O. Henry
The Austin History Center is the home of a significant collection of materials relating to the popular writer O. Henry, who lived in Austin, still using his given name of William Sydney Porter, from 1885 to 1894. The O. Henry Resources of the Austin History Center are comprised primarily of materials donated by Judge Trueman E. O'Quinn and augmented by items acquired from Jenny Lind Porter, Ethel Hofer, the Maddox family, the Austin Heritage Society, and the Austin History Center Association. These resources include original typescripts, first edition books, periodicals, correspondence, manuscripts, autograph albums, photographs, sketches, maps, paintings, and furniture.
Researchers will be delighted to find two autograph albums that contain whimsical sketches and poems, one of which was written to Porter's future wife, Athol Estes. The collection includes letters written by Will Porter to associates, many involving requests for financial loans or advances.
Nearly 400 periodicals, ranging in date from 1897 through 1983, and featuring illustrated stories by O. Henry, are part of the collection. There are extensive holdings of Ainslee's, Everybody's Magazine, McClure's, The Golden Book Magazine, Bunker's Texas Monthly, and The Munsey. In addition, the History Center houses 360 books containing stories by O. Henry, some being first editions, and many bound in distinguished sets.
The more than sixty O. Henry reference works at the History Center include a transcript of Will Porter's embezzlement trial and a complete O. Henry bibliography. In addition, researchers will find a robust clippings file containing articles about O. Henry, his family, and associated people and events. Photographs in the History Center's collection depict O. Henry and his environment during his life in Austin.
O. Henry Resources Online:
Digitized O. Henry materials from the AHC collection in the Portal to Texas History
O. Henry Online Exhibit [Please note: Clicking 'About Us,' Collections,' etc. in the navigation beneath the title on this page will take you to an outdated AHC website]