Presidency of James A. Garfield

E649555

The Presidency of James A. Garfield was the brief 1881 administration of the 20th U.S. president, marked by his efforts for civil service reform and tragically cut short by his assassination.

All labels observed (1)

Label Occurrences
Presidency of James A. Garfield canonical 1

How this entity was disambiguated

Statements (48)

Predicate Object
instanceOf United States presidential administration
presidency
assassin Charles J. Guiteau
assassinationDate 1881-07-02
branch executive branch of the United States government
capitalDuringTerm Washington, D.C.
causeOfEnd assassination of James A. Garfield
commanderInChiefOf United States Armed Forces
completedFullTerm false
congressNumber 47th United States Congress
country United States
deathInOfficeDate 1881-09-19
domesticPolicyFocus reform of the spoils system
strengthening executive authority over appointments
duration about 6 months
economicContext post–Civil War industrial expansion
electedForFullTerm true
election 1880 United States presidential election
endDate 1881-09-19
firstLady Lucretia Garfield
followedBy Presidency of Chester A. Arthur
foreignPolicyFocus Latin American relations
U.S. influence in the Caribbean
historicalPeriod Gilded Age
inaugurationDate 1881-03-04
judicialAppointments no Supreme Court justices appointed
keyConflictWithinParty Stalwarts vs. Half-Breeds
legacy helped spur passage of the Pendleton Civil Service Reform Act
locationOfAssassination Washington, D.C.
majorIssue civil service reform
gold standard and monetary policy
patronage system
tariff policy
notableEvent Garfield’s shooting at the Baltimore and Potomac Railroad Station
appointment conflict with Senator Roscoe Conkling
bitter dispute over New York Customs House appointments
extended presidential incapacitation before death
resignation of New York Senator Roscoe Conkling
officeHolder James A. Garfield
opposedFaction Stalwart faction of the Republican Party
politicalParty Republican Party
precededBy Presidency of Rutherford B. Hayes
presidentNumber 20
reputation one of the shortest presidencies in U.S. history
startDate 1881-03-04
supportedFaction Half-Breed faction of the Republican Party
termCount 1
vicePresident Chester A. Arthur

How these facts were elicited

Referenced by (1)

Full triples — surface form annotated when it differs from this entity's canonical label.

Presidency of Rutherford B. Hayes followedBy Presidency of James A. Garfield