Tuesday, February 15, 2011

US Presidential Trivia: Who assassinated James Garfield?

Four US Presidents have been assassinated in history:  Abraham Lincoln, James Garfield, William McKinley and John Kennedy.  Another four actually died in office, albiet of natural causes:  William Henry Harrison, Zachary Taylor, James Garfield & Warren Harding.

It is the assassinations that are the featured of today's question.  Off of Pocket Trivia: US Presidents - Who assassinated James Garfield?  Is the answer Giueseppe Zangara, Leon Czolgosz, Charles Guiteau or Anton Cermak?

All four of these men were related to assassinations or assassination attempts in some way.

Giueseppe Zangara attempted to kill Franklin Roosevelt was Roosevelt was President-elect in 1933.  Roosevelt was giving a speech in Miami at the time and Zangara was able to fire five shots at the President-elect, hitting five people.  One of those hit was Chicago Mayor Anton Cermak, who died of his wounds.

Leon Czolgosz did not kill Garfield - but on September 6, 1901, he did shoot President William McKinley.  McKinley died of his wounds on September 14.

The correct answer to this question is Charles Guiteau.  Guiteau was a rejected office seeker who thought that God had commanded him to kill Garfield.  On July 2, at the Baltimore & Princeton Railroad in Washington, Guiteau shot Garfield twice in the back - Garfield died in September the same year, elevating Chester Arthur to President.

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