Samuel Bailey was born at Sheffield on 5 July 1791. He was the son of Joseph Bailey and Mary Eadon. His father was one of the first of those Sheffield merchants who went to the United States to establish trade connections. After a few years in his father's business, he retired with a fortune from all business concerns, with the exception of the Sheffield Banking Company, where he was chairman for many years. Although he was an avid liberal, he did not take part in political affairs very much. On only two occasions he ran for Sheffield as a "Radicals (UK)|philosophic radical", but he did not win.