Photo of the Week
The 20th President is shot on July 2, 1881 by Charles Guiteau. Garfield dies 79 days later and Guiteau is hanged.
This illustration, originally published in Harper’s Weekly on October 1, 1881, depicts the somber scene of the deathbed of President James A. Garfield at Francklyn Cottage in Elberon, New Jersey. Surrounded by mourning family members, physicians, and cabinet officials, the image captures the final moments of Garfield’s life after he succumbed to complications from an assassin’s bullet, following months of suffering and failed medical interventions. The illustration reflects the solemn national mood and conveys the deep concern and grief that swept the country in the wake of his death. Now cataloged as NCP 001861 in the National Museum of Health and Medicine, this piece remains a poignant historical artifact of presidential tragedy and the state of 19th-century medicine.
Further Reading
Wikipedia.org has a version of this photograph featured.
Flicker.com also has a version
More details on his conditions and photo can be found at the National Library of Medicine.
Timothy Hughes Rare and Early Newspapers features an original Harper’s Weekly with the photo shown.