Schonland was born in Portland, Maine September 7, 1900 and graduated from the United States Naval Academy in Annapolis, Maryland in 1925. joined the Navy from his birth state of Maine. By November 12, 1942 he was serving as a lieutenant commander on the . On that day, the "San Francisco" was heavily damaged during the Naval Battle of Guadalcanal and began taking on water. Schonland, as the damage control officer, worked through the night to stop the flooding and save the ship.