Heath was born in 1761 in Hurcott, near Kidderminster in Worcestershire, to a family who owned paper mills in the area.

[2] Heath wrote and published a number of books on antiquarian subjects, and the topography and sights of the Wye Valley, which at the time was a popular location for tours by boat and carriage.

He was an acquaintance of Romantic poet Samuel Taylor Coleridge, and in 1801 presented a copy of his Excursion down the Wye to Viscount Nelson and Emma Hamilton when they visited the town.

[2] His publications included: Heath came to prominence in 1813 when he was amongst the leaders of a popular movement against the Dukes of Beaufort who controlled the town and the election for "Monmouth Boroughs".

Heath, together with Hezekiah Swift, a local timber merchant, employed Henry Brougham as counsel and Herbert Harris as attorney and they challenged the result of the election.