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Malaria and the Mosquito
In May of 1881, just after the Garfields had moved into the White House, Lucretia became very ill, with a disease called malaria. Although it is very unusual for anyone in temperate climates such as the United States to contract malaria, the disease is a world-wide problem for many, and efforts are currently underway to eradicate the disease wherever possible.
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Born in the Western Reserve
Lucretia Rudolph Garfield (called Crete by her family and friends), was born in Garrettsville, Ohio, not far from Hiram, where she was to meet her husband, James A. Garfield. The villages of Garrettsville and Hiram are in Portage County, Ohio, one of eleven counties in Northeast Ohio that belong to what is still called the Western Reserve.
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Yellowstone: The World's First National Park
On March 1, 1872, when James A. Garfield was in his fourth term in Congress, the world’s first National Park, Yellowstone National Park, came into existence, largely through the efforts of people—mostly gold prospectors, curious private citizens, and government surveyors—who realized the priceless nature of the area and dedicated themselves to seeing that the land was preserved from development and kept intact for the enjoyment of all the nation.
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Save the Animals: The Creation of the ASPCA
It wasn’t until the last part of the 19th century that mistreatment of animals came to be against the law in the United States. Largely through the efforts of Henry Burgh of New York, the Society for the Prevention of Cruelty to Animals was chartered by the New York State Legislature, and laws against cruelty to animals were passed. The story of Bergh’s efforts, as well as information on ways in which we can help currently endangered species of animals, are the subjects of this lesson.
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"Disregard of precedent and faith in possibility": Clara Barton and the Red Cros
One hundred and twenty-five years ago, Clara Barton founded the American Red Cross. But she had become a famous figure long before that. Known as the “angel on the battlefield” during the Civil War, she brought comfort and considerable medical knowledge and skill to injured soldiers. Her fame was widespread, and undoubtedly known to Lucretia Garfield, especially since her husband, James, was an active soldier for the North. Of particular interest in understanding Barton’s life is the following quotation from her writings: “I have an almost complete disregard of precedent and a faith in the possibility of something better. It irritates me to be told how things always have been done ... I defy the tyranny of precedent. I cannot afford the luxury of a closed mind. I go for anything new that might improve the past.”
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The Education of Freedmen . . . and Women and Children
Lucretia Garfield trained to be, and was, for a time, a teacher. Because she was, she was undoubtedly interested in the great effort after the Civil War to staff schools to educate newly freed slaves…the children, of course, but also their parents. The story of the Freedmen’s Schools in the South from 1867 to 1877 is, in many ways, a tribute to the power of education over prejudice and the fear of change.
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Lawnfield and Other Ohio Presidential Homes
In 1876, James A. Garfield bought the land and farmhouse later named “Lawnfield.” The much-remodeled house became the home of Lurcretia Garfield and her children after the President was assassinated, and remained in the family for 60 years. Today, it belongs to the Western Reserve Historical Society, and is open to visitors during the week from May to October and on weekends from November to April.
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The Forgotten Trial of Wyatt Earp
On October 26, 1881, about one month after the death of James A. Garfield from the wound he had received from an assassin’s bullet, Wyatt, Morgan, and Virgil Earp and Doc Holliday killed three men at what has become known as the “Gunfight at the OK Corral. Subsequently, Wyatt and his fellow shooters were put on trial for the killings. Like the assassination of President Garfield and other Presidents, the celebrated story of the OK Corral illustrates the ongoing place of the gun—especially if handled by an individual—has in the heart of American culture.
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The History of Jim Crow: Legal Racism in America
During the lifetime of Lucretia Garfield, slavery was not the only form by which white America made sure that the Negro was kept “in his place.” Racism in its many forms, against all people of color (but mainly, in the 19th century, against Blacks) went under the name of “Jim Crow.”
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The Conflicting Legacy of Alfred Nobel: Dynamite and the Peace Prize
In 1867, while James A. Garfield was serving in Congress and Lucretia and the children were living with him in Washington, Swedish chemist and inventor Alfred Nobel patented the first stable explosive since gun power, calling it dynamite. Used mainly in construction work, dynamite has also been used in warfare. Nobel, hoping to counter the humanly destructive uses of his invention, left the bulk of his fortune to establish five annual prizes to be awarded to people making outstanding contributions to the world in literature, chemistry, physical science, medical science or physiology, and finally, peace.
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The President's Assassin: Motives and Outcomes
On July 2, 1881, after only 4 months in office, President James A. Garfield was shot by Charles A. Guiteau. The President lived until September 19, when he finally died of complications from his wounds. President Garfield was not the only President who was assassinated: three others, Abraham Lincoln, William McKinley, and John F. Kennedy, were also killed while in office, and six others—Andrew Jackson, Theodore Roosevelt, Franklin D. Roosevelt, Harry S. Truman, Gerald Ford, and Ronald Reagan—had assassination attempts made on their lives. Considering that nearly twenty percent of all of our Presidents have had their lives threatened, or lost them, it might be well to think about how this happens. Who are the Presidents’ assassins?
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Women's Lives in the Victorian Era
The life span of Lucretia Garfield (1832-1918) almost exactly matches what is called the Victorian Era (1837-1901). Taking its name from the period during which Queen Victoria reigned in England (1837-1901), the Victorian Era was a time of strict standards for women, but it was also a time of change, with huge scientific discoveries and the flowering of the industrial revolution. The lives of women were circumscribed by the class to which they belonged, and also by rules of behavior that crossed class lines. For Lucretia Garfield, however, Victorian “rules” for women did not completely apply. She was college-educated, she had a mind of her own, and in many ways she did not quite “fit” the Victorian mold.
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