Samuel Liddell was born on either 8 or 11 January 1854 in Hackney, London, England. His father, William M. Mathers, died while Samuel Liddell was still a boy. His mother, whose maiden name was Collins, died in 1885. He attended Bedford Grammar School, and worked in Bournemouth, Dorset, as a clerk, before moving to London following the death of his mother.