So unfortunate Garfield didnt have the physicians Grover Cleveland would have 12 years later. Garfield's Dr's apparently knew nothing about infection. Cleveland survived an operation to remove oral cancer and lived another 15 years after the surgery.
Garfield's doctors and friends tried everything they could to make his final weeks as comfortable as possible, even building a railroad line to a remote cottage so the gravely ill President might get some relief from the chaos his shooting triggered.
For anyone interested, Candice Millard wrote an excellent biography on Garfield titled, “Destiny of the Republic”. It’s a very interesting and informative read.
@@MrDrosteHistory I rarely read the descriptions, just watch the videos. Your account is true to the facts stated in Ms. Millard’s book but Garfield’s story is fascinating. Medical and scientific advances happening so quickly as he lay wounded made for a very interesting read. It sounds as if Garfield would have been an excellent president.
It is a brilliant book that tells the story of Garfield better than any other. Candice Millard is a wonderful author, he book on Teddy Roosevelt "River of Doubt" is also a great read.
@@Tboy439 "as it is working today." You should read up on the Southern Strategy. Acting like party alignment today is the same as 100+ years ago is obviously ludicrous. Almost as ludicrous as this conspiracy theory.
While Garfield was in bed after the assassination', doctors tried to locate the bullet in his body. They called in an inventor to scan his body with an experimental medal detector to find that bullet. The detector was not able lo locate it. That inventor was Alexander Graham Bell, the same man who invented the telephone.
He is credited for inventing the telephone, though others had the same idea earlier, Bell's was the first practical one to be patented. Just like almost everything, there's always controversy.
@@MrDrosteHistory My antique bed has a steel spring mattress , it's been in the family since I was a kid in the 60s ( a tightwad landlady offered me 200 dollars for it in 1980 , I figured if she was offering that much , it had to be worth more . )
Informative .. I never knew Grant wanted to run for a third term. Perhaps he wanted to improve his image from his first two terms. His memoirs are expansive. He barely mentions presidency, though.
@@kathydominick1582 That’s quite the non-sequitur. By Reagan’s time, the 22nd constitutional amendment had been ratified limiting presidents to two terms, so whatever Reagan may or may not have wanted in that regard matters not at all. Everyone before FDR had a legitimate opportunity, if they so chose. Reagan did not have that choice so I have to ask, what is your actual point in saying it?
As a child, I lived around the corner from Guitoe's house in Freeport, Illinois. Two little girls lived there and said it was haunted. The rumor among children was it was Booth's house, probably because we knew about Lincoln but not Garfield.
I had old grandparents too. Mine were born around 1879/1881. The ones that were alive when I was born were around 80 years old. My father was named after Howard Taft . My Great Grandparents were all born around 1840 or even late 1830's. It is just a trip that alot of kids today know their Great Grandparents & mine were Civil War Era.
President Garfield and his family spent the summers vacationing at the "Jersey Shore" in Long Branch, NJ at the Franklyn cottage in the Elberon section of the city. While there, he attended his last church service at the original St. James' Church building on Broadway. Charles Guiteau also attended that day and planned to shoot Garfield during worship. One of the stories is that a small unruly child made it impossible for Guiteau to get a clear shot. Guiteau followed Garfield back to Washington where he shot the president. Because the summer climate was cooler at the shore, Garfield's doctors recommended he recover at the Franklyn cottage in Long Branch. Because the dirt roads were rutted, the local men laid a spur of railroad track from the Elberon station to the front door of the Franklyn cottage and the men pulled the last car of the train so the president would be more comfortable and his wound would not reopen. Unfortunately because of the doctors, the president died not long after and was returned to Washington, DC. The cottage is no longer there but, a plaque is located at the site. A plaque also is mounted on a front pew in the present St. James' Church located on Broadway at Slocum Place. A statue of the president in on the beachfront promenade in front of the Ocean Place Hotel. Long Branch was the regular summer vacation spot for seven presidents including Garfield. The term "Summer White House" was originally given to Long Branch because of the regular presidential visits.
The infection is what killed him after laying there for days with no one being able to do anything. He actually started to get a little better running his presidency from his bed in the white house. Isnt crazy how you could just knock on the front door of the White House.
Interesting point to note: John Sherman (the Sec. of Treasury, Sec. of State, U.S. Senator) was the brother of ... William Tecumseh Sherman, noted Union General who took Atlanta and then Savannah (and made Georgia howl).
There’s a lot of important information not covered. Especially the behind the scenes dynamics of Garfield and Chester Arthur coming from rival factions and the influence of Party Boss Roscoe Conklin who was an enemy of Garfield.
The rival factions absolutely are mentioned in the video. I could have made a longer video going into all of the particulars of his career but this is supposed to be a brief overview covering the assassination.
It should be noted that John Sherman was the brother of General William Tecumseh Sherman, who had already declared he had no interest in the Presidency ("If nominated, I shall not run. And if elected, I shall not serve.") but the Republicans still wanted some of that reflected Civil War glory, as it had helped them so well with Grant. After John Sherman failed to get the nomination, he returned to the Senate, where his legacy is best known for the Sherman Anti-Trust Act, which is still in effect today. And the contest wasn't simply between Grant and Sherman; that was the divide among the Half-Breeds, but the Stalwarts wanted Senator James G. Blaine ("Blaine from Maine"). It was Blaine who won the Republican nomination in 1884, but was defeated by Grover Cleveland. (This despite a classic "sleaze" campaign, where the Republicans claimed that Cleveland had fathered an illegitimate child and went to his rallies to chant "Ma, Ma, Where's My Pa?" When Cleveland won the election, Democrats took to chanting "Gone to the White House, HaHaHa!") Guiteau yelled as he was captured "I am a Stalwart and Arthur will be President!" At one point Garfield recovered well enough that they got him out of bed and back to his desk and took photographs of him back at work. But he relapsed and died. His death was part of the impetus that led to widespread adoption of Louis Pasteur's germ theory and the need for sterile operating theaters, which had previously been met with "crazy French guy, we've been doing just fine for years!" type of scorn. So the reason that your milk is "Pasteurized" (heated to kill germs, then chilled again) is partly due to Garfield's death. While Garfield was struggling to recover, Chester Arthur did NOT try to be the "acting President" as nowadays a VP would be elevated to under the 25th Amendment. He didn't want people thinking he had anything to do with the assassination plot. Indeed, he mostly stayed in New York, waiting for Garfield to recover. Eventually, of course, Garfield died and Arthur became President, and promptly disappointed Guiteau and all the Stalwarts by completing Garfield's Civil Service reforms. Indeed, as the bulk of the work was done under Arthur, he's considered a fairly successful President. Even if he didn't want the job.
1:31 Not sure if it's the same John Sherman, but the was a Senator by that name who was the brother of General William Tecumseh Sherman. The picture shows a family resemblance so I think it's the same guy.
It’s crazy to think how far medical knowledge has come since the inception of the US. President Washington died because of the common cold. The cold itself didn’t kill him. Washington died because treatment (at the time) for a sore throat and cough was bloodletting. Doctors drained 1/3 of his blood. Garfield died because doctors didn’t sterilize before treating his wound. We’re so fortunate to have the medical information we do today.
I would disagree that Chester a Arthur was unremarkable. On the ticket as a stalwart to balance the half breed ticket, but actually did a ton of civil service reform. Had a very unusual correspondence with a woman who he never met, who acted as a bit of a conscience for him and really directed his presidency. Garfield is probably the greatest “what if”, but Chester A Arthur is probably the biggest plot twist. In the end, he was extremely well thought of.
You're correct about Arthur. Not only did he bring about civil service reform by signing the Pendleton Act (thus turning his back on the spoils system he elevated in as Chief Collector of the New York Custom House), Arthur began the process of converting the US Navy to steel (as the navy was in shambles 20 years after the Civil War, due to lack of funding), vetoed the Chinese Exclusion Act (banning Chinese immigration for 20 years), regarding it as a sign of bad faith to a country the US had just signed a treaty with, and signed a bill for a pension for Grant, who was dying and bankrupted. It's been said of Arthur, "He wasn't an inspiring president, not an inovated president, but quite surprisingly, a competent president. Arthur failed to get the Republican nomination in 1884 because he angered the party bosses who approved of the spoils system, and failed to win the support of reformers who thought his measures didn't go far enough.
Just a note here. Arthur vetoed the 20 year Chinese Exclusion Act but he did sign the 10 year Chinese Exclusion Act. While he deserves credit for signing civil service reform, that had been one of Garfield's major goals and Garfield's assassination brought on the passage of the bill by Congress due to public pressure. Again, Arthur still deserves credit for signing it, but it's not like he spearheaded it to get it done. He was far from a great president, but he did some good things and was competent. Unfortunately, nobody really knows who he is today (like a lot of presidents from that era), which is more or less why I said "unremarkable" in the video.
@@MrDrosteHistory It's true that Arthur did sign the 10 year Chinese Exclusion Act, simply because when the bill was reintroduced, reducing the ban to 10 years, Arthur knew there were enough votes to override his veto. When he vetoed the original bill, there was a firestorm of protest out west, by men who were out of work, and blamed the Chinese for it. Politicians jumped on this anti-Chinese sentiment. Rather than be a martyr to principle, Arthur pragmatically signed the bill. True, Arthur will never be regarded as a great president, but coming from one who studied him for over 40 years, I believe Arthur deserves more credit than history has giving him. Few, if anyone, will today take the time to learn about the "Gentleman Boss", thus he remains for the most part, unknown. But for a man who never desired to be president, and never enjoyed being president, Arthur served his nation well.
I hate Dr Bliss more than Garfield's actual assassin. Guiteau was at least pitiable in how insane he was, but Dr Bliss's stubbornness led the president to die in agony
On looking back should the secret service really have allocated services/resources to protect a man named “James Garfield”. I think his name was probably the beginning of his downfall.
Chapman was a fan of Lennon, but after doing some research on Lennon's personal life he saw him as a hypocrite. He really believed in Lennon's music and was strongly disappointed to find out that Lennon was kinda a shitty person in real life. Not to say he wasn't crazy, but there is a little more to it than him just being a deranged fan. On a different note, I just subbed yesterday. This channel has some great content! Im thankful that I came across it!
Ford is the only unelected president since he was appointed VP and never won election as POTUS on his own right. The other VPs who ascended to the office of president were elected to the office as VP, so one couldn't call them unelected.
Didn't the assassin also shout "Arthur IS MY PRESIDENT!" before/while shooting Garfield? At least it wasn't as bad as a dude shooting a president to try to impress a young actress. Jodie Foster apparently still isn't over being linked to that incident. That guy's on the streets now. Ghaaaa.
Looking back on my own education I'm surprised how long it took me to become familiar with President Garfield and the circumstances of his untimely death. It's especially surprising considering my deep fascination with the untimely death of President Kennedy. As a teenager I would absorb all the information I could find about Dallas 11/22/63, Dealey plaza, the school book depository, 6.5mm Carcano etc. etc. etc. The whole event and the stories told about the event seemed so violently wrong, like a break in the natural laws of history and human society. How could a single crazy man kill the most powerful man in the world ? It just didn't seem right, neither morally or practically. Of course I was taught about the untimely death of President Lincoln, Ford's theater, John Wilkes Booth, "Sic Semper Tyrannis" etc. But that was always presented as a tragic but natural unfolding of history the way it ought to be. A noble man who fought the good fight was laid low by the powers of darkness but in death ascended to take his rightful place in the pantheon of heroes. So in a way the death of Lincoln at the hand of Booth was presented to me as being of the same type as the death of Socrates by the Athenian assembly or the death of Jesus by Pontius Pilot and the Romans. A spiritual event not a political one. But with age comes some wisdom, or at least a lot more information. I learned about Garfield in1881 and McKinley in 1901. Then if I also add Lincoln in 1865, Kennedy in 1963 a different pattern of human nature emerges. Some very near misses are also relevant such as Reagan in 1981. We should not only limited ourselves to America of course, British Prime Minister Spencer Perceval was shot and killed in 1812. In all those cases it was a man with a gun and a grudge and almost certainly some sort of mental disorder. Now I have come to realize that none of this is an aberration of history. Men with guns, men with grudges and men with mental disorders can very well be one and the same man. This is very much part of the human condition
How cool, I would click on this, I find history very interesting. Low an behold it’s a name I recognize from the TCB cast! How cool that you and I both love Elvis and history…. And I would click on this vid… I knew I recognize that voice.
California voters would vote for the individual electors to the electoral college during that era. Hancock won the statewide vote by just 144 votes, but one elector who was pledging himself for Garfield actually won sixth place among the electors so he was able to cast his electoral vote for Garfield as the sixth and final vote from the state.
Arthur was a good President, unjustly forgotten, he achieved what Garfield would have never done, since his party was so divided. Arthur being from the anti civil service faction ironically was in better position to achieve that and he did.
By that you mean signing the bill inspired by Garfield? The one that Garfield's assassination helped push over the top? It was good of Arthur to sign it, but surely he can't be given too much credit. Also, signing the Chinese Exclusion Act was terrible. He is generally ranked by historians toward the bottom of the pack, rightfully so as his time in office was fairly unremarkable outside of signing the Pendleton Act. The last time thousands of historians were surveyed for their presidential rankings (2021), Arthur came in at #30. Seems appropriate to me, and I trust the judgment of thousands of presidential scholars.
@@MrDrosteHistory you're fixated with the Chinese exclusion Act, it was the politicians in congress who wanted that even the general public echoed the same sentiment, he vetoed the first bill, but agreed to sign the amended one because he knew congress would override him. Blame the congress for that not Arthur. Even Garfield had pledged to do something about the issue. Regarding Garfield and the reform of the Civil service, he said he agreed on concept but promised to make no appointments without consultation with party leadership. Which was labelled.inconsistent. Garfield won the election because New York was delivered to him by Conkling and Arthur. He was in no position to alienate one side or another. Arthur on the contrary belonging to the faction that was against the reform, was in a better position to push it through. As for historians, I prefer what contemporaries said, as they had a first had account about things. "No man ever entered the Presidency so profoundly and widely distrusted as Chester Alan Arthur, and no one ever retired ... more generally respected, alike by political friend and foe."[The New York World summed up Arthur's presidency at his death in 1886: "No duty was neglected in his administration, and no adventurous project alarmed the nation." Mark Twain wrote of him, "It would be hard indeed to better President Arthur's administration."
I would not say I am fixated on the Chinese Exclusion Act. But it has aged terribly and was a real bad decision, even with the concessions. History has shown it to be as such, and that’s what we are doing here. Analyzing it as history. He did sign it so it is part of his record. As for contemporaries, it’s hard to evaluate a presidency in its immediate aftermath. It’s too close to that moment in time and people are too tied to it emotionally. It takes historical perspective. I’m not saying he was an all around bad president. It was a mostly unremarkable presidency, though. He was only added to the ticket to balance the party factions as you mentioned. The real tragedy is Garfield, obviously, as he might have been a truly great president.
@@MrDrosteHistory Well Garfield could have been also a worse or a greater President than Arthur. We shall never know. However You forget that Garfield and to some extent Arthur, had to deal with the nefarious influence of Blaine. Had Arthur been on the ticket in 1884 instead of Blaine, he would have won. Garfield had made too many compromises with the party and those compromises would have tied his hands. Blaine would have done his utmost behind the scenes to backstab him, to take his place for the election of 1884. As for the Exclusion Act, even if Arthur vetoed the second bill, his veto would have been overridden by congress. You might say he signed it, yeah he did, but if it wasn't for him it would have been much worse. We can't judge leaders and politicians with today's standards and measures. I am not saying that Arthur's presidency was remarkable but it wasn't bad, it was decent. He was much better than others that preceded him. Keep in mind he did not want to become President and once he was, for most of his time in the WH he had to deal with an illness that would eventually kill him.
Garfield let Lincoln perversely make a fool out of him by talking him into resigning his generalship in the Union Army for politics. Garfield was a good general and a fool of a politician. Going me-too on what Lincoln had to say. Having screwed up royally by leaving the army and being naturally mouthy, the convention nominated him. He should have declined it. He had poor right to it anyway. even once shot he could have survived if he hadn't masochistically stood up for the quack who was as responsible for his death as the assassin. Garfield was one of history's. worst jokes.
@@mikebronicki8264 there never really was a swap. The 21 Democrats who filibustered Civil Rights all died Democrats, except one. Strom Thurmond was the only Democrat who changed parties after Civil Rights. There was no magical switch where everyone just decided to vote for the other party, all at the same time. Democrats just betrayed their religious base in the 60s and went hippie and abortion crazy, pushed socialism, and a bunch of college kids went to the DNC conventions. And all the older logical people were like nah. And they just did the exact same thing, and people will pretend as if some switch happened. It didn’t. It’s just a replay of the 60s. Democrats have ALWAYS been for enslaving the people. They come in whatever mask you need them to wear. It’s a sociopathic circle they keep forcing on us. There was no big switch and never has been. It’s just betrayed voter syndrome, and it’s 100% intentional.
There will be a cure for cancer some day. Are you calling today's doctors incompetent because they can't save all cancer patients? Doctors were unaware of bacteria and germs in 1880.
@@ynohtnazehcnas91 Not so simple, I’m afraid. The quack who took the lead in Garfield’s care was Dr Willard Bliss (sounds like a villain in the “Batman” TV show). He pushed aside other doctors and decided only he knew best. Like many of his contemporaries, Bliss ignored the advice of Dr Joseph Lister on basic matters, such as washing hands and instruments, and maintaining clean surroundings - difficult even in the White House. He continued probing Garfield’s wounds with his unsterilized fingers, and force-fed him heavy meals and alcohol, which only induced severe vomiting; Garfield had lost considerable weight by the time he died, nearly three months after the shooting. For an in-depth account, I recommend “Destiny of the Republic,” by Candice Millard. Excellent, fascinating reading!
At 5:59... What is "R-1", the south eastern corner of California...? What's the history of that...? I wonder. Okay, Republican, one vote but how did that come about. Nothing was there but Death Valley desert.
California voters would vote for the individual electors to the electoral college during that era. Hancock won the statewide vote by just 144 votes, but one elector who was pledging himself for Garfield actually won sixth place among the electors so he was able to cast his electoral vote for Garfield as the sixth and final vote from the state.
Wrong election. They were reformers (the "Goo-goos", good government types) who couldn't accept the nomination of James G. Blaine in 1884 and bolted. They weren't a huge faction, but they were enough to give Grover Cleveland, a younger man with a squeaky-clean record, the win.
that was just about the way it happened. no drama just good info. I think you should rethink Chester A. No way near the bottom of the Presidents (in my opinion). I do know you didn't say that buttttttt you kind of inferred it.
I'm not sure where I'd rank him. I'd have to put some serious thought into a list. Would be fun to do sometime. Among presidential historians, though, he's not typically highly ranked. Here's the last four C-SPAN Presidential Historian Survey results for Chester Arthur and where he ranked. 2021: 30th 2017: 35th 2009: 32nd 2000: 32nd
Interestingly, Garfield ranked higher despite his short time in office, probably due to his leadership on civil service reform, which eventually got done after he was assassinated with the Pendleton Act. 2021: 27th 2017: 29th 2009: 28th 2000: 29th
Garfield is the greatest "what if" in American history. He's a man who could have done so much.
Agreed
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the greatest "what if" is if Al Gore had been elected.
I think the biggest “What if…?” is the Lincoln assassination.
Very interesting and 'down to earth,
understandible', explantion of Garfield's assassination!
So unfortunate Garfield didnt have the physicians Grover Cleveland would have 12 years later. Garfield's Dr's apparently knew nothing about infection. Cleveland survived an operation to remove oral cancer and lived another 15 years after the surgery.
Garfield wasn't a Jersey guy.
Cleveland had part of his jaw removed and replaced with whale bone. He never took a photo on the left side of his face again.
The Garfield National Historic Site in Mentor, OH (near Cleveland) is excellent.
Garfield's doctors and friends tried everything they could to make his final weeks as comfortable as possible, even building a railroad line to a remote cottage so the gravely ill President might get some relief from the chaos his shooting triggered.
For anyone interested, Candice Millard wrote an excellent biography on Garfield titled, “Destiny of the Republic”. It’s a very interesting and informative read.
I have it linked in my video description above. A great book!
@@MrDrosteHistory I rarely read the descriptions, just watch the videos. Your account is true to the facts stated in Ms. Millard’s book but Garfield’s story is fascinating. Medical and scientific advances happening so quickly as he lay wounded made for a very interesting read. It sounds as if Garfield would have been an excellent president.
It is a brilliant book that tells the story of Garfield better than any other. Candice Millard is a wonderful author, he book on Teddy Roosevelt "River of Doubt" is also a great read.
@@ThrupleQuashimodo Agreed! The book on Roosevelt was also an excellent read.
@@Tboy439 "as it is working today." You should read up on the Southern Strategy. Acting like party alignment today is the same as 100+ years ago is obviously ludicrous. Almost as ludicrous as this conspiracy theory.
The way I understand it Garfield would have lived if the Drs knew about cleaning medical instruments, and stopped probing him every chance they got
While Garfield was in bed after the assassination', doctors tried to locate the bullet in his body. They called in an inventor to scan his body with an experimental medal detector to find that bullet. The detector was not able lo locate it. That inventor was Alexander Graham Bell, the same man who invented the telephone.
Correct. Garfield was laying on a metal spring mattress, which was rare for the time, causing the metal detector to malfunction.
Alexander Graham Bell never invented the telephone.
He is credited for inventing the telephone, though others had the same idea earlier, Bell's was the first practical one to be patented. Just like almost everything, there's always controversy.
@@MrDrosteHistorytrue.
@@MrDrosteHistory
My antique bed has a steel spring mattress , it's been in the family since I was a kid in the 60s
( a tightwad landlady offered me 200 dollars for it in 1980 , I figured if she was offering that much , it had to be worth more . )
Informative .. I never knew Grant wanted to run for a third term. Perhaps he wanted to improve his image from his first two terms. His memoirs are expansive. He barely mentions presidency, though.
Grant's Presidency was and still is pending Biden's Impeachment the most corrupt Presidential Administration in US history .....facts....
I didn't know that either. Ronald Reagan also wanted a third term
@@kathydominick1582 That’s quite the non-sequitur. By Reagan’s time, the 22nd constitutional amendment had been ratified limiting presidents to two terms, so whatever Reagan may or may not have wanted in that regard matters not at all. Everyone before FDR had a legitimate opportunity, if they so chose. Reagan did not have that choice so I have to ask, what is your actual point in saying it?
As a child, I lived around the corner from Guitoe's house in Freeport, Illinois. Two little girls lived there and said it was haunted. The rumor among children was it was Booth's house, probably because we knew about Lincoln but not Garfield.
And Robert Todd Lincoln was right behind Garfield in the train station when he was shot! Lincoln was there for McKinley assassination too!
Thank God RTLincoln isn't? wasn't? around today. Can you imagine all of the conspiracy theories that could be spun off of that many coincidence's?
Was he on the grassy knoll?
@@chucklowery2314 Very likely…😏
@@vinnydaq13 I knew it
Guiteau was a member of the Oneida Community founded by John Humphrey Noyes, first cousin of Garfield's predecessor, Rutherford B. Hayes.
I liked the cartoons and your explanation of them.
I read Guiteau's lawyers said the doctors killed Garfield. Their client had merely shot him.
Yes, it was Guiteau himself who said that in court.
I shot him but the doctors killed him
@@MrDrosteHistory He was right.
But the doctors wouldn’t have killed him if Guiteau hadn’t shot Garfield in the first place. Poor argument.
@Team Fish We didn't say it was a successful defense, he was convicted. His point was however true.
My grandfather, born 1881, was named for Garfield.
I had old grandparents too.
Mine were born around 1879/1881.
The ones that were alive when I was born were around 80 years old.
My father was named after Howard Taft .
My Great Grandparents were all born around 1840 or even late 1830's.
It is just a trip that alot of kids today know their Great Grandparents & mine were Civil War Era.
I heard the same was true for Jim Davis' grandfather. Garfield was named after his grandpa, who was named after the president
President Garfield and his family spent the summers vacationing at the "Jersey Shore" in Long Branch, NJ at the Franklyn cottage in the Elberon section of the city. While there, he attended his last church service at the original St. James' Church building on Broadway. Charles Guiteau also attended that day and planned to shoot Garfield during worship. One of the stories is that a small unruly child made it impossible for Guiteau to get a clear shot. Guiteau followed Garfield back to Washington where he shot the president. Because the summer climate was cooler at the shore, Garfield's doctors recommended he recover at the Franklyn cottage in Long Branch. Because the dirt roads were rutted, the local men laid a spur of railroad track from the Elberon station to the front door of the Franklyn cottage and the men pulled the last car of the train so the president would be more comfortable and his wound would not reopen. Unfortunately because of the doctors, the president died not long after and was returned to Washington, DC. The cottage is no longer there but, a plaque is located at the site. A plaque also is mounted on a front pew in the present St. James' Church located on Broadway at Slocum Place. A statue of the president in on the beachfront promenade in front of the Ocean Place Hotel. Long Branch was the regular summer vacation spot for seven presidents including Garfield. The term "Summer White House" was originally given to Long Branch because of the regular presidential visits.
The infection is what killed him after laying there for days with no one being able to do anything. He actually started to get a little better running his presidency from his bed in the white house. Isnt crazy how you could just knock on the front door of the White House.
John in the 1960s the public could go watch senate sessions without camera scrutiny or metal detectors!
He died because the doctor's dug inside the wound with dirty hands and instruments giving him a massive infection.
Killer: I wanna ask a question JG ; Go ahead, shoot. killer; hee heee, I sure will
Garfield, like Lincoln, was born in a log cabin.
Interesting point to note: John Sherman (the Sec. of Treasury, Sec. of State, U.S. Senator) was the brother of ... William Tecumseh Sherman, noted Union General who took Atlanta and then Savannah (and made Georgia howl).
Correct!
There’s a lot of important information not covered. Especially the behind the scenes dynamics of Garfield and Chester Arthur coming from rival factions and the influence of Party Boss Roscoe Conklin who was an enemy of Garfield.
The rival factions absolutely are mentioned in the video. I could have made a longer video going into all of the particulars of his career but this is supposed to be a brief overview covering the assassination.
@@MrDrosteHistory Indeed, I wondered if the corruption would motivate assassination, as I watched not knowing anything about this event.
Exactly
It should be noted that John Sherman was the brother of General William Tecumseh Sherman, who had already declared he had no interest in the Presidency ("If nominated, I shall not run. And if elected, I shall not serve.") but the Republicans still wanted some of that reflected Civil War glory, as it had helped them so well with Grant.
After John Sherman failed to get the nomination, he returned to the Senate, where his legacy is best known for the Sherman Anti-Trust Act, which is still in effect today.
And the contest wasn't simply between Grant and Sherman; that was the divide among the Half-Breeds, but the Stalwarts wanted Senator James G. Blaine ("Blaine from Maine"). It was Blaine who won the Republican nomination in 1884, but was defeated by Grover Cleveland.
(This despite a classic "sleaze" campaign, where the Republicans claimed that Cleveland had fathered an illegitimate child and went to his rallies to chant "Ma, Ma, Where's My Pa?" When Cleveland won the election, Democrats took to chanting "Gone to the White House, HaHaHa!")
Guiteau yelled as he was captured "I am a Stalwart and Arthur will be President!"
At one point Garfield recovered well enough that they got him out of bed and back to his desk and took photographs of him back at work. But he relapsed and died.
His death was part of the impetus that led to widespread adoption of Louis Pasteur's germ theory and the need for sterile operating theaters, which had previously been met with "crazy French guy, we've been doing just fine for years!" type of scorn. So the reason that your milk is "Pasteurized" (heated to kill germs, then chilled again) is partly due to Garfield's death.
While Garfield was struggling to recover, Chester Arthur did NOT try to be the "acting President" as nowadays a VP would be elevated to under the 25th Amendment. He didn't want people thinking he had anything to do with the assassination plot. Indeed, he mostly stayed in New York, waiting for Garfield to recover.
Eventually, of course, Garfield died and Arthur became President, and promptly disappointed Guiteau and all the Stalwarts by completing Garfield's Civil Service reforms. Indeed, as the bulk of the work was done under Arthur, he's considered a fairly successful President. Even if he didn't want the job.
So, Garfield would be called a RINO today.
1:31 Not sure if it's the same John Sherman, but the was a Senator by that name who was the brother of General William Tecumseh Sherman. The picture shows a family resemblance so I think it's the same guy.
Yep, it’s the same John Sherman.
It’s crazy to think how far medical knowledge has come since the inception of the US. President Washington died because of the common cold. The cold itself didn’t kill him. Washington died because treatment (at the time) for a sore throat and cough was bloodletting. Doctors drained 1/3 of his blood. Garfield died because doctors didn’t sterilize before treating his wound. We’re so fortunate to have the medical information we do today.
I would disagree that Chester a Arthur was unremarkable. On the ticket as a stalwart to balance the half breed ticket, but actually did a ton of civil service reform. Had a very unusual correspondence with a woman who he never met, who acted as a bit of a conscience for him and really directed his presidency. Garfield is probably the greatest “what if”, but Chester A Arthur is probably the biggest plot twist. In the end, he was extremely well thought of.
You're correct about Arthur. Not only did he bring about civil service reform by signing the Pendleton Act (thus turning his back on the spoils system he elevated in as Chief Collector of the New York Custom House), Arthur began the process of converting the US Navy to steel (as the navy was in shambles 20 years after the Civil War, due to lack of funding), vetoed the Chinese Exclusion Act (banning Chinese immigration for 20 years), regarding it as a sign of bad faith to a country the US had just signed a treaty with, and signed a bill for a pension for Grant, who was dying and bankrupted. It's been said of Arthur, "He wasn't an inspiring president, not an inovated president, but quite surprisingly, a competent president.
Arthur failed to get the Republican nomination in 1884 because he angered the party bosses who approved of the spoils system, and failed to win the support of reformers who thought his measures didn't go far enough.
Benjamin I thought Arthur's legacy was one of corruption!
Just a note here. Arthur vetoed the 20 year Chinese Exclusion Act but he did sign the 10 year Chinese Exclusion Act. While he deserves credit for signing civil service reform, that had been one of Garfield's major goals and Garfield's assassination brought on the passage of the bill by Congress due to public pressure. Again, Arthur still deserves credit for signing it, but it's not like he spearheaded it to get it done. He was far from a great president, but he did some good things and was competent. Unfortunately, nobody really knows who he is today (like a lot of presidents from that era), which is more or less why I said "unremarkable" in the video.
@@MrDrosteHistory It's true that Arthur did sign the 10 year Chinese Exclusion Act, simply because when the bill was reintroduced, reducing the ban to 10 years, Arthur knew there were enough votes to override his veto. When he vetoed the original bill, there was a firestorm of protest out west, by men who were out of work, and blamed the Chinese for it. Politicians jumped on this anti-Chinese sentiment. Rather than be a martyr to principle, Arthur pragmatically signed the bill.
True, Arthur will never be regarded as a great president, but coming from one who studied him for over 40 years, I believe Arthur deserves more credit than history has giving him. Few, if anyone, will today take the time to learn about the "Gentleman Boss", thus he remains for the most part, unknown. But for a man who never desired to be president, and never enjoyed being president, Arthur served his nation well.
@@michaellong3836 this is well said.
I hate Dr Bliss more than Garfield's actual assassin. Guiteau was at least pitiable in how insane he was, but Dr Bliss's stubbornness led the president to die in agony
So the doctors actually killed him, not the shooter.
On looking back should the secret service really have allocated services/resources to protect a man named “James Garfield”. I think his name was probably the beginning of his downfall.
Chapman was a fan of Lennon, but after doing some research on Lennon's personal life he saw him as a hypocrite. He really believed in Lennon's music and was strongly disappointed to find out that Lennon was kinda a shitty person in real life. Not to say he wasn't crazy, but there is a little more to it than him just being a deranged fan.
On a different note, I just subbed yesterday. This channel has some great content! Im thankful that I came across it!
Hello-
it would not actually be incorrect to say Garfield was killed by his doctors not by Charles Guiteau.
Interesting. I thought gerald Ford was the only unelected president. But I guess there was 3.
Ford is the only unelected president since he was appointed VP and never won election as POTUS on his own right. The other VPs who ascended to the office of president were elected to the office as VP, so one couldn't call them unelected.
Didn't the assassin also shout "Arthur IS MY PRESIDENT!" before/while shooting Garfield? At least it wasn't as bad as a dude shooting a president to try to impress a young actress. Jodie Foster apparently still isn't over being linked to that incident. That guy's on the streets now. Ghaaaa.
Looking back on my own education I'm surprised how long it took me to become familiar with President Garfield and the circumstances of his untimely death.
It's especially surprising considering my deep fascination with the untimely death of President Kennedy. As a teenager I would absorb all the information I could find about Dallas 11/22/63, Dealey plaza, the school book depository, 6.5mm Carcano etc. etc. etc.
The whole event and the stories told about the event seemed so violently wrong, like a break in the natural laws of history and human society. How could a single crazy man kill the most powerful man in the world ? It just didn't seem right, neither morally or practically.
Of course I was taught about the untimely death of President Lincoln, Ford's theater, John Wilkes Booth, "Sic Semper Tyrannis" etc. But that was always presented as a tragic but natural unfolding of history the way it ought to be. A noble man who fought the good fight was laid low by the powers of darkness but in death ascended to take his rightful place in the pantheon of heroes.
So in a way the death of Lincoln at the hand of Booth was presented to me as being of the same type as the death of Socrates by the Athenian assembly or the death of Jesus by Pontius Pilot and the Romans. A spiritual event not a political one.
But with age comes some wisdom, or at least a lot more information. I learned about Garfield in1881 and McKinley in 1901. Then if I also add Lincoln in 1865, Kennedy in 1963 a different pattern of human nature emerges. Some very near misses are also relevant such as Reagan in 1981. We should not only limited ourselves to America of course, British Prime Minister Spencer Perceval was shot and killed in 1812.
In all those cases it was a man with a gun and a grudge and almost certainly some sort of mental disorder.
Now I have come to realize that none of this is an aberration of history. Men with guns, men with grudges and men with mental disorders can very well be one and the same man. This is very much part of the human condition
Between 1840 and 1960 every president elected in a year ending in 0 died in office. Reagan broke that curse but it was a close call after being shot.
How cool, I would click on this, I find history very interesting.
Low an behold it’s a name I recognize from the TCB cast! How cool that you and I both love Elvis and history…. And I would click on this vid… I knew I recognize that voice.
Awesome! The latest show over there was a blast. Thanks for checking out the channel.
That train depot is a glorious building....was
He’s also a preacher and an elder in the church.
How do you explain the red part in California in the southeastern part of the state? @6:14
California voters would vote for the individual electors to the electoral college during that era. Hancock won the statewide vote by just 144 votes, but one elector who was pledging himself for Garfield actually won sixth place among the electors so he was able to cast his electoral vote for Garfield as the sixth and final vote from the state.
Arthur was a good President, unjustly forgotten, he achieved what Garfield would have never done, since his party was so divided. Arthur being from the anti civil service faction ironically was in better position to achieve that and he did.
By that you mean signing the bill inspired by Garfield? The one that Garfield's assassination helped push over the top? It was good of Arthur to sign it, but surely he can't be given too much credit. Also, signing the Chinese Exclusion Act was terrible. He is generally ranked by historians toward the bottom of the pack, rightfully so as his time in office was fairly unremarkable outside of signing the Pendleton Act. The last time thousands of historians were surveyed for their presidential rankings (2021), Arthur came in at #30. Seems appropriate to me, and I trust the judgment of thousands of presidential scholars.
@@MrDrosteHistory you're fixated with the Chinese exclusion Act, it was the politicians in congress who wanted that even the general public echoed the same sentiment, he vetoed the first bill, but agreed to sign the amended one because he knew congress would override him. Blame the congress for that not Arthur. Even Garfield had pledged to do something about the issue.
Regarding Garfield and the reform of the Civil service, he said he agreed on concept but promised to make no appointments without consultation with party leadership. Which was labelled.inconsistent. Garfield won the election because New York was delivered to him by Conkling and Arthur. He was in no position to alienate one side or another. Arthur on the contrary belonging to the faction that was against the reform, was in a better position to push it through.
As for historians, I prefer what contemporaries said, as they had a first had account about things. "No man ever entered the Presidency so profoundly and widely distrusted as Chester Alan Arthur, and no one ever retired ... more generally respected, alike by political friend and foe."[The New York World summed up Arthur's presidency at his death in 1886: "No duty was neglected in his administration, and no adventurous project alarmed the nation." Mark Twain wrote of him, "It would be hard indeed to better President Arthur's administration."
I would not say I am fixated on the Chinese Exclusion Act. But it has aged terribly and was a real bad decision, even with the concessions. History has shown it to be as such, and that’s what we are doing here. Analyzing it as history. He did sign it so it is part of his record. As for contemporaries, it’s hard to evaluate a presidency in its immediate aftermath. It’s too close to that moment in time and people are too tied to it emotionally. It takes historical perspective. I’m not saying he was an all around bad president. It was a mostly unremarkable presidency, though. He was only added to the ticket to balance the party factions as you mentioned. The real tragedy is Garfield, obviously, as he might have been a truly great president.
Those quotes from the New York World and Twain are very interesting, though. I appreciate you bringing those out. Well worth reading.
@@MrDrosteHistory Well Garfield could have been also a worse or a greater President than Arthur. We shall never know. However You forget that Garfield and to some extent Arthur, had to deal with the nefarious influence of Blaine. Had Arthur been on the ticket in 1884 instead of Blaine, he would have won. Garfield had made too many compromises with the party and those compromises would have tied his hands. Blaine would have done his utmost behind the scenes to backstab him, to take his place for the election of 1884.
As for the Exclusion Act, even if Arthur vetoed the second bill, his veto would have been overridden by congress. You might say he signed it, yeah he did, but if it wasn't for him it would have been much worse.
We can't judge leaders and politicians with today's standards and measures. I am not saying that Arthur's presidency was remarkable but it wasn't bad, it was decent. He was much better than others that preceded him. Keep in mind he did not want to become President and once he was, for most of his time in the WH he had to deal with an illness that would eventually kill him.
Helpful hint: Garfield was shot. You're welcome.
Bro you gotta bring in Garfield and McKinley 😂
the insanity defense is the most bogus defense of all time
Amazing how many Presidents came out of Ohio in that era.
Ohio is ground zero of NWO
2:32 "The Republican party was kind of splitting into factions..."
Ah, and now history is repeating itself in 2023...
Garfield let Lincoln perversely make a fool out of him by talking him into resigning his generalship in the Union Army for politics. Garfield was a good general and a fool of a politician.
Going me-too on what Lincoln had to say. Having screwed up royally by leaving the army and being naturally mouthy, the convention nominated him. He should have declined it. He had poor right to it anyway. even once shot he could have survived if he hadn't masochistically stood up for the quack who was as responsible for his death as the assassin. Garfield was one of history's.
worst jokes.
the doctors were incompetent, even for the time.
James Garfield Was Canadian 🇨🇦
Craziest fact of this video: The RNC was once in Chicago 😂
It is weird. The Republican Party started in Illinois. Abraham Lincoln was their first guy to run for President.
Also from Illinois.
Lincoln was from Kentucky.
@@johnflorio3576 nominated from Illinois
Not crazy if you understand that the confederacy was solidly Democrat. Until the swap in 1960's the north was Republican and the south Democrat.
@@mikebronicki8264 there never really was a swap. The 21 Democrats who filibustered Civil Rights all died Democrats, except one.
Strom Thurmond was the only Democrat who changed parties after Civil Rights. There was no magical switch where everyone just decided to vote for the other party, all at the same time.
Democrats just betrayed their religious base in the 60s and went hippie and abortion crazy, pushed socialism, and a bunch of college kids went to the DNC conventions. And all the older logical people were like nah.
And they just did the exact same thing, and people will pretend as if some switch happened. It didn’t.
It’s just a replay of the 60s. Democrats have ALWAYS been for enslaving the people. They come in whatever mask you need them to wear. It’s a sociopathic circle they keep forcing on us.
There was no big switch and never has been. It’s just betrayed voter syndrome, and it’s 100% intentional.
Garfield’s death was caused by sheer medical incompetence - that’s it! He would have survived with proper care.
it's what they knew back then. Easy to criticize the doctor's when they were going off of what they knew.
There will be a cure for cancer some day. Are you calling today's doctors incompetent
because they can't save all cancer patients? Doctors were unaware of bacteria and germs in 1880.
@@ynohtnazehcnas91 Not so simple, I’m afraid. The quack who took the lead in Garfield’s care was Dr Willard Bliss (sounds like a villain in the “Batman” TV show). He pushed aside other doctors and decided only he knew best. Like many of his contemporaries, Bliss ignored the advice of Dr Joseph Lister on basic matters, such as washing hands and instruments, and maintaining clean surroundings - difficult even in the White House. He continued probing Garfield’s wounds with his unsterilized fingers, and force-fed him heavy meals and alcohol, which only induced severe vomiting; Garfield had lost considerable weight by the time he died, nearly three months after the shooting. For an in-depth account, I recommend “Destiny of the Republic,” by Candice Millard. Excellent, fascinating reading!
@@thomaschacko6320 thank you Thomas, I am going to check it out, I appreciate it
@@ynohtnazehcnas91 You’re welcome, Anthony. Hope you enjoy it, as I did. Actually, I also found it infuriating!
His campaign was funded by big lasagna
Apparently he loved cat naps.
At 5:59... What is "R-1", the south eastern corner of California...? What's the history of that...? I wonder. Okay, Republican, one vote but how did that come about. Nothing was there but Death Valley desert.
California voters would vote for the individual electors to the electoral college during that era. Hancock won the statewide vote by just 144 votes, but one elector who was pledging himself for Garfield actually won sixth place among the electors so he was able to cast his electoral vote for Garfield as the sixth and final vote from the state.
El Guero Arteaga de Rosario Tijeras😂
Charles Guiteau’s nickname was Charles Getout’, because wherever he went, his crazy butt was asked to Getout!
Garfield was the only US president shot by a lunatic.
Proves the old adage ... A bullet not a ballot ! The best form of government?
Every historian in the comments...."I know a fact that you don't".
The post office solution...? (see Lysander Spooner) winning!
I am related to Hayes thru his wife.
This was not everything I needed to know. This was just a quick overview lol
I read an interesting book about this. how the doctors made things worse.
..then who were the Mugwumps?
Wrong election. They were reformers (the "Goo-goos", good government types) who couldn't accept the nomination of James G. Blaine in 1884 and bolted. They weren't a huge faction, but they were enough to give Grover Cleveland, a younger man with a squeaky-clean record, the win.
Does anyone else notice what looks like a ghost of a woman in the middle right of the photo? Wtf
GRANT IS ON THE $50 BILL, NOW ONCE U BUY SOMETHING ITS ZERO. 😥
Died on a Monday.
This is a nice story but not entirely true. The doctors did not kill him by accident. Remember Lincoln's fate?
Couldn't he have gotten him a job at the post office?
that was just about the way it happened. no drama just good info. I think you should rethink Chester A. No way near the bottom of the Presidents (in my opinion). I do know you didn't say that buttttttt you kind of inferred it.
I'm not sure where I'd rank him. I'd have to put some serious thought into a list. Would be fun to do sometime. Among presidential historians, though, he's not typically highly ranked. Here's the last four C-SPAN Presidential Historian Survey results for Chester Arthur and where he ranked.
2021: 30th
2017: 35th
2009: 32nd
2000: 32nd
www.c-span.org/presidentsurvey2021/?page=overall
Interestingly, Garfield ranked higher despite his short time in office, probably due to his leadership on civil service reform, which eventually got done after he was assassinated with the Pendleton Act.
2021: 27th
2017: 29th
2009: 28th
2000: 29th
Sherman Antitrust Act
I did it.
It was the CIA.
Poor President Garfield suffered mightily before dying. And Chester Arthur had some awesome sideburns!
Chicago....what a joke