Born in Woerth, province of Alsace, Germany, on January 6, 1838, and there obtained his primary education in the common schools. At the age of sixteen years he came to America and landed at N.Y. City in April, 1854, tarrying for a short time in the Eastern states, but finally arrived in Iowa in December of the same year located at Dubuque, Iowa, and engaged in wagon-making. He enlisted in 1862 at National, Iowa, in the 27th lowa Infantry, was sent to Minnesota among the Indians, and thence south. He was with Gens. Sherman, Smith, Steele and Thomas in some of the principal battles. He was mustered out at the close of the war, and returned to Clayton County, Iowa. He purchased land in Sac County in 1868, returned to Clayton County and remained until 1870, then engaged in farming in Sac County. He was an agent for the Iowa Railroad Land Company while living on the farm, and was afterwards transferred to Storm Lake, and held the agency for Buena Vista County until he was elected treasurer of Sac County in 1877, to which office he has been re-elected each successive term since. He was a land agent for this county, having been appointed in January, 1878. He has been a member of the board of supervisors of this county for five years. He organized a Farmers' Mutual Insurance Co., in 1874, and was elected as its President. For several years previous to his death Mr. Schaller was the senior member of the firm of .Schaller & Hart, lands and loans, and composed of Mr. Schaller and William H. Hart. He was the first president of the Sac County Farmers Mutual Insurance Company, which he assisted in organizing. Mr. Schaller became a director in the First National Bank of Sac City, and was originator and first president of the Lakeview State Bank. He was elected to represent Sac County in the Twenty-first General Assembly, 1886. Mr. Schaller was first married in October of 1865 to Emiline L. Knight, of Clayton county, Iowa. Mrs. Schaller passed from earth on February 13, 1899. In July of 1900, Mr. Schaller married Mrs. Catherine Fishman.