He was born in County Cavan, Ireland and came to Canada in 1846, establishing himself as a chemist and druggist at Guelph. He served on the town council for Guelph, also serving as town mayor. He was a lieutenant-colonel for the local militia and served during the Fenian raids. Higinbotham was defeated by George Alexander Drew for the federal seat in 1878. He later served as registrar for Wellington County.