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 Archer Porter Tait and lived at 38 George Square. He died in Edinburgh on 23 June 1929. He is buried with his parents and siblings in st John's churchyard at the west end of Princes Street in Edinburgh. The grave lies on one of the lower eastern terraces, behind a grey granite Celtic cross to his brother, Frederick Guthrie Tait. He bequeathed his collection of legal books to the library at One Great George Street in London. His siblings included John Guthrie Tait and Frederick Guthrie Tait. William Archer Porter Tait William Archer Porter Tait FRSE FRMS MICE (1866–1929) was a 19th/20th century