One shooting · 79 days of decline · a reform legacy
Charles Guiteau shot President Garfield in July 1881, but the president survived for 79 days as infection and invasive treatment turned the attack into a prolonged medical crisis.
President James A. Garfield was shot by Charles J. Guiteau at the Baltimore and Potomac Railroad Station in Washington, D.C., on July 2, 1881, and died 79 days later after infection-aggravated treatment. Guiteau was captured immediately, later convicted of murder, and executed, while the case helped reshape public debate over medical practice and the federal patronage system.
President Garfield
A presidency interrupted after four months
The scale
Key figures are drawn from the published case record.
A prolonged crisis
Guiteau's attack began the case, but repeated probing, infection, and a long decline made treatment central to how Garfield died.
See all 6 mapped locations →Jun 1, 1881
In the weeks before July 2, Guiteau bought a revolver, followed Garfield’s movements, and waited for a public opening where he believed he could kill the president and trigger political change.
Jul 2, 1881
President Garfield was shot twice by a disgruntled office seeker, Charles J. Guiteau, as he was entering the Baltimore and Potomac Railroad Station.
Jul 2, 1881
After the shooting, Garfield was transported to the White House, where Dr. D. Willard Bliss took charge of a medical effort that quickly became the center of national attention.
Jul 1, 1881
Through July and August 1881, repeated unsterilized probing, drainage, and improvised treatment deepened Garfield’s infection and transformed a survivable gunshot wound into a fatal medical ordeal.
Sep 6, 1881
Hoping that sea air and a quieter setting might improve his condition, Garfield was transported by rail to Franklyn Cottage in Elberon, New Jersey.
Sep 19, 1881
President Garfield died 79 days after the shooting, succumbing to blood poisoning (sepsis) and a ruptured splenic artery aneurysm caused by the infection.
The causal chain
Charles Guiteau stalked Garfield after his patronage grievance hardened into a personal fixation.
Garfield survived the initial shooting but deteriorated during weeks of invasive treatment and infection.
The assassination intensified pressure to replace patronage with a professional civil service.
Guiteau's proceedings tested insanity arguments, causation, and the claim that medical treatment rather than the gunshot killed the president.
See the historical record →Where certainty changes
Open each layer to see what the archive treats as core, contested, or unresolved.
Go deeper
This overview is the map. The case tabs hold the underlying events, people, media, locations, and source material.