Revealing the Heartbreaking Reality Behind the Streaming Giant's Death by Lightning

Over many years, the family members of President Garfield spoke proudly about his impressive career but seldom discussed his untimely death. “We knew what had happened, that he was gunned down in a railway depot,” explains one of his living relatives. “We read about the story in historical accounts but, for various reasons, we just glanced over it.”

Fresh Curiosity in a Forgotten President

This changed in 2011 with the issuing of a historical book, which sparked curiosity in Garfield's unfinished life. This work has now inspired a streaming series titled the historical drama, including Michael Shannon as the president and his co-star as the wanderer who gunned him down.

The series seeks to shine a light on Garfield, who emerged from difficult circumstances to the White House during the economic era 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 event now mostly overlooked while the assassinations of Abraham Lincoln and President Kennedy continue to captivate the public.

“You can't help but be proud what he did. He was like a multi-threat: he was a lawyer, he was a minister, he was a farmer. He was all of these things which also shaped who he was and how he was and all the information about him the relatives maintain with us.”

Starting from Nothing to the Presidency

Garfield was the last president coming from pioneer roots in the Midwest in 1831. His parent passed away when he was very young, leaving his mother, Eliza, to care for multiple kids in challenging conditions. An insatiable reader, Garfield worked on canal boats to make funds for an formal learning.

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 former classmate, his future wife, with whom he would have multiple offspring. An ardent Unionist, Garfield viewed the civil war as a righteous fight against forced servitude and advanced to the officer status.

“As I studied his life, I was astonished. He was remarkably smart. He was incredibly brave. He was innovative for the time. He was compassionate. He was a moral individual and would have been a remarkable commander-in-chief had he lived.”

Government Service and Shocking Selection

Garfield was convinced by the wartime leader to resign his military commission when he was elected to the legislative branch, where he would work as a party member for nearly two decades. He was dedicated proponent of African American voting rights, viewing it as a matter of justice and the completion of a conflict agreement.

“The speech he gave on the legislative arena will move you deeply. He was an incredibly powerful orator and this issue was deeply meaningful to him.”

At the political assembly in Chicago the party was deeply divided between the “political group”, led by Senator Roscoe Conkling, who supported a additional presidency for former president, and the “rival group”, who supported another candidate. Garfield attended as a backer of his close associate John Sherman.

When the 15,000-person convention was gridlocked between Grant and Blaine, representatives began searching for a solution. Garfield's impassioned speech nominating Sherman impressed them. During the speech, he reportedly declared, “And now, representatives, what do we want?” to which a audience member unexpectedly replied, “We want Garfield!”

On the multiple voting round, a rush of supporters made Garfield the shocking choice. To appease the Stalwart faction, Chester Arthur, a political ally from New York, was chosen as his running mate. In the national vote Garfield defeated the rival politician to become the only sitting member of the House ever to be chosen as leader.

Truncated Term and Government Conflicts

“What would have made Garfield great and what is remarkably uncommon and maybe unique to the American presidency is he didn't want the job. It's not that he had never thought about it but he was pushed toward it.”

The major battle of Garfield's short presidency was his confrontation with Conkling over the “spoils system”. Conkling insisted on authority over government appointments in New York, particularly the influential position of customs official. Garfield declined, stating the issue was “whether the president is registering clerk of the senate or the nation's leader”. He proposed a rival of Conkling to the post.

The conflict became a open fight but Garfield outsmarted Conkling in the Senate. Experiencing a public failure, Conkling and his associate resigned their seats in protest. The next day, Garfield's candidate was ratified. It was a historic triumph for the presidential control over the political organization and for the change movement over “political control”.

The Killer and His Mental Illness

But even as Garfield battled the titans of his party, he was being followed by a psychologically troubled person who represented the dark side of the patronage system. Charles Guiteau was a unstable individual with a history of occupational setbacks, psychological problems and physical and psychological abuse. He had been unsuccessful as a legal professional, bill collector, religious figure and member of a unconventional group.

“He was mentally ill and his unique form of delusion was fantasy. He always believed that divine selection for importance. 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 eventually located a way to accomplishment: politics. Caught up in the events of the 1880 election, he prepared and gave an insignificant speech, and became convinced in his own mind that he was solely accountable for Garfield's victory.

Under this reasoning, Guiteau calculated he had earned a prestigious position. He journeyed to DC and constantly harassed Garfield, Blaine and other authorities, demanding to be made the diplomatic representative — a post for which he had no experience. He became such a nuisance that he was eventually banned from the White House.

The Shooting and Doctor Errors

On 2 July 1881, just several weeks into his presidency, Garfield was leaving Washington for his alumni event. As he walked through the transportation center, Guiteau emerged from hiding, withdrew an handgun from his coat pocket and fired multiple rounds in the back.

Garfield exclaimed: “My God, what is this?” and collapsed on the station floor. When a {police officer|law