Samson Mountain stands in the Sundown Wild Forest in New York's Catskill Mountains, rising above Peekamoose Road and the upper course of Rondout Creek. Van Wyck Mountain lies to its northwest and Bangle Hill to its west-southwest, placing it within the forested uplands and stream valleys that characterize this part of the Catskills. The mountain was named for General Henry A. Samson, who operated a tannery in nearby Samsonville, tying the landscape to the area's local history and economy.