Born in Scott Township, Indiana, Boehne attended the district schools, the German parochial school of the Lutheran Church, and Evansville Business College.
He moved to Evansville, Indiana, in 1872, becoming an accountant.
He engaged in the manufacture of stoves and ranges and was interested in other manufacturing enterprises.
Boehne was elected councilman at large in 1897 and reelected in 1899.
He was an unsuccessful Democratic candidate for mayor of Evansville in 1901.
He served as mayor 1905-1908.
He served as delegate to the Democratic National Convention in 1908.
Boehne was elected as a Democrat to the Sixty-first and Sixty-second Congresses (March 4, 1909 – March 3, 1913).
He was not a candidate for renomination in 1912.
He served as director of the Federal Reserve Bank at St. Louis, Missouri.
He retired from active business pursuits.
He died in Evansville, Indiana, December 27, 1946.
He was interred in the Lutheran Cemetery.