The
porch was a favorite site for social gatherings at the Welty home.
Originally open, the porch was screened by Welty with some of the first money
she had earned by writing—$36 or $40 ("it was a lot in those days")
from her O. Henry Prize winnings—but the screen was blown out by Hurricane
Camille in 1969. In the summer Welty liked to go out on the porch and sit in the
swing. The family would play charades and a game called Twenty Questions; her
mother played bridge with friends there. Occasionally, when it was especially
hot, her mother would sleep there.
