It was named after Sir Sam Steele, the North-West Mounted Police officer in charge of the force in the Yukon during the Klondike Gold Rush.

Until the 1960s, Canadian topographical maps showed an elevation of 5,073 metres (16,644 ft),[4] which was determined in 1913 by International Boundary Commission surveyors.

[6] More recent Canadian topographical maps no longer show a spot height, and their contour lines indicate a summit elevation of 5,020±20 metres (about 16,470±60 ft).

After steady upwards progress, deteriorating weather forced them to return to Camp 8 where they waited out a five-day storm which dumped over a metre of fresh snow.

[9] On 22 July 2007 at approximately 13:25 Pacific Daylight Time, a massive avalanche took place on Mount Steele when a slab of ice with a volume of about 3,000,000 cubic metres (3,900,000 cu yd) broke loose from its north face.

[10] At 17:57 Pacific Daylight Time on 24 July 2007 – only two days after the avalanche — a massive landslide occurred on the north face of Mount Steele[10] when a 400-metre (1,312 ft) wide section of ice and rock fell.

[11] With a volume estimated at between 27,500,000 and 80,500,000 cubic metres (36,000,000 and 110,000,000 cu yd), it lasted about 100 seconds and reached a maximum speed of at least 252 kilometres per hour (157 mph).