Background
Steere was born in Rollin, Michigan, the son of William Millhouse and Elizabeth Cleghorn (Beal) Steere. His mother"s cousin, Rice A. Beal—owner and publisher of the Ann Arbor Courier—agreed to pay for the expedition if Steere would write letters from his journey to be published in the Courier.
Career
He received a Bachelor of Arts from the University of Michigan in 1868 and a B. of Law in 1870. Shortly after his graduation he entered upon an extensive tour to make collections for the University Museum. He spent about eighteen months on the Amazon River and its tributaries, making collections in Zoology, Botany and Archaeology.
He crossed the Andes and continued his collections in various parts of Peru.
He then sailed for China and the island of Formosa (Taiwan). He went on another scientific expedition to the Philippines where he made an extensive collection of birds, shells, and other natural objects.
From there he continued his journey to the Moluccas, and finally returned home by way of the Suez Canal, London and Liverpool, after an absence of five years. In 1875 he received an honorary Doctor of Philosophy from the University of Michigan and commenced work as a professor
He resigned from the university in 1894 at the request of the Regents possibly because his outspoken stance on temperance had angered the local German community in Ann Arbor.
He took one final excursion in 1901, leading a group of students to the Amazon to collect specimens for the Smithsonian Institution. Steere described a number of new birds. He is commemorated in the names of a number of birds, including Steere"s liocichla Liochicla steerii, wattled broadbill Eurylaimus steerii, black-hooded coucal Centropus steerii and azure-breasted pitta Pitta steerii.