O. Henry O. Henry William Sydney Porter (September 11, 1862 – June 5, 1910), better known by his pen name O. Henry, was an American short story writer. His stories are known for their surprise endings. William Sidney Porter was born on September 11, 1862, in Greensboro, North Carolina. He changed the spelling of his middle name to Sydney in 1898. His parents were Dr. Algernon Sidney Porter (1825–88), a physician, and Mary Jane Virginia Swaim Porter (1833–65). William's parents had married on April 20, 1858. When William was three, his mother died after birthing her third child, and he and his
William Porter (athlete) William Porter (athlete) William ("Bill") Franklin Porter II (March 24, 1926 – March 10, 2000) was an American track and field athlete, winner of 110-meter hurdles at the 1948 Summer Olympics. Born in Essex Township, Michigan, William Porter attended The Hill School in Pottstown, Pennsylvania and graduated class of 44'. Then attending Western Michigan University. Porter won his only AAU Championship title in 1948 in 110 m hurdles and thus qualified to the Olympic Games. Although the best American hurdler Harrison Dillard did not qualify to the Olympics, the three Americans Porter, Clyde Scott and Craig Dixon were headlong over