Robert Allen Henderson was born December 13, 1942 in Chicago, Illinois, the son of Chester Earl Henderson and Mae Rowe Henderson. He left Chicago when he was five and moved to Thompson Heights in Denison, Texas. He graduated from Denison High School around 1960. He received his B. A. and Master's degrees from North Texas State University and his Ph.D. in English from University of Wisconsin, Madison. He taught at the University of Houston for five years and then returned to Thompson Heights in Denison in 1977 where he purchased property next to his parent's home. In 1979 he became a teacher at Southeastern, and received tenure in 1987. He continued to teach until the end of the 2003 semester. He passed away on December 20, 2003.

He was a skilled craftsman who did a lot of work on his home himself. "Robert was very proud of his work and home and loved to spend time creating special treasures for those he loved."