Orton, born in Byers Green, was a university lecturer and dialectologist, best remembered as co-founder of the Survey of English Dialects. Orton developed the questionnaire for the survey together with Eugen Dieth.

During WWI Orton served as lieutenant in the Durham Light Infantry, and was badly wounded in 1918, never regaining full use of his right arm. He worked as lecturer at Uppsala (1924-28), and Armstrong College, Newcastle (1928-39), and as lecturer in charge of the department of English language at Sheffield University (1939-46). In 1947 Orton received a chair at the University of Leeds, where he taught until his retirement in 1964.