M. D. Henry Porter

Very little biographical information about M. D. Henry Porter appears to be readily available online, but surviving library and archive records do show that he was a medical doctor associated with Peterborough in the mid-19th century.

He is best known as the coauthor, with George Edwin Roberts, of Cups and Their Customs, published in 1863. The book combines recipes for compound drinks with historical notes on drinking vessels and social customs, giving it the feel of both a practical guide and a slice of Victorian cultural history.

Because reliable personal details are scarce, Porter is remembered mainly through this book rather than through a well-documented public career. Even so, Cups and Their Customs has endured through digitized library and public-domain editions, which suggests a continuing curiosity about its unusual subject and its window into 19th-century tastes.