On the morning of July 2, President Garfield was strolling through the waiting room of the Baltimore & Potomac Railroad in Washington. Charles Guiteau, aged 39, approached him from behind and fired a .44 British Bulldog pistol at the President. Garfield sustained two bullet wounds.
The doctors successfully removed both bullets, but Garfield contracted blood poison in the process. On September 19, two and a half months later, Garfield died from the blood poisoning.
Guiteau, who had been a supporter of Garfield, requested an appointment in the Garfield administration. When he was turned down, he became convinced that the President had to die. Guiteau was hanged on June 30, 1882.
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