The
Garfield Assassination Facts for kids
The assassination of President James Garfield by Charles J. Guiteau shocked the nation.
Interesting facts about the Garfield Assassination are detailed below. The history of
Garfield Assassination is told in a factual sequence consisting of
a series of short facts providing a simple method of relating the
history and events of the Garfield Assassination.
Garfield
Assassination Fact Sheet:
Facts for kids
Garfield
Assassination
Fact 1: James Garfield (1831 - 1881) was the second of four
Presidents of the United States who have been
assassinated. The names of the other assassinated
presidents were Abraham Lincoln (1809 - 1865), William
McKinley (1843 - 1901) and John F. Kennedy (1917 - 1963)
Garfield
Assassination
Fact 2: When was he shot? The President was shot on July 2, 1881
Garfield
Assassination
Fact 3: When did the President die? The President was a strong
and determined man who fought hard for his life but he
died on September 19, 1881, eleven weeks after being
shot
Garfield
Assassination
Fact 4: Where did the assassination take place? The President
was shot at the Baltimore and Potomac Railroad Station
Garfield
Assassination
Fact 5: What was the name of the assassin? Charles Julius
Guiteau (September 8, 1841 – June 30, 1882)
Garfield
Assassination
Fact 6: Who was Charles J. Guiteau? Charles J. Guiteau was a
lawyer and a preacher and had been a supporter of James
Garfield.
Garfield
Assassination
Fact 7: Charles J. Guiteau had been a keen supporter during the
Presidential campaign. He had written two speeches which
the future president had used during his campaign.
Garfield
Assassination
Fact 8:
Following the election of
the president, Charles J. Guiteau insisted that the
President should make him ambassador to France. This
type of request was not unusual as the infamous
Spoils System
was in
place, a patronage system which allowed the president to
appoint party to friends to government offices.
Garfield
Assassination
Fact 9: The president refused the
demands of Charles J. Guiteau who had a grossly inflated
ego and a history of mental problems, possibly
schizophrenia.
Garfield
Assassination
Fact 10: Charles J. Guiteau was
furious and his bitter reaction led to thoughts of
revenge. The twisted and unstable mind of Guiteau
rationalized the chain of events as an act of God and
believed that the murder of the president was a "Divine
command".
Continued...
Garfield
Assassination
Facts for kids
Garfield Assassination
for kids
The info about the Garfield Assassination provides interesting facts and
important information about this important event that occured during the presidency of the 20th President of the United States of America.
Garfield Assassination Facts for kids
Interesting history and the Garfield Assassination Facts for kids are
continued below.
Garfield
Assassination
Facts for kids
Garfield
Assassination
Fact 11: Guiteau started making his plans to
kill the president. He first needed to purchase a gun -
he was not used to guns and knew that he would have to
undertake some firearm practice.
Garfield
Assassination
Fact 12: He borrowed $15 to buy the gun. He
had a choice between a .44 Webley British Bulldog
revolver with a wooden handle or a similar gun but with
a silver handle.
Garfield
Assassination
Fact 13: He was obsessed with becoming famous
and chose the gun with the silver inlay because he
wanted it to look good in a museum after the event.
(During his trial, he said that it was worth the extra
dollar).
Garfield
Assassination
Fact 14: He stalked the president and
discovered his travel plans for taking a vacation to
Massachusetts by rail from the Baltimore and Potomac
Railroad Station on July 2, 1881.
Garfield
Assassination
Fact 15: Charles J. Guiteau lay in wait and
the president accompanied by Secretary of State James G.
Blaine arrived at the train station and were making
there way through the crowds as the assassin approached
them from behind.
Garfield
Assassination
Fact 16: Charles J. Guiteau raised his gun and
fired - the first shot grazed and stunned the President.
Guiteau then fired a second shot that lodged deep into
his back.
Garfield
Assassination
Fact 17: Charles J. Guiteau was immediately
arrested and taken to jail. The injured president was
taken a room upstairs above the depot attended by Dr.
Willard Bliss, Surgeon General of the Army and was later
transported to the White House.
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Assassination
Fact 18: The President did not die until 11
weeks after being shot. Inept doctors probed his wound
with unwashed, dirty fingers whilst trying to locate the
bullet. The bullet was never found. (The first X-ray
machine was not invented until November 8, 1895 by
Wilhelm Conrad Rontgen). The president's entire body was
riddled with infection (septic poisoning) and he was in
agony.
Garfield
Assassination
Fact 19: The young inventor, Alexander Graham
Bell, devised a metal detector to find the bullet, but
the device's signal was distorted by the metal bed
springs.
Garfield
Assassination
Fact 20: The bullet was never found and
eventually his death was due to blood poisoning. He died
on September 19, 1881 at 10:30 p.m.
Garfield
Assassination
Fact 21: Charles J. Guiteau was sent to trial
and was found guilty of murder on January 23, 1882. He
was sentenced to death by hanging on June 30, 1882.
Garfield
Assassination
Facts for kids
Garfield Assassination for kids - President James Garfield Video
The article on the Garfield Assassination provides detailed facts and a summary of one of the important events during his presidential term in office. The following
James Garfield video will
give you additional important facts and dates about the political events experienced by the 20th American President whose presidency spanned from March 4, 1881 to September 19, 1881.
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Interesting Facts about the Assassination for kids and schools
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Facts about the murder of the president
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Summary of the Garfield Assassination
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Presidency from March 4, 1881 to September 19, 1881
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Fast, fun, interesting
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about the Garfield Assassination
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Facts about Charles J. Guiteau
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