After the war, Samuel accompanied two of his Union Army comrades to Pennsylvania, where he married the sister, Maria "Louisa" Pinn, of one of the men.

Samuel's father-in-law was Robert A. Pinn, a respected African American minister, attorney, and Medal of Honor recipient.

Samuel and Louisa worked for wages and saved enough money to buy a farm outside Ercildoun, where they raised crops and ten children, including William Chester.

He tinkered with agricultural equipment based on feedback from customers and soon began designing his own devices to improve mechanical performance.

The Baler Feeder consisted of a sheet metal hopper, short conveyor, and an array of reciprocating tines, all mounted on a turntable, adaptable to the orientation of sheaf pile and barn site at each customer's farm.

Ruth's self-lifting farm elevator saw widespread adoption, including in the commercial mushroom industry next door in Chester County.

[1] In 1914, at the age of 32, Ruth took over his father's duties as spiritual leader and lay preacher at Ercildoun's Church of Christ meetinghouse, a small congregation founded by his parents decades earlier.

[3][5] On April 3, 1971, at the age of 88, Ruth was fatally injured when struck by a car while walking along Lincoln Highway near his shop in Gap.