Samuel Benedict Christy was born on August 8, 1853, in San Francisco, California.

In 1874, he graduated from the University of California at Berkeley. In 1885, he became its Professor of Mining and Metallurgy and proceeded to organize and develop one of the leading Schools of Mining in the world. He later became Dean of the College of Mines at the University of California at Berkeley and a metallurgist and author of international distinction. In addition to his university duties, he carried on numerous laboratory researches of great interest and value to his profession. These included studies of the Monte Diablo Coals, the quicksilver deposits of California, the mines and works at Almadén, Spain, Idria, Austria, and New Almadén, California, all of which are described in his publications. In 1900, he patented an improved and valuable process for the recovery of gold and silver from dilute cyanide solutions. In 1902, Professor Christy was the recipient of the honorary degree of Doctor of Science from Columbia University. He was actively connected with the American Institute of Mining Engineers, the California Academy of Sciences, the Society for the Promotion of Engineering Education, the London Institute of Mining and Metallurgy and was an honorary member of the Chemical, Mining and Metallurgical Society of South Africa.

In 1881, he married Sarah Adele Field (1862–1958). He died on November 30, 1914, in Berkeley, Alameda, California.