Daisy Miller by Henry James Brief Biography of Henry James Henry James was born in New York in 1843. His parents were Henry James Sr. and Mary James. Henry James had three brothers and one sister. Henry James’ ancestor, William James, was an 18 year old Irishman who arrived in America in 1789. According to family legend, the ancestor arrived with a very small sum of money and later gained a small fortune through the establishment of a store in New York. Later, he ventured into banking and the manufacture of salt which paved his way as a powerful man in the upper Hudson area. Jamesville, New York and two streets in Albany and Syracuse were named after this legendary ancestor ( Hen