Porter married Thelma Pauline Minton on June 10, 1955. The couple spent their honeymoon at the University of Illinois in Urbana, Illinois, while Porter pursued graduate studies. During the course of the Porters’ marriage, they had four children: Kenneth, Benita, Art, Jr., and Reginald. Art, Jr., would go on to become a noted musician in his own right, specializing in the alto saxophone.
Art Porter had a great love for family and Arkansas and consequentially did not like to travel outside of the state. In fact, he commented that, “I don’t like to travel, especially all the time.”
Porter did make a few exceptions, however. In 1977, he traveled to the World Black and African Festival of Arts and Culture in Lagos, Nigeria. And in 1991, Porter traveled to jazz festivals in Germany, Belgium, and the Netherlands with his son, jazz saxophonist Art Porter, Jr.
