Sam Steele, who lived from 1849 to 1919, was a major player in the policing and military history of Western Canada.Sam Steele, who lived from 1849 to 1919, was a major player in the policing and military history of Western Canada. (CBC)

CBC plans to create a TV movie about Sam Steele, a member of the North-West Mounted Police and distinguished military veteran who rode out against the Red River Rebellion and fought in the Boer War.

CBC is working with the Alberta Film Development Program and Knight Enterprises to recreate the life of one of the country's most famous Mounties.

Steele, who lived from 1849 to 1919, was born into an Ontario military family and joined the North-West Mounted Police, precursors to the RCMP, in 1873.

He negotiated with the First Nations chief Sitting Bull, fought against Big Bear and solved a famous murder, before leading a force to the Klondike Gold Rush. He also led a private cavalry unit in the Boer War in South Africa and lived to serve in the First World War.

"From the Red River Expedition to the Boer War, Sir Sam Steele has been at the forefront of several monumental events around the world," Kirstine Stewart, general manager of CBC Television English Services, said Thursday in announcing the movie deal.

In 2008, the Sir Samuel Benfield Steele Collection, which includes his letters, artifacts and papers, was repatriated to Canada from his descendants in Britain. It is now housed at the Glenbow Museum in Calgary and the University of Alberta in Edmonton.

Steele was a hero in the 19th century but is little known today. Scriptwriters are expected to work on the story using his letters and papers — about 86 boxes were handed over to the University of Alberta and the Glenbow.

No production date has been announced for the movie.