[1] In July 1878, Steel went to Sauk Rapids, Minnesota, where he took the position of bookkeeper and paymaster for the bridge construction firm James McIntire & Company.

Steel then moved to St. Paul, Minnesota, where he worked in the same position for the same firm.

In 1880, Steel became general paymaster and purchasing agent for the Oregon Construction Company, where he aided in the construction of four hundred miles of railroad in the states of Oregon, Washington, and Idaho.

From 1892 to 1893, Steel served as a member of the Michigan Republican State Central Committee.

On November 8, 1892, Steel was elected to the Michigan Senate where he represented the 19th district from January 4, 1893, to December 31, 1894.