February 1902 produced a revelation for Birch – at least in subject matter. An unusually heavy snowfall drew Birch out early, hauling a 52in x 30in canvas across frozen meadows. He painted a scene of snow melting in golden sunlight – ultimately titled The Lasty Long Streaks of Snow. This was the first of Birch's snow scenes and was accepted by the Royal Academy for their summer exhibition.

Encouraged by this success Birch invested in this subject and genre of work; a decision that proved fruitful. His snow scenes were among the subjects that brought him popular success in the early years of the century. Some of those paintings were acquired for municipal collections in, for example, Manchester and Brighton, but many were sought out and acquired by dealers and collectors and remain in private collections. A Winter’s Morning on the River is such a work.