Schoonover, Leland H., 1909-1979

Leland H. "Schoonie" Schoonover was born in Phillipsburg, Montana, on June 16, 1909, the son of James and Charlotte Schoonover. He graduated from Thompson Falls High School in 1925 and went on to receive a bachelor's degree in education from Western Montana College in 1937 and began teaching. In 1955, he earned a master's degree in education from the University of Montana--Missoula.

In 1947, after his World War II service, he began teaching in the Polson, Montana, school system, where he spent the rest of his career. In 1960, he became one of the first teachers granted leave to serve in the Montana state legislature. He was elected senator from Lake County as a Democrat and served in the 1961 and 1963 sessions. He was later elected to two terms in the Montana House of Representatives, where he served on the Montana Legislative Council, Subcommittee on Pesticides.

An active conservationist, he was treasurer and president of the Montana Wildlife Federation and served two terms as president of the Pacific Northwest Conservation Council. In 1966, Governor Tim Babcock awarded him the Conservationist of the year award. He was also one of the directors of the Blue Bay Resort on Flathead Lake, owner and manager of the ENVECO consulting service (which provided land development and public relations services), president of the Lake County Citizens Committee, chairman of the Lake County Conservation District, chair of the Lake County Democratic Committee, secretary of the Lower Flathead Teachers' Welfare Association, part of the Montana Citizens Committee on Education, a two-term member of the Polson City Council, chair of the Senior Citizens of Polson, and a member of the board of directors for the State Schoolmasters Association.

He was married to Marion Dorothy Daughterty in 1933. He died of cancer in June 1979.

From the guide to the Leland H. Schoonover Papers, 1945-1979, (University of Montana--Missoula Maureen and Mike Mansfield Library Archives and Special Collections)