Named assessor in 1784 and a town commissioner in 1787, Steele was first elected to the North Carolina House of Commons from the Salisbury District in 1787 and served again multiple times: in 1788, 1794, 1795, 1806, and from 1811 to 1813.
[1][2] From April 19, 1790, until March 3, 1793, Steele was a member of the United States House of Representatives.
He opposed assumption of the state debt by the Federal government and the excise tax on whiskey.
[5] Steele died on August 14, 1815, in his hometown of Salisbury; that same day, he had been elected again to the North Carolina House of Commons.
[6] This article incorporates public domain material from the Biographical Directory of the United States Congress