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 died on 30 March 1869 at Mangatangi, [[Waikato]]. [[Category:Members of the New Zealand House of Representatives]] [[Category:Members of the Auckland Provincial Council]] [[Category:1784 births]] [[Category:1869 deaths]] [[Category:Settlers of South Australia]] [[Category:New Zealand MPs for Auckland electorates]] [[Category:People from London]] [[Category:English emigrants to New Zealand]] [[Category:19th-century New Zealand politicians]] [[Category:Privateers]] 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