JAMES A. GARFIELD
1881 - 1881
Arizona Timeline
1881 - City of Phoenix, Arizona incorporates.
1881 - Gunfight at O. K. Corral in Tombstone, Arizona.
1881 - The Women’s Christian Temperance Union ( WCTU) organizes in Arizona and begins a long campaign against alcohol and saloons.
James A. Garfield was born in
1831 in Cuyahoga County, Ohio,
the last president to be born in a
log cabin. He served as a Major
General in the Civil War,
resigning in 1863, when he was
elected to the House of
Representatives.
Lucretia Randolph Garfield was
born in 1832 in Ohio. She met
James Garfield in 1851 and they
were married in 1858. They had
seven children; two died in
infancy. After Garfield's military
service, the family stayed together
with homes in the capitol and in
Ohio.
While serving in the House of Representatives, President James Garfield's oratorical and parliamentary abilities made him the leading Republican. In
1880, he was elected to the Senate, but instead became a presidential candidate and defeated Democrat General Hancock. Almost four months into his
presidency on July 2, 1881, Garfield was shot by a disappointed office seeker. Garfield died on September 19, 1881.
Lucretia Garfield was not particularly interested in a First Lady's social duties, but her genuine hospitality made her dinners and receptions enjoyable. In
May of 1881, she became gravely ill. She was a convalescent at a seaside resort in New Jersey, when Garfield was shot. Her devotion to her husband for
the remaining weeks of his life won her the respect and sympathy of the country. Lucretia died in 1918.
