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O. Henry (William Sydney Porter) (1862-1910)
 O.
Henry was the pen name of American writer William Sydney
Porterwhose clever use of twist endings in his stories
popularized the term "O. Henry Ending".
William Sidney Porter was born on the plantation "Worth Place"
in Greensboro, North Carolina.
William was an avid reader, and graduated from his aunt's
elementary school in 1876, then enrolled at the Linsey Street
High School. In 1879 he started working as a bookkeeper in his
uncle's drugstore and in 1881 – at the age of nineteen – he was
licensed as a pharmacist.
He relocated to Texas in 1882, he took a number of different
jobs over the next several years, including pharmacist,
draftsman, journalist, and clerk. While in Texas he also learned
Spanish.
In 1887 he eloped with Athol Estes, then seventeen years old and
from a wealthy family. Her family objected to the match because
both she and Porter suffered from tuberculosis. Athol gave birth
to a son in 1888, who died shortly after birth, and then a
daughter, Margaret, in 1889.
In 1894 Porter started a humorous weekly called The Rolling
Stone. Also in 1894, Porter resigned from the First National
Bank of Austin where he had worked as a teller, after he was
accused of embezzling funds. In 1895, after The Rolling Stone
ceased publication, he moved to Houston, where he started
writing for the Houston Post. Shortly thereafter, he was
arrested for embezzlement in connection with his previous
employment in Austin.
Porter was granted bond, but the day before he was due to stand
trial on July 7, 1896, he absconded to New Orleans and later to
Honduras. However, in 1897, when he learned that his wife was
dying, he returned to the United States and surrendered to the
court, pending an appeal.
Porter was found guilty of embezzlement, sentenced to five years
jail. He was released on July 24, 1901 for good behaviour
after serving three years.
Porter published at least twelve stories while in prison to help
support his daughter. Not wanting his readers to know he was in
jail, he started using the pen name "O. Henry".
He married again in 1907 to his childhood sweetheart, Sarah
Lindsey Coleman. However, despite the success of his short
stories being published in magazines and collections (or perhaps
because of the attendant pressure success brought), Porter
became an alcoholic. Sarah left him in 1909, and he died in 1910
of cirrhosis of the liver. After funeral services in New York
City, he was buried in Asheville, North Carolina. His daughter,
Margaret Worth Porter, died in 1927 and was buried next to her
father.
Most of O.Henry's stories, which are best known for their
"twist" endings, are set in his own time, the early years of the
20th century. Many take place in New York City, and deal for the
most part with ordinary people: clerks, policemen, waitresses.
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