Samuel Orgelbrand was born in 1810 in Warsaw. He attended the State Rabbinical School (Rządowa Szkoła Rabinów) in the years 1826-1830. In 1829 he began his career as a publisher, starting with translations of popular French novels. As his business grew, he became one of the most prominent publishers in Warsaw. His printing enterprise included "a printing shop, font casting shop, bindery, and stereotyping shop", and was seen as the most advanced in contemporary Poland. His works were respected for their high language and technical quality. In 1836 he opened his bookstore in Warsaw, which also served as a library; later he would open another store in Suwałki. In 1842 he founded a magazine for peasants, "Kmiotek" (The Peasant), and published it until 1850.