In the middle of busy Austin is a small, unassuming house. This house is where William Sydney Porter, his wife, Athol, and their young daughter, Margaret, lived between 1893 and 1895, before he became known as O. Henry.
As I entered the house, an enthusiastic woman greeted me, ready to tell me about William Sydney Porter’s time in Austin.
After her excellent introduction, I walked from room to room, reading the informative placard and learning about his life here.
Each room contains period furnishing, décor and original etchings done by Porter. Many things belonged to Porter and his wife. One example are two wicker chairs Athol are in excellent condition.
During their time together, Porter’s life took a series of significant twists that led to his becoming a famous short story writer.
Born on September 11, 1862, near Greensboro, North Carolina, he moved to Texas in 1882 and first settled in Cotulla, where he worked on a ranch as a sheep herder. In 1884, he moved to Austin and worked at the Morley Brothers Drug Company. He also sold cigars in the Driskill Hotel.
Around 1885, he met Athol Estes, the stepdaughter of a grocery store owner. They eloped in 1887 and were married in the home of Reverend R. K. Smoot, the pastor of First Presbyterian Church. That same year, Porter began working as a draftsman at the Texas General Land Office, drawing maps from surveys and field notes. During the four years he was employed there, Athol gave birth to two children: a stillborn boy in 1888 and a daughter, Margaret, who was born in 1889.
Having left the Land Office, Porter became a teller at the First National Bank of Austin. The bank managers were corrupt, leading to errors, inconsistencies in bookkeeping, and missing funds. In 1894, these errors came to light when a federal bank examiner had a look at the books.
Arrested on embezzlement charges, Porter was released on bail and moved his family to Houston, where he worked briefly at the Houston Post. But instead of returning to Austin to stand trial, he fled to Honduras. He only returned to Austin upon learning that Athol was dying of tuberculosis.
After Athol’s death in 1897, Porter was convicted of embezzlement, and in 1898, he began a five-year sentence in federal prison in Columbus, Ohio.
During his time in prison, Porter assumed the pen name O. Henry and set about transforming himself into the famed short story writer who would go on to author such universal classics as “The Gift of the Magi,” “The Ransom of Red Chief,” and “The Cop and the Anthem.”
Upon his release from prison, Porter relocated to New York City, where he enjoyed a considerable amount of success before his death on June 5, 1910, due to complications of alcoholism.
He never spoke of his past. It wasn’t until a few years after his death that historians made the connection between William Sydney Porter and O. Henry.
From room to room, I learned about this extraordinary individual who gave us so many excellent short stories.
The museum’s mission is to collect, preserve, and interpret artifacts and archival materials related to Porter, and it is succeeding.
For information about visiting the O. Henry House, click here.
