Birth records show that Samuel Mitchell was born in the village of Aspley Guise in Bedfordshire, England. He was christened in the nearby village of Husborne Crawley on 8 September 1841.
His father was William Mitchell (perhaps from Flitwick, Bedfordshire), a matmaker and Methodist lay minister, and his mother was Eleanor Field (originally from Newton Longville, Buckinghamshire). He had 5 sisters (Susan, Mercy, Lydia, Martha and Esther) and an older brother John.
Samuel Mitchell VC 