Schoepf came to America after his service, lived in Washington, D.C., and worked in various United States government bureaucratic positions before the Civil War.

[2][3] When Kossuth abdicated in 1849, Schoepf was exiled to Turkey, where according to Appleton's Cyclopædia of American Biography he may have served under General Józef Bem against Bedouin insurgents at Aleppo and then was raised to major and instructor of artillery in the Ottoman Empire's army.

[2] Appointed a brigadier general of volunteers on September 30, 1861, Schoepf's brigade fought well at the Battle of Camp Wildcat, repulsing Confederates under Brig.

Not wanting his involvement to affect the Buell investigation's outcome, Schoepf asked Army general-in-chief Henry W. Halleck to transfer him to another assignment.

[3] Fort Delaware, located on Pea Patch Island, served as a prisoner-of-war camp for captured Confederate soldiers and sailors.

[3] According to Laura M. Lee, historian at Fort Delaware State Park, "...it was not a pleasant place by any standards, historical records and the death rate testify to the fact that it was one of the more survivable prison camps, North or South.