Lamorna Birch was born in Egremont in Cheshire. He was self-taught as an artist, other than for a brief period of study at the Atelier Colarossi in Paris during 1895.
He settled in Lamorna, Cornwall in 1902, and many of his most famous pictures date from this time and the beautiful Lamorna Cove is usually their subject matter.
He exhibited at the Royal Academy from 1892. He held his first one man exhibition at the Fine Art Society in 1906.
The nickname "Lamorna" was given to him by the Newlyn School artist, Stanhope Forbes, to distinguish him from Lionel Birch, who was also working in the area at that time.