.”

From Humble Beginnings to the White House

Garfield was the final national leader coming from pioneer roots in Cuyahoga County in 1831. His father died when he was just a toddler, leaving his mom, Eliza, to raise five children in difficult circumstances. An dedicated student, Garfield worked on canal boats to earn money for an formal learning.

He pursued jurisprudence, was ordained as minister, became head of a school in Ohio and was a political representative. In 1858 he wed a educational contemporary, his partner, with whom he would have multiple offspring. An dedicated federalist, Garfield viewed the civil war as a moral battle against human bondage and advanced to the rank of major general.

“As I studied his life, I was astonished. He was remarkably smart. He was incredibly brave. 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 lived.”

Public Life and Surprise Candidacy

Garfield was persuaded by the wartime leader to resign his military commission when he was elected to the Congress, where he would work as a political representative for multiple terms. He was strong supporter of black suffrage, viewing it as a matter of justice and the fulfillment of a military promise.

“The address he delivered on the legislative arena will tear your heart out. He was an remarkable speaker and this topic was extremely significant to him.”

At the party gathering in Chicago the party was deeply divided between the “political group”, led by Senator Roscoe Conkling, who supported a third term for Ulysses S Grant, and the “Half-Breeds”, who supported political contender. Garfield attended as a advocate of his close associate John Sherman.

When the massive gathering was stalled between Grant and Blaine, representatives began searching for a middle ground. Garfield's impassioned speech proposing Sherman caught their attention. During the speech, he reportedly exclaimed, “And now, delegates, what do we want?” to which a audience member unexpectedly replied, “We want Garfield!”

On the 36th ballot, a wave of backers made Garfield the shocking choice. To appease the Stalwart faction, the vice presidential pick, a faction member from New York, was chosen as his vice president. In the presidential race Garfield defeated the rival politician to become the sole representative of the House ever to be chosen as leader.

Truncated Term and Power Struggles

“Garfield's potential greatness 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 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 insisted on authority over political positions in New York, particularly the powerful and lucrative post of Collector of the Port of New York. Garfield declined, stating the issue was “concerning if the national leader becomes registering clerk of the senate or the nation's leader”. He selected a rival of Conkling to the post.

The confrontation became a public battle but Garfield outmaneuvered Conkling in the Senate. Experiencing a humiliating public defeat, Conkling and his junior senator resigned their seats in protest. The next day, Garfield's candidate was ratified. It was a landmark victory for the presidential control over the political organization and for the improvement efforts over “political control”.

The Gunman and His Disturbed Mind

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. The assassin was a unstable individual with a record of career disappointments, emotional issues and childhood trauma. He had failed 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 false belief. He always believed that religious calling for greatness. He actually had financially a better start than Garfield but where Garfield progressed and improved, Guiteau could not accomplish anything.”

But Guiteau believed he had finally found a pathway to success: politics. Swept up in the events of the presidential race, he created and presented an minor oration, and became certain in his thoughts that he was solely accountable for Garfield's victory.

Under this reasoning, Guiteau reckoned he had deserved a high-level government job. He journeyed to DC and constantly harassed Garfield, Blaine and other officials, insisting to be made the foreign service officer — a role for which he had no experience. He became such a problem that he was eventually excluded from the White House.

The Shooting and Medical Malpractice

On the tragic date, just a short time into his presidency, Garfield was leaving Washington for his alumni event. As he passed through the Baltimore & Potomac Railroad station, Guiteau appeared suddenly, withdrew an ivory-handled British Bull Dog revolver from his coat pocket and shot the president twice in the back.

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