Biography - B. J. SCHOEN

B. J. Schoen, who is recognized as one of the substantial farmers of Macoupin county, owes his success to an indomitable will and a practical knowledge of agriculture and stock-raising which have carried him through many difficulties. He can claim good Teutonic ancestry in both branches of the family and was born in Madison county, Illinois, May 8, 1854. His parents were John B. and Anna (Arkebauer) Schoen, both of whom were born in Hanover, Germany. They came to America after growing to maturity and were both in the employ of Samuel Dorsey, of Madison county, when they first became acquainted. After their marriage Mr. Schoen rented land of Mr. Dorsey until the spring of 1855, when he came with his family to Macoupin county and bought one hundred and twenty acres in Mount Olive township. He greatly improved his place and here established his home, gaining recognition as one of the substantial men of the township. He died at the age of eighty-one years and his wife was called away at the age of eighty. They were worthy representatives of the noble men and women who cheerfully endured many hardships and inconveniences in order to give to their children advantages that are now the heritage of tens of thousands in Illinois.

At the age of ten months B. J. Schoen was brought by his parents to Macoupin county and during all the time that has since passed he has lived upon the home place. He received his education in the public schools and the Lutheran parochial school of Mount Olive and during the periods of vacation assisted his father upon the farm. As he approached manhood he assumed charge of the place and after his marriage his father gave him eighty acres which he cultivated to such excellent advantage that he was enabled to purchase more land and now owns one hundred and thirty-seven acres in his homestead, being also the owner of forty-six acres of valuable land adjoining Mount Olive on the west and a farm of one hundred and eighty-seven acres in Montgomery county, making his total land holdings amount to three hundred and seventy acres in one of the most productive regions of the state. He is also the owner of a handsome residence property in Mount Olive and each year witnesses an increase in his material prosperity.

On the 10th of August, 1879, Mr Schoen was married to Miss Eleanore Husman, a native of Mount Olive township and a daughter of Henry Iiusman who was born in Germany. He latter came to the new world after arriving at maturity and made his home for a time near Bunker FT ill, Macoupin county. Latei he settled on a farm near Mount Olive where he continued for many years. He died in Montgomery county about six months after his removal to that section. Seven children have been born to Mr. and Mrs. Schoen, four of whom survive, namely: Anna, who married Otto Eaglehoff, of Montgomery county; and Eleanore, Sophia and John, all of whom are at home.

Mr. Schoen is a patriotic and progressive citizen and no man in the township is more ready to lend his assistance in promoting the general welfare. Politically he adheres to the republican party. At the age of twenty-six he was elected highway commissioner and served several terms in that office, using a judgment in its administration which gave general satisfaction to taxpayers. He and his estimable wife are valued members of the Evangelical Lutheran church and can claim many friends in a community with which they have been prominently identified for nearly a third of a century.

Extracted 18 Nov 2018 by Norma Hass from History of Macoupin County, Illinois: Biographical and Pictorial, by Charles A. Walker, published in 1911, Volume 2, pages 712-713.