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President Garfield on His Deathbed

President Garfield on His Deathbed

Creator: After Berghaus, Albert & Upham, Charles, c. 1881.

President Garfield was on his way to visit his family in New Jersey when Charles Julius Guiteau, a disgruntled office-seeker, shot him twice in the Baltimore & Potomac Railroad Station. The President was immediately taken back to the White House. As seen here, Mrs. Garfield stayed by his side constantly. Summers in the White House were hot, and so an early form of air-conditioning was invented to cool President Garfield's room. Three months after he was shot, the President died.

Credit
White House Historical Association (White House Collection)