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For generations, the family members of James Garfield shared stories 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 modern descendants. “We studied the story in historical accounts but, somehow, we just glanced over it.”

Renewed Attention in a Historical Figure

This transformed in 2011 with the release of a historical book, which generated attention in Garfield's truncated career. This work has now inspired a Netflix drama titled Death by Lightning, including an acclaimed actor as the national leader and Matthew Macfadyen as the wanderer who assassinated him.

The series aims to illuminate Garfield, who rose from poverty to the White House during the Gilded Age only to fall victim to its toxic political divisions. His tenure was cut short after only half a year not only by the gunman's shot but by physician mistakes – an incident now mostly overlooked while the deaths of President Lincoln and President Kennedy continue to captivate the public.

“One cannot help but admire what he did. He was like a multi-threat: he was a lawyer, he was a preacher, he was a agriculturalist. He was multiple professions which also shaped who he was and how he was and all the information about him the relatives maintain with us.”

Rising from Poverty to the Presidency

Garfield was the final national leader raised in rustic conditions in the Midwest in 1831. His father died when he was very young, leaving his mom, Eliza, to raise five children in difficult circumstances. An insatiable reader, Garfield labored on waterways to make funds for an education.

He studied law, was ordained as minister, became leader of an institution in Ohio and was a political representative. In 1858 he wed a former classmate, his partner, with whom he would have a large family. An passionate nationalist, Garfield viewed the civil war as a holy crusade against human bondage and advanced to the officer status.

“As I studied his life, I found it incredible. He was absolutely brilliant. He was extremely courageous. He was very progressive for the period. He was caring. He was a moral individual and would have been one of our great presidents had he lived.”

Political Career and Shocking Selection

Garfield was encouraged by President Lincoln to depart military life when he was selected to the House of Representatives, where he would work as a political representative for multiple terms. He was dedicated proponent of black suffrage, viewing it as a issue of rights and the completion of a wartime covenant.

“The address he delivered on the House chamber will tear your heart out. He was an incredibly powerful orator and this issue was very important to him.”

At the political assembly in Chicago the political organization was deeply divided between the “Stalwarts”, led by an influential figure, who supported a continued leadership for military hero, and the “rival group”, who supported another candidate. Garfield attended as a supporter of his friend and fellow Ohioan John Sherman.

When the huge assembly was gridlocked between Grant and Blaine, party members began seeking a compromise. Garfield's impassioned speech supporting Sherman won them over. During the speech, he reportedly exclaimed, “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 stampede of delegates made Garfield the unexpected candidate. To satisfy the Stalwart faction, the vice presidential pick, a faction member from New York, was chosen as his running mate. In the general election Garfield overcame the opposing candidate to become the sole representative of the House ever to be chosen as leader.

Short Presidency and Political Battles

“His possible achievements and what is remarkably uncommon and maybe particular about the American presidency is he wasn't seeking the position. It's not that he had never thought about it but he was thrust into it.”

The defining conflict of Garfield's brief term was his clash with Conkling over the “spoils system”. Conkling demanded control over federal patronage in New York, particularly the prestigious role of customs official. Garfield declined, stating the issue was “concerning if the national leader becomes registering clerk of the senate or the executive of the United States”. He nominated a rival of Conkling to the post.

The dispute turned into a public battle but Garfield outmaneuvered Conkling in the Senate. Facing a humiliating public defeat, Conkling and his junior senator left their positions in protest. The next day, Garfield's nominee was ratified. It was a historic triumph for the power of the presidency over the political organization and for the cause of reform over “political control”.

The Killer and His Psychological Issues

But even as Garfield confronted influential people of his party, he was being stalked by a mentally unstable individual who embodied the problematic element of the patronage system. The assassin was a wanderer with a history of professional failures, mental instability and early life difficulties. He had been unsuccessful as a legal professional, financial agent, minister and member of a free-love commune.

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

But Guiteau believed he had finally found a route to achievement: politics. Carried away in the drama of the 1880 election, 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 reasoning, Guiteau determined he had merited a high-level government job. He travelled to Washington and continuously bothered Garfield, Blaine and other authorities, demanding to be made the diplomatic representative — a role for which he had zero qualifications. He became such a problem that he was eventually prohibited from the White House.

The Attack and Physician Mistakes

On that fateful day, just several weeks into his presidency, Garfield was departing the capital for his educational gathering. As he passed through the Baltimore & Potomac Railroad station, Guiteau emerged from hiding, pulled an handgun from his jacket and assassinated the leader in the back.

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