Matthew Steele (1878-1937) was an architect, who was born in Bo'ness in 1878 and worked principally in Bo'ness. He attended Heriots School, Edinburgh in 1891 and then worked in Glasgow 1893-1905 before setting up his own practice in Bo'ness. He studied Architecture at the Glasgow and West of Scotland Technical College, 1896-1900 and his entry in a drawing competition won second prize and was published in The Builder, October 1902. Between 1893 and 1900 he probably worked as an apprentice draughtsman but his employer is not known. From 1900-1905 he worked as a draughtsman for Glasgow Corporation Telephone Company and he designed at least one telephone brochure front cover (Glasgow City Archives?). In 1905 he returned to Bo'ness to set up his own architectural practice, and buildings he designed include the Snab, the Knowe, a cottage on Dean Road, terraced houses on Kelty Avenue, Bo'ness iron Co officers, the Masonic Hall, the Hippodrome, Grangewells and many industrial, commercial and residential premises in Bo'ness, including substantial local authority housing schemes. He also taught building construction in evening classes at Anderson Academy, 1929-1932. He died suddenly in December 1937, while still running his architectural practice.
His son, Alexander Steele, who was working as an architect in Nottingham in 1937, took over two commissions on his father's death, but the practice otherwise ceased. Alexander went on to become Director of Planning for the City of Edinburgh Corporation Planning Department. A personal diary and photographs of Matthew Steele survive in family ownership.