In the early summer of 1881, inside Omeera's store in the city of Washington, D.C.

A wiry man with nervous eyes is making a purchase.

His name is Charles Ghetto, and he is choosing between two revolvers on sale.

One has a wooden dark brown handle. The others is ivory, and goes by the memorable title the British Bulldog.

Ito vacillates staring at the guns pondering the most disturbing of shopping criteria.

He is considering which gun will look best in a museum display case beside a plaque explaining

it is the weapon that once killed a US president. Finally, he makes his choice. He decides on the ivory-handled British Bulldog.

It will best mark his place in history as the soon-to-be assassin of President James Garfield. Oh, Hello and I'm Don Wildman your host here with the next in our sequence of presidential episodes. Today our

20th chief magistrate President James Garfield of Ohio proceeded by Rutherford

B Hayes also Ohio he will be succeeded by,

tragically so, his Vice President, Chester A Arthur of New York.

James Garfield was a moderate to an extreme, which in a way is how he became the dark horse

Republican nominee in the presidential election of 1880.

Interestingly, the only person ever elected to the presidency straight out of the U.S. House of Representatives,

where he'd spent numerous terms serving Ohio's 19th District.

He was a congressman for 17 years, 1863 to 1880.

He'd married his high school sweetheart

and had seven children.

Garfield was, by all appearances, anyway,

the very model of Midwestern stability.

Prior to politics, Garfield fought for the Union, signed on in 1861 with no military training.

He'd apparently read a few books on the subject and after two years of combat

...