Editing Sam Steele (section)

==Early military ==
Following his family's military tradition, in 1866 Steele joined the [[Canadian Militia]] during the [[Fenian raids]], first joining the [[35th Simcoe Battalion of Infantry]] and after moving to [[Clarksburg, Ontario|Clarksburg]] (near [[Collingwood, Ontario|Collingwood]]) was commissioned as an officer in the [[31st Grey Battalion of Infantry]]. Steele also participated in the [[Wolseley expedition|Red River Expedition]] in 1870 to fight the [[Red River Rebellion]] of [[Louis Riel]].<ref>{{cite web |last1=Macleod |title=The Canadian Encyclopedia |url=https://www.thecanadianencyclopedia.ca/en/article/sam-steele |website=The Canadian Encyclopedia |publisher=Historica Canada |access-date=17 January 2024}}</ref> Much to his disappointment, he arrived after the [[Métis people (Canada)|Métis]] had surrendered. The following year he joined the [[Permanent Active Militia|Permanent Force]] artillery, [[Canada|Canada's]] first regular army unit. Steele had long been fascinated by the West, devouring the works of [[James Fenimore Cooper]] in his youth. He was especially interested in the [[First Nations in Canada|First Nations]], and spent his time in the West learning from them and the Métis. However, he was assigned to [[Fort Henry, Ontario|Fort Henry]] in [[Kingston, Ontario]], for the next few years, as an instructor at the Artillery School. In 1874, Steele was initiated as a [[Freemason]] in the Lisgar Lodge No.&nbsp;2, in [[Selkirk, Manitoba]].{{citation needed|date=January 2024}}