O. Henry House Museum (San Antonio)

O. Henry House Museum (San Antonio)

The O. Henry House Museum in San Antonio
O. Henry House Show map of Texas O. Henry House O. Henry House (the United States) Show map of the United States
Interactive map showing the location of O. Henry House Museum
Established	1959 (reopened May 1999)
Location	601 Dolorosa St., San Antonio, Texas
Coordinates	29°25′28″N 98°29′50″W
Type	Historic house museum
Website	O. Henry House Museum
O. Henry House
U.S. Historic district Contributing property
Recorded Texas Historic Landmark
Built	1855 (1855)
Built by	John Kush
Part of	Main and Military Plazas Historic District (ID79002914[1])
RTHL No.	2453
Significant dates
Designated CP	June 11, 1979
Designated RTHL	1964

The O. Henry House Museum is a historic house museum located in San Antonio, Texas. It is named for the American writer, William Sydney Porter, better known by his pen name O. Henry, who lived in the house in 1885.^[2]

History

The structure that became the O. Henry House museum was initially built by John Kush, a German settler in 1855. The house, built in adobe brick, was originally located at 904 South Presa Street.^[3]

William Sydney Porter, better known as O. Henry, lived in San Antonio from 1883 to 1885 after being accused of embezzlement at his job at a bank in Austin.^[4] In San Antonio, he founded a humorous magazine he named Rolling Stone.^[4] Porter rented this two-room house for $6 a month.

In 1959, the San Antonio Conservation Society, working with both the Lone Star Brewing Company and the descendants of John Kush, the original owner, purchased the home for a symbolic one dollar. This included the responsibility of moving the home within 60 days to save it from demolition. It was moved to the location of the Lone Star Brewing Company where it was part of the Buckhorn Museum collection until the breweries closure in 1997. In 1998, David Carter and the MLP partnership moved the house once more, this time to its present location at the corner of Dolorosa and Laredo Street in Downtown San Antonio.

After restoration, the home as a museum in 1999. It contains period furniture and items related to Porter's life and writings.^[4]

Works written here

While living here, Porter wrote several short stories set in San Antonio. These included "Fog in Santone", "The Higher Abdication", and "Hygeia at the Solito".^[5]

See also

• William Sidney Porter House
• List of museums in Central Texas
• National Register of Historic Places listings in Bexar County, Texas
• Recorded Texas Historic Landmarks in Bexar County

References

1. "National Register Information System". National Register of Historic Places. National Park Service. November 2, 2013.
2. "O. Henry House Museum Official Site". O. Henry House Museum. San Antonio Area Foundation. Retrieved 26 March 2015.
3. "Henry House". San Antonio Conservation Society. SA Conservation Society. Retrieved 26 March 2015.
4. Danilov, Victor J.Famous Americans: A Directory of Museums, Historic Sites, and Memorials. Scarecrow Press, 2013: 48. ISBN 978-0-8108-9186-9
5. Gertz, Stephen. "The Story of O. Henry House". Seattle Pi. Hearst Seattle Media. Retrieved 27 March 2015.

External links

• History of the Home and Porter's Time in San Antonio