Visited: Sept 2020
Nearby city: Cleveland, OH
"Let us not commit ourselves to the senseless and absurd dogma that the color of the skin shall be the basis of suffrage.
In the extremity of our distress [the Civil War], we called upon the black man to help us save the Republic; and amid the very thunders of battle, we made a covenant with him, sealed both with his blood and with ours ... that, when the nation was redeemed, he should be free, and share with us its glories and its blessings.
God will appear in judgment against us if we do not fulfill that covenant. Have we done it? Have we given freedom to the black man? What is freedom? Is it the bare privilege of not being chained - of not being bought and sold, branded and scourged? If this is all, then freedom is a bitter mockery."
-James A. Garfield
as a member of the US House of Representatives, from a speech advocating for extension of right to vote to African-American males in Ravenna, Ohio on July 4, 1865
James A. Garfield, our nation's 20th president, has unfortunately slipped into obscurity in our history books. It is entirely undeserved. Despite his long career as a progressive and forward-thinking congressman, and a promising presidency that came to a terribly tragic end, his legacy has faded to "one of those late-19th century, nondescript, bearded presidents sandwiched between Lincoln and Teddy Roosevelt." If a student does recognize his name, it may only be due to a certain cartoon cat with a penchant for lasagna. 😁
Thankfully, the NPS manages and administers his beautiful home and estate, Lawnfield, to preserve the memory and heritage of this remarkable man who rose from utter poverty to the highest office in the land.
James Abram Garfield was born on November 19, 1831 in Orange Township, Ohio (now the suburb Moreland Hills in the metro-Cleveland area). He was the youngest of five children of Abram and Eliza Garfield. When Garfield was 2 years old, his father died. He was raised in abject poverty by his strong-willed mother, who found solace in the Protestant Church of Christ. Northeastern Ohio (known at the time as the Western Reserve) was ardently anti-slavery. This upbringing shaped Garfield's religious and abolitionist views. Young Garfield also found solace and comfort in books, and became a voracious reader.
Garfield was the last president born in a log cabin. A cabin has been reconstructed at the birthplace site.
At 16, Garfield left home and took his first job on a canal boat. Garfield was responsible for managing the mules that pulled the canal boat. Later in life, during his presidential campaign, his supporters dubbed him "Boatman Jim" to emphasize his humble roots.
At 17, Garfield enrolled in a religious school, the Geauga Seminary, in Ohio. Garfield excelled as a student, particularly in the disciplines of Greek, Latin, and elocution. He became known as a compelling and talented orator. He paid for his schooling by working as a teacher, a carpenter's assistant, and as a janitor. At Geauga Seminary, Garfield met a fellow student, Lucretia Rudolph, and fell in love. After a long courtship, they married in 1858. They had 7 children, 5 of whom lived to adulthood.
Shortly after getting married, Garfield read law at the office of attorney Albert Riddle (who was also a member of Congress) in Cleveland and was eventually admitted to the bar in 1861.
Garfield's anti-slavery views attracted him to the newly-formed Republican Party, and he campaigned for its presidential candidate, John C. Fremont, in 1856. Garfield proved to be an effective and persuasive speaker on the stump. Garfield was elected to the Ohio State Senate in 1860.
The Civil War broke out shortly after his election to the state senate. Garfield, eager to enlist to support the Union cause, was commissioned as a colonel in the 42nd Ohio Infantry regiment, and helped recruit many friends, neighbors, and former students.
Garfield served with distinction at the battles of Middle Creek, Shiloh, and Chickamauga. He served as chief of staff to General William Rosecrans, and was later promoted to a Major General.
While serving in the army, Garfield was elected to the U.S. Congress as representative of Ohio's 19th congressional district in 1862. Garfield would serve in the House for 17 years, garnering a reputation as a progressive and Radical Republican. Garfield supported harsh Reconstruction policies (clashing with Pres. Lincoln, who aimed for a more forgiving Reconstruction policy), the impeachment of Andrew Johnson, the 13th, 14th, and 15th Amendments, African-American suffrage and other civil rights, the gold standard, and civil service reform (breaking with some of his fellow Radical Republicans on this issue).
By 1876, Garfield's law career had made him financially successful, and he bought property northeast of Cleveland (in the town of Mentor), and built his estate Lawnfield. His beautiful home is preserved today.
As the election of 1880 approached, former President Ulysses S. Grant eyed a return to the White House and a third term. Garfield attended the nominating convention, pledged to support fellow Ohio senator John Sherman.
The convention quickly became a contest between two factions, (1) the "Stalwarts" - led by powerful New York Senator Roscoe Conkling, supporting former President Grant, and (2) the reform-minded "Half-Breeds" - supporting Senator James G. Blaine of Maine. The faction was largely personality-driven, but the two camps also differed greatly on the issue of civil service. The Stalwarts preferred the status-quo, that appointments to federal jobs/positions were made on the basis of political support and loyalty (i.e. "the spoils system"), while the "Half Breeds" were justifiably concerned that the spoils system led to corruption, and wanted federal appointments to be reformed and based on merit and experience.
John Sherman, Garfield's preferred candidate, placed a distant third on the first ballot at the convention. After dozens of ballots, neither Grant nor Blaine could manage a majority of the delegates to become the nominee. Delegates began to look for a compromise or "dark horse" candidate. Eventually, they settled on Garfield, who won the nomination on the 36th ballot.
Garfield had connections with both factions, but was mostly aligned with the "Half-Breeds." To appease the "Stalwart" faction of the GOP, Chester Alan Arthur, the Collector of the Port of New York and a loyal Stalwart, was confirmed as the Vice-Presidential nominee.
Garfield conducted a relatively quiet "front-porch campaign" from his home in Lawnfield, this style of campaigning became emblematic of presidential races of the late-19th and early-20th centuries.
Garfield's opponent in the general election was the Democratic candidate, Winfield Scott Hancock, a career military officer who had served with distinction as a Union General during the Civil War at Gettysburg and several other battles. The Republicans campaigned on "waving the bloody shirt" (essentially, "vote the way you shot" - which proved relatively ineffective due to the passage of time from the Civil War and the fact that Hancock had been a Union General), the gold standard (to help combat inflation), and a higher, more protective tarriff (to benefit business and industry, particularly in the North). Garfield won the popular vote by an incredibly close margin (only 1,898 votes!), but carried the Electoral Vote by a comfortable margin (thanks to sweeping nearly every Northern state).
Garfield was now the President. To this day, Garfield is the only sitting member of the US House of Representatives to win the presidency.
The NPS site has a great visitor center/museum to learn about the life and times of President Garfield. You can also tour the grounds and see the numerous outbuildings. Unfortunely, during our visit, no tours were being conducted inside the house.
Visitor Center/Museum
unique and interesting windmill
Garfield's term got off to a shaky start, leading to an acrimonious split between the two factions of the GOP. Garfield appointed James G. Blaine (the Half-Breed leader at the convention) to be the Secretary of State. This appointment infuriated New York Senator Roscoe Conkling and his Stalwart allies. Garfield also further angered Stalwarts when he supported Democratic-led congressional investigations into corruption at the US Post Office.
Garfield's actions also angered a delusional office-seeker named Charles J. Guiteau. Guiteau was an unsuccessful lawyer who drifted between Chicago, New York, and Boston. During the 1880 campaign, he wrote a speech supporting Garfield and delivered it at a few Republican gatherings in Massachusetts. After the election, Guiteau believed that he had played an important role in Garfield's election. Believing that his efforts entitled him to a federal appointment, he showed up at the White House, insisting that he be appointed consul to the US Embassy in either Vienna or Paris. Unsuprisingly, Guiteau was turned down for the positions and quickly shown the door.
Guiteau began to plot his revenge. Guiteau was a Stalwart, and he believed that if Vice President Arthur (a fellow Stalwart) was president instead, he might have better luck obtaining a job in an Arthur administration. Guiteau began to follow Garfield's schedule (this was back in the day when presidents usually travelled without any kind of security detail) and waited for an opportunity to assassinate him.
On July 2, 1881, a mere four months into his term, Garfield planned to join his family at Long Beach, New Jersey and celebrate Independence Day. He arrived at the Baltimore and Potomac Railroad Station in Washington DC and waited for his train. Sec. of State James Blaine and Sec. of War Robert Todd Lincoln (Abraham Lincoln's son) accompanied Garfield to the station to send him off. As Blaine and Garfield were in deep conversation, Guiteau emerged from the ladies' waiting room, where he had concealed himself, and shot Garfield twice at point-blank range, once in the back and once in the arm. Guiteau tried to escape but was quickly apprehended by a throng of onlookers. As he was carried away, Guiteau is reported to have said "I did it. I will go to jail for it. I am a Stalwart and Arthur will be president."
Garfield managed to initially survive the shooting. The shot to Garfield's arm ended up glancing off his sleeve, but the shot in his back shattered his rib and embedded in his abdomen. Garfield was treated by Dr. Willard Bliss. Bliss and the other doctors probed Garfield's wound in the back with unsterilized fingers and instruments (as was common at the time) in an unsuccessful attempt to dislodge the bullet.
Over the next few days, Garfield's health improved, and he was able to conduct a cabinet meeting from his bed, and managed to sit up in his bed and compose letters. However, in late July, his wounds developed a serious infection (likely from the unsterile treatment by his doctors), and he took a turn for the worse. After an agonizing and painful month-and-a-half, Garfield passed away on September 18, 1881. He was 49 years old.
As for Guiteau, he was found guilty of the murder after a highly-publicized trial and was executed by hanging on June 30, 1882.
The new President, Chester Alan Arthur, was heartbroken by Garfield's death and sickened by Guiteau's antics and motivation for the assassination. As President, Arthur bucked his Stalwart philosophies and advocated for civil service reform, passing the Pendleton Civil Service Reform Act in 1883. The act, which is still on the books today, mandates that most positions within the federal government should be awarded on the basis of merit instead of political patronage or favoritism.
Garfield was buried in Lake View Cemetery in Cleveland. His funeral was attended by former Presidents Grant and Hayes, as well as Union War Generals William Tecumseh Sherman, Philip Sheridan, and his 1880 opponent, Winfield Hancock. A beautiful memorial was built to commerorate the slain President.
The First Lady, Lucretia, was grief stricken by her husband's tragic death, and never remarried. She lived a very private life afterwards, but did make a few appearances in support of Theodore Roosevelt's campaign for President, and became a volunuteer for the Red Cross at the outbreak of World War I. In later life, Lucretia spent her winters in southern California, where she passed away on March 14, 1918, at the age of 85. She is buried next to her husband.
For whatever reason, President Garfield has slipped into obscurity, but learning about his life and legacy at the NPS site was very rewarding. Garfield's traits, accomplishments, and leadership qualities deserve to be studied, celebrated, and emulated.
For more info: https://www.nps.gov/jaga/index.htm
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