Samuel was born on 23 October 1913 in Whitechapel, London to Lithuania born parents Morris and Sarah nee Galinski and he was one of fifteen children. In 1921, Morris worked as a fruit dealer and most of the children worked in the fur trade.

Samuel married Rose Lewis (Zolowski) in October 1938 and in 1939 they were living at 154 Amhurst Road, Hackney. Samuel was listed as a shop manager and Rose was a milliner. Samuel attested in 1940 into the Royal Artillery and was serving in 90 Searchlight Regiment when he died.

Samuel drowned in the River Humber when he fell overboard from a searchlight barge. Witnesses told of hearing a splash and a shout and of holding on to Brier with a dinghy paddle and rope. A life jacket was thrown to him and he put it on but drifted away. Samuel’s body was recovered a week later. The coroner stated that he was not satisfied with the rescue attempts on hearing that a dinghy was being lowered but stopped as it was considered too dangerous. Returning a verdict of Accidental Death the coroner said that he had a feeling there was something more that could have been done to save him.