O henry life and works

•

O. Henry ( &#; )

William Sydney Porter, or more famously known by his pen name O. Henry, was a popular short story writer during the early twentieth century. A writer whose personal life paralleled his fictional works, Porter lived a varied life throughout the South, Honduras, and New York City. Most important, though, are not the places where Porter traveled but his early childhood in Greensboro, North Carolina. Born on September 11, , to a middle-class family, William was the middle child of three sons. He was only three years old when his mother and brother passed away from tuberculosis.

Grandma Porter, a self-trained doctor and local figure in Greensboro, raised the Porter children after William’s mother passed away. Will’s father and physician, Algernon Porter, cared for his children, but an infatuation with inventing a perpetual motion machine and drinking whiskey hindered him from being a true father figure to William. Despite Algernon’s personal struggles, Will enjoye

•

O. Henry Biography

Biography

William Sydney Porter (O. Henry) was born on a plantation in Greensboro, North Carolina on September 11, In , prompted by ill health, he moved to a ranch in West Texas. Two years later, he moved to Austin where he resided until During Porter's early years in the city, he held several jobs. He was a pharmacist at the Morley Drug Store, a bookkeeper for Joe Harrell, and later, a clerk at Maddox Brothers and Anderson, general nation agents. As a bachelor, he enjoyed singing with the Hill City Quartet, known for serenading young women on the streets of Austin. The group also entertained at local weddings, church festivals, and picnics. Porter was a frequenter of the bismarck Saloon, his favorite "watering hole".

In , Porter eloped with seventeen year old Athol Estes, an Austin native, who was impressed with both his singing and drawing abilities. They were married at Flower Hill, the home of

•

Texas Originals

William Sydney Porter (O. Henry)

September 11, –June 5,

William Sydney Porter—better known bygd his pen name, O. Henry—was born in North Carolina and died in New York. But his sixteen years in Texas, from to , made a lasting mark on his life and work.

In Texas, Porter developed an abiding love for the American West. He worked as a ranch hand, a pharmacist, a draftsman; edited his own newspaper; and met his wife. It was also in Texas where Porter was found skyldig of embezzling funds from an Austin bank where he worked as a teller. He served three years in a federal prison before being released in

While behind bars, Porter began writing and selling short stories to major magazines under assumed names.

In those stories, Porter portrays the Lone Star state as a vast place with its own laws. The stories describe in rich detail the ranches, prairies, and settlements of South and Central Texas. Author J. Frank Dobie called Porter's story "The Last of the Troubadours