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Throughout history, the family members of the 20th US president shared stories about his impressive career but rarely mentioned his tragic assassination. “We knew what had happened, that he was assassinated in a train station,” explains one of his living relatives. “We learned about the story in historical accounts but, for various reasons, we just glanced over it.”

Renewed Attention in a Overlooked Leader

This changed in 2011 with the release of a historical book, which sparked curiosity in Garfield's truncated career. This work has now inspired a streaming series titled Death by Lightning, starring Michael Shannon as the national leader and Matthew Macfadyen as the wanderer who gunned him down.

The series seeks to shine a light on Garfield, who rose from poverty to the highest office during the historical period only to fall victim to its toxic political divisions. His presidency was truncated after only several months not only by the killer's weapon but by physician mistakes – an event now frequently ignored while the deaths of the Civil War president and John F Kennedy continue to captivate the public.

“One cannot help but admire what he did. He was incredibly versatile: he was a lawyer, he was a religious leader, he was a farmer. He was all of these things which also formed his character and his behavior and all the information about him the relatives maintain with us.”

Starting from Nothing to the Presidency

Garfield was the final national leader coming from pioneer roots in the Midwest in 1831. His dad perished when he was just a toddler, leaving his mother, Eliza, to support a large family in challenging conditions. An insatiable reader, Garfield found employment on vessels to make funds for an education.

He studied law, was entered the clergy, became leader of an institution in Ohio and was a state senator. In 1858 he married a previous schoolmate, his future wife, with whom he would have a large family. An ardent Unionist, Garfield viewed the internal struggle as a holy crusade against human bondage and progressed to the rank of major general.

“As I studied his life, I found it incredible. He was absolutely brilliant. He was incredibly brave. He was very progressive for the time. He was kind. He was a decent human being and would have been an outstanding leader had he lived.”

Government Service and Surprise Candidacy

Garfield was convinced by President Lincoln to depart military life when he was chosen to the legislative branch, where he would serve as a political representative for multiple terms. He was strong supporter of African American voting rights, viewing it as a question of fairness and the completion of a military promise.

“His oration on the legislative arena will tear your heart out. He was an impressive communicator and this matter was very important to him.”

At the political assembly in Chicago the political organization was deeply divided between the “political group”, led by a powerful politician, who supported a third term for Ulysses S Grant, and the “Half-Breeds”, who supported another candidate. Garfield attended as a backer of his state colleague John Sherman.

When the 15,000-person convention was gridlocked between Grant and Blaine, delegates began searching for a middle ground. Garfield's powerful oration supporting Sherman caught their attention. During the speech, he reportedly exclaimed, “And now, delegates, what do we want?” to which a voice from the crowd unexpectedly replied, “We want Garfield!”

On the multiple voting round, a rush of supporters made Garfield the surprise nominee. To satisfy the Stalwart faction, Chester Arthur, a Conkling loyalist from New York, was chosen as his running mate. In the presidential race Garfield beat the opposing candidate to become the only sitting member of the House ever to be selected for the highest office.

Brief Administration and Government Conflicts

“His possible achievements and what is remarkably uncommon 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 pushed toward it.”

The central struggle of Garfield's short presidency was his clash with Conkling over the “spoils system”. Conkling insisted on authority over federal patronage in New York, particularly the prestigious role of port authority. Garfield rejected, stating the issue was “if the commander-in-chief should be registering clerk of the senate or the presidential authority”. He selected a political foe of Conkling to the post.

The confrontation turned into a public battle but Garfield outsmarted Conkling in the Senate. Confronting a embarrassing loss, Conkling and his colleague resigned their seats in protest. The next day, Garfield's nominee was ratified. It was a landmark victory for the power of the presidency over the political organization and for the improvement efforts over “machine politics”.

The Gunman and His Mental Illness

But even as Garfield confronted influential people of his party, he was being pursued by a psychologically troubled person who exemplified the problematic element of the patronage system. The gunman was a wanderer with a record of career disappointments, mental instability and early life difficulties. He had failed as a attorney, debt recovery agent, preacher and member of a free-love commune.

“He was psychologically disturbed and his specific type of insanity was delusion. He always believed that religious calling for greatness. He actually had superior economic background than Garfield but where Garfield achieved and rose, Guiteau failed at everything.”

But Guiteau believed he had finally found a route to achievement: politics. Caught up in the excitement of the 1880 election, he prepared and gave an minor oration, and became certain in his thoughts that he was solely accountable for Garfield's victory.

Under this thinking, Guiteau calculated he had deserved a high-level government job. He travelled to Washington and relentlessly pestered Garfield, Blaine and other officials, requiring to be made the foreign service officer — a position for which he had inadequate skills. He became such a problem that he was eventually prohibited from the White House.

The Shooting and Physician Mistakes

On the tragic date, just four months into his presidency, Garfield was departing the capital for his alumni event. As he passed through the Baltimore & Potomac Railroad station, Guiteau emerged from hiding, withdrew an ivory-handled British Bull Dog revolver from his jacket and fired multiple rounds in the back.

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