James Garfield's middle name was Abram. He was the 20th President of the United States, serving from March 4, 1881 until his death on September 19, 1881. He was the second president to be assassinated, after Abraham Lincoln. He was born in Ohio and served as a major general in the Union Army during the American Civil War. His middle name, Abram, was in honor of his grandfather, who was a veteran of the Revolutionary War.