Anson Dickinson was born in Milton, Connecticut, in 1779. He was the son of Oliver Dickinson, a carpenter. As a boy, he was apprenticed to Litchfield silversmith Isaac Thompson, where he may have had access to miniatures, though he apparently had no formal artistic training and he is assumed to be self-taught. He advertised as a miniature painter in a New Haven, CT newspaper in 1802, and his earliest known work is signed and dated 1803. Dickinson was influenced early on by Edward Greene Malbone, who painted him in 1804. During his nearly 50 year career as a miniaturist, Dickinson kept a record of his 1500 subjects, as well as dates, places, and some prices. He traveled widely throughout the eastern states and into Canada between 1805 and 1812 to gain commissions. After nearly a decade operating a studio in New York, he went to Washington, DC where he painted members of Congress and their families between 1827 and 1830.