William Henderson was born around 1830 in South Carolina. Henderson worked as a laborer and resided in Cabarrus County, North Carolina. Henderson was charged with larceny on July 5, 1875, and sentenced to two years in the North Carolina State Penitentiary. Henderson was recorded in the North Carolina State Penitentiary's Descriptive Register for the Years 1869-1884 as prisoner number 1281. In the descriptive register, Henderson's race is noted as "colored." Henderson was forty-five years old when he was arrested. Henderson was noted as possessing no formal education, meaning he could not read or write at that time. During his incarceration, Henderson was leased to the Western North Carolina Railroad Company to work on railroad construction. He was discharged from the railroad on May 5, 1877.