| 1831 | James A. Garfield is born | James was born in Ohio in a log cabin. His father died when James was only two years old and he was raised by his mother. |
| 1847 | James the seaman | With big dreams of working at sea, James left home and got a job working as a canal driver in Cleveland. He was only sixteen years old. |
| 1851 | Seminary and preaching | James left his job in Cleveland to attend Seminary. He had a deep religious background, and he began traveling from town to town in order to preach. |
| 1856 | College life | James went to Williams College in Massachusetts, and he graduated in 1856. He went on to become a professor. |
| 1861 | Civil War | When the Civil War broke out, James signed up to fight. He was a hard-working man and quickly advanced in rank, and by the time he was 31 years old he was already a general. |
| 1862 | Work in the Congress | Others were so impressed with his work that James was nominated for Congress. President Lincoln asked him to resign from the army and work in Congress, so James obliged. |
| 1863 | War work continues | Garfield returned to the war efforts while maintaining his political career. He worked as Chief of Staff in the Army of the Cumberland. |
| 1864 | Second term in Congress | Deciding to run for a second term in Congress, Garfield won the nomination and the election. People often said that when Garfield spoke, people listened, and this made him an excellent congressman. |
| 1866 | More work in the Congress | Garfield continued winning nominations and elections. He ended up serving nine terms in Congress, up until 1880. |
| 1880 | The Presidential Election | Mr. Garfield worked with the Republican Convention to get his friend elected as a presidential candidate, but the nomination failed. Unexpectedly, James himself ended up being nominated. |
| 1881 | President! | President Garfield won the election by only a few thousand votes. He quickly worked to show his authority by refusing to back down from some of those working against him in the Senate. |
| July 1881 | President Garfield is shot | While boarding a train in Washington, an enemy of Garfield's shot him. Garfield was taken to the White House for treatment. |
| September 19, 1881 | Garfield dies | Many attempts were made to save President Garfield, but no one succeeded. President Garfield died on September 19, 1881. |
| September 25, 1881 | Garfield's Memorial Service | More than 150,000 citizens came to participate in President Garfield's memorial service. The country mourned for their fallen leader. |
| 1884 | President Garfield is honored | Memorials and honors for President Garfield began right away. A monument in his honor was built in San Francisco in 1884, and in 1887 a monument was dedicated in Washington. |
