After receiving an education in a Quaker school, William H. Lippincott studied at the Pennsylvania Academy of Fine Arts. He worked for a time at the Arch Street Theatre in Philadelphia (he retained an interest in scene painting throughout his life) before leaving for France in 1874. A student of L‚on Bonnat, he remained abroad for eight years, with one interruption to return to New York and Boston for portrait commissions.
By 1882, Lippincott was settled in New York City. He soon became a successful painter of children's portraits, while also working in landscape and genre. In 1883 he was hired as the professor of painting for the NAD Schools at $100 per month. His studio at the time, at 106 W. 55th St., was considered an elegant showpiece of German renaissance decor. In his later years, he perfomed many services for the Academy such as repairing paintings in the collection and donating books and works of art. Lippincott was also a member of the New York Etching Club, which he joined in 1888.
