James Garfield was shot in a Washington, D.C. train station by Charles J. Guiteau on July 2, 1881, but he didn't die from his injuries for another two months.

The assassination of James Garfield happened in the blink of an eye. On July 2, 1881, the president was walking arm-in-arm with Secretary of State James G. Blaine, preparing to catch a train to his alma mater, Williams College. Then, at 9:20 a.m., Blaine heard a shot ring out and felt Garfield twist at his side. “My God!” the president cried. “What is this?”

Garfield had been shot — twice. The first bullet grazed his elbow, and the second hit his lower back. Both had been fired by a man named Charles Guiteau, a mentally ill failed lawyer who believed the president had wronged him and that killing Garfield would save the country.

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