In Memoriam: President Garfield's Funeral March newspaperboys shouting the news of Garfield's death. Shocked, he left his bed and went for a long walk through Washington. By the next morning he had composed the melody for what would be called "In Memoriam: President Garfield's Funeral March". On returning home, he committed it to paper. "In Memoriam" was one of only two compositions Sousa dedicated to American presidents, the other was "President Garfield's Inauguration March", composed earlier in the year 1881 for the occasion of Garfield's inauguration. "In Memoriam" was performed by "the President's Own" United States Marine Band, under Sousa's direction, as Garfield's body arrived in
1880 and 1881 United States Senate elections 1880 and 1881 United States Senate elections The United States Senate elections of 1880 and 1881 were elections that conicided with the presidential election of 1880, and had the Democratic Party lose five seats in the United States Senate. The newly elected Readjuster senator caucused with the Republicans, and the Republican Vice President's tie-breaking vote gave the Republicans the slightest majority. All of that changed September 19, 1881 when the Vice President ascended to the Presidency and the Senate became evenly-divided. As these elections were prior to ratification of the seventeenth amendment, Senators were chosen by State legislatures. Senate Party