Assassination of James A. Garfield

On 2 July 1881, just a few short months after becoming America's 20th president, James A. Garfield was shot by Charles J. Guiteau who wanted revenge on Garfield for an imagined political debt at the Baltimore and Potomac Railroad Station in Washington DC. President Garfield lingered on for 11 weeks until Monday, 19 September 1881 when he succumbed to his wounds. Modern medical professionals believe that President Garfield could've easily survive the incident if it weren't for doctors digging through him with un-sanitized tools. Charles J. Guiteau was executed by hanging the following year.
Cartoonist Jim Davis named his most famous creation Garfield the cat after his grandfather James Garfield Davis who in turn was named after James A. Garfield.