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 Field Porter William Field Porter William Field Porter (24 January 1784 – 30 March 1869) was a ship owner from Liverpool, who migrated to South Australia in 1838. He relocated to Auckland in 1841, where he became a member of the New Zealand Parliament. Porter was born in London in 1784. He was orphaned by 1796 and it is likely he commenced his career at sea shortly after. His first command was , sailing in the Liverpool to Barbados trade. Her owners, [[Barton, Irlam and Higginson specialized in that trade. Later, in the [[War of 1812]], "Tiger", still under Porter's command, was